Visitor Visa

The Visitor Visa Program enables people to come to Australia for a short period of time (up to 12 months) for business, a holiday or to visit family and friends.

TOURIST SHORT STAY VISAS

Australian Visitor ETA Visa (Subclass 976)

This visa is for people want to come to Australia for a short holiday and are able to be granted an online electronic visa.

eVisitors (Subclass 651)

This is for people who are outside Australia and want to visit Australia for tourism or business purposes and hold a European Union passport.

Visitor Short Stay Visa (Subclass 676)

This visa is for people want to come to Australia for a short holiday.

Family Sponsored - Visitor Short Stay Visa (Subclass 679)

This is for people that have family member resident in Australia and want to come to Australia for a short holiday.

BUSINESS SHORT STAY VISAS

Business ETA (Subclass 977)

This is for people want to come to Australia for a short period for business meetings, conventions, conferences; or a short term project requiring a high level of skill and are able to be granted an online electronic visa.

Business Short Stay (Subclass 456)

This is for people want to come to Australia for a short period for business meetings, conventions, conferences; or a short term project requiring a high level of skill.

eVisitors (Subclass 651)

This is for  people who are outside Australia and want to visit Australia for tourism or business purposes and hold a European Union passport.

Visitor ETA Visa (Subclass 976)

This visa is for people want to come to Australia for a short holiday and are able to be granted an online electronic visa.

An ETA is an electronically stored authority for travel to Australia. This visa for people who are outside of Australia and want to visit Australia for holidays, tourism, recreation, and informal studies or training.

To be eligible for this visa you must be outside of Australia, hold an ETA eligible passport and intend to visit Australia for tourism purposes only.

With this visa you can enter and leave Australia as often as you like,stay in Australia for 3 months on each visit within 12 months from the date of the grant of the visa. A separate ETA is required for each family member travelling with you to Australia.

This is the list of eligible passports to apply for an ETA online. These are citizen passports issued by the following countries.

• Brunei
• Canada
• Hong Kong (SAR)
• Japan
• Malaysia
• Singapore
• South Korea
• United States of America

European passport holders who are eligible to apply for an ETA through a travel agent, airline or specialist service provider should apply for an eVisitor if applying online.

* Holders of Taiwan passports can only be processed for an ETA if residing and applying in Taiwan. Applications can be lodged with an approved ETA Travel Agent in Taiwan or Australian Visa Services office in Taipei.

** Holders of UK passports which indicate their nationality to be British National (Overseas) can only be processed for an ETA if resident in and applying in Hong Kong.

ETA (Electronic Travel Authority) applications have replaced the traditional visa label in your passport. The ETA is issued electronically and details of approved applicants are recorded on the Australian Governments database.

• The Tourist Visa (ETA) is valid for 12 months from the date it is granted.
• You are permitted multiple stays of up to 3 months over the 12 month period.
• Applicants must be outside Australia to apply.
• You are NOT permitted to work on this visa.
• You can study in Australia on an Australia Tourist Visa (ETA) as long as the course you undertake does not exceed more than 3 months in length.

Visa Conditions

Visitors to Australia must be willing and able to abide by the visa validity and conditions while in Australia. If you do not abide by these conditions, your visa may be cancelled or you may be subject to other penalties.

• You must not work whilst in Australia. Limited volunteer work may be acceptable;
• You must not engage in any studies or training for more than three months;
• If you are at least 11 years of age and you intend to study in a class-room environment for a period greater than 4 weeks, you may be required to pass a chest x-ray examination before commencing your studies;
• You must be free from tuberculosis at the time of travel to, and entry into, Australia;
• The holder must depart within the validity of the Visitor Visa (ETA); AND
• If arriving on an ETA with criminal convictions, you could be refused entry into Australia.

Note: If you have had any criminal convictions in any country, you may wish to consider applying for a Tourist visa (subclass 676), rather than an ETA. Please note that this information is only a guidline. Should you require full advice please contact us

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eVisitor (Subclass 651)

An eVisitor is designed for people who are outside Australia and want to visit Australia for tourism or business purposes.

Tourism includes holidays, recreation and seeing family and/or friends.

Business purposes may include attending a conference, negotiation or exploratory business visit.

EVisitor applications are free, there is no application charge or service fee.

You can stay in Australia for up to three months on each visit within a 12 month period from the date of grant.

An eVisitor is an electronically stored authority for travel to Australia. You can apply for an eVisitor online and do not need to visit a departmental office. You will not receive a stamp or label in your passport, however you will be provided with a confirmation email for your records.

Passport details

Your eVisitor is linked to the passport number you use in your application and you must use the same passport to travel to Australia.

If you obtain a new passport, you must advise the department of the new passport details before you travel to Australia. Otherwise, you will experience significant delays at the airport and could be denied permission to board your plane.

Bringing family

A separate eVisitor is required for each family member travelling with you to Australia, including those who are under 18 years of age and are included on your passport.

Extending your stay

An eVisitor cannot be:

• granted while the holder is in Australia
• extended to allow a longer stay period in Australia.

If you intend to extend your stay after arriving in Australia, you should allow at least two weeks before your eVisitor expires to apply for a different type of visa. A visa may be granted if you:

• have complied with the conditions of your eVisitor
• meet all the eligibility criteria for the grant of the visa for which you are applying.

If you apply for a further visa to remain in Australia, you may be required to undergo a health examination.

To be eligible to apply for an eVisitor, you must:

• be outside Australia
• hold an eVisitor eligible passport.

eVisitor Eligible passports

Holders of a passport from the following countries must apply for an ETA through a travel agent, airline, specialist service provider or an Australian visa office outside Australia.

• Andorra
• Austria
• Belgium
• Brunei
• Canada
• Denmark
• Finland
• France
• Germany
• Greece
• Hong Kong (SAR)
• Iceland
• Ireland
• Italy
• Japan
• Liechtenstein
• Luxembourg
• Malaysia
• Malta
• Monaco
• The Netherlands
• Norway
• Portugal
• Republic of San Marino
• Singapore
• South Korea
• Spain
• Sweden
• Switzerland
• Taiwan*
• United Kingdom - British Citizen
• United Kingdom - British National (Overseas)**
• United States of America
• Vatican City

eVisitor conditions

You must comply with your eVisitor conditions while in Australia. A breach of these conditions

may result in your eVisitor being cancelled and you may have to leave Australia.

• You must not engage in any studies or training for more than three months.
• You must be free from tuberculosis at the time of travel to, and entry into, Australia.
• You must not have any criminal convictions, for which the sentence or sentences are for a total period of 12 months duration or more (whether served or not), at the time of travel to, and entry into, Australia.

If you apply for an eVisitor for business purposes, you must not:

• work in Australia except in strictly limited circumstances, for example if the work is highly specialised and non ongoing
• undertake work in Australia that can be done by an Australian citizen or permanent resident

If you apply for an eVisitor for tourist purposes:

• You must not work whilst in Australia. Limited volunteer work may be acceptable.

Volunteer work tourism schemes

In general terms, you may be able to work as a volunteer whilst on an eVisitor if:

• your main purpose in visiting Australia is tourism, and any voluntary work remains incidental to tourism
• the work involved would not otherwise be undertaken, in return for wages, by an Australian resident
• the work is genuinely voluntary and no remuneration is received in return for the activities

Note: It is acceptable, under the conditions of an eVisitor, to receive meals, accommodation and or reimbursement of out-of-pocket living expenses in return for voluntary work.

Criminal convictions

If you have had any criminal convictions in any country, you may wish to consider applying for a Tourist visa (subclass 676), rather than an eVisitor. If arriving on an eVisitor with criminal convictions, you could be refused entry into Australia.

Repeat visits

An eVisitor is not designed to allow repeated extended stays in Australia. If you wish to spend long periods in Australia for tourism or business purposes, you may wish to consider applying for a Tourist visa (subclass 676) or an alternate visa that suits your purposes.

Health insurance

It is recommended that you take out health insurance for yourself and your family members each time you travel to Australia. You will not be covered by Australia´s national health scheme, unless your country has a reciprocal health care agreement with Australia. Reciprocal medical arrangements exist with some countries.

Note: Holders of a British National Overseas (BNO) passport are not eligible to apply for an eVisitor. For information on an appropriate visa:

• If you are granted a different visa, it will cease your eVisitor and its entitlements.
• If a decision has not been made on your application before your eVisitor expires, you will be able to remain lawfully in Australia until the visa application is finalised.
• If your visa application is refused, and you have not appealed this decision, you must depart Australia before the expiry date of your authorised stay period.

Should you require further advice or you want to apply contact us.

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Visitor Short Stay (Subclass 676)

If you are planning on travelling to Australia for more than 3 months you will need to apply for the subclass 676 visa. The main reason for your visit should be for recreation or to visit family and/or friends. It can also be used for other short-term, non work purposes, including study for less than 3 months.

The subclass 676 visa will allow you a stay in Australia of up to three (3) or six (6) or 12 months. The visa will be valid on your passport for twelve months, allowing you the twelve months from the date of issue to enter into the country to start the duration of your visa.

The subclass 676 visa will allow you to:

• Stay in Australia of up to three (3) or six (6) or 12 months.
• Make a single or multiple entry visits into Australia from the date of issue.
• Study up to 3 months

 Should you require further advice or you want to apply contact us.

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Family Sponsored - Visitor Short Stay (Subclass 679)

This visa allows people to travel to Australia to take a holiday or visit their family.

The applicant must have an eligible relative in Australia or an Australian Government official willing to sponsor them. The sponsor provides a guarantee that their visitor will leave Australia before the visa expires. Support from the sponsor is taken into account by the visa decision-maker.

This visa is for you if you want to visit your family in Australia or to holiday in Australia for reasons other than business or medical treatment. You must be outside Australia when you apply for this visa. You can visit Australia once, usually to stay for a period of up to three (3) months or six (6) months, but in certain circumstances a stay of 12 months may be granted. While in Australia you can visit family and/or friends, engage in tourist activities and/or study for up to three (3) months.

This type of visa application must be sponsored by a family member of the applicant.

For applicants 70 years of age or older you must provide evidence from your doctor that you are fit to travel and evidence that you have health insurance to cover your stay in Australia.

Should you require further advice or you want to apply contact us.

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