Tourist Stream – Apply outside Australia

Conditions

As the visa applicant, you must,

• intend to come to Australia to visit only
• have enough money for your stay in Australia
• not work in Australia

Eligibility

• You must be outside Australia when you apply and when a decision is made on your application.
• You must be a genuine visitor.
  • You must intend to:
    • stay only temporarily in Australia
    • do only the things the visa allows you to do
• You must have, or have access to, enough money to support yourself while you are in Australia.
• It is recommended you take out health insurance to cover any unforeseen medical treatment you might need in Australia. You are personally liable for all your healthcare costs while you are in Australia.
• You must meet all the health and character requirements
• You must not have any debt to pay to the Australian government. If you or any family members (including those who do not apply for the visa with you) owe the Australian Government money, you or they must have paid it back or arranged to pay it back.
• If you are 18 years of age or older, you must: have read, or had explained to you, the Life in Australia AND confirm you will respect the Australian way of life and obey Australian laws when you sign an Australian Values Statement
• It must be in the best interests of an applicant under 18.

Note: If you have had a visa cancelled or previous application refused, you may not be granted a visa.

Visa Benefits

• visit family or friends
• be here as a tourist, for a cruise or any purpose except business or medical treatment

You can study or train for up to 3 months in total on this visa. But if your main reason for travelling to Australia is studying, a student visa might be more appropriate. Consult with our certified education agents to explore your visa options.

Notes for Parents of Australian Citizens or permanent residents

If you are the parent or step-parent of an Australian citizen or permanent resident and you meet all the visa criteria, DoHA might consider granting you a visa for longer than 12 months. The length of the visa depends on the documents included in your visa application and DOHA considers your application on a case-by-case basis.

DOHA might grant a visa that lasts up to:

• 18 months if you have not previously travelled to Australia and either:
  • have not applied for a Parent visa
  • have applied for a Parent (Migrant) visa (subclass 103) but are not yet in the queue
• 3 years if you are outside Australia, have previously held an Australian visa and complied with the visa conditions, and either:
  • have not applied for a Parent visa
  • have applied for a Parent (Migrant) visa (subclass 103) but are not yet in the queue
• 5 years if you are outside Australia and in the Parent (Migrant) visa (subclass 103) queue

If you are granted a visa that is valid for 18 months, 3 years or 5 years, your visa might have these extra conditions:

• you can’t stay in Australia for more than 12 months in total in any 18 months
• you must have adequate arrangements for health insurance while you are in Australia
• you can’t apply for another visa within Australia, except for a protection visa.

General Notes

• This is a temporary visa. You can stay for the period or dates specified on the visa grant letter. DoHA can grant this visa with one entry or multiple entries. If you are granted a visa with multiple entries, you can leave and re-enter Australia on the visa while it is valid. If your visa is granted with a single entry and you leave Australia, you can’t re-enter on the visa. You have to apply for another visa to come back.
• You might be able to submit a request to fast-track your visa application if you hold a passport from the People’s Republic of China (but not Hong Kong or Macau) OR India OR the United Arab Emirates. Fast-tracking your application costs AUD1,000 in addition to the visa application charge.
• You can’t include family members in your application. A separate application must be made for each member of your family, including those listed on your passport.
• It is a condition of this visa that you don’t stay in Australia for a total of more than 12 months in 18 months. If you currently hold a Visitor visa, a Working Holiday visa, a Work and Holiday visa or a bridging visa, and grant of this visa would mean you stay in Australia for more than 12 consecutive months, you will need to show there are exceptional circumstances.