We’re your trusted visitor visa lawyers
Planning travel to Australia for a holiday or business and unsure which visitor visa or working holiday visa you need? Our expert immigration lawyers for visitor visas will take you through the requirements for your visitor visa and be by your side throughout the application process and beyond.
What is a visitor visa?
A visitor visa is a temporary visa that allows people to travel to Australia as tourists, for work and holidays.
There are four main streams for visitor visas:
- Tourist stream: For people planning a holiday in Australia, to go on a cruise, to visit family and friends, or for purposes other than business or medical treatment. Visitors can get up to a 3, 6 or 12 month visa.
- Business visitor stream: For those who are visiting Australia on short business trips (up to 3 months) – but you can’t work or sell goods or services. Those who wish to work while in Australia should look into the possibility of a working holiday visa.
- Sponsored family stream: For people who are sponsored, usually by an eligible family member who is an Australian citizen or permanent resident, to visit family. Visitors can stay in Australia for up to 12 months.
- Approved Destination Status stream: For citizens from certain areas of China visiting Australia on a tour organised by an approved travel agent.
Other streams include:
- Frequent traveller stream: For citizens of the People’s Republic of China, Brunei, Cambodia, Philippines, Laos, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam or Timor Leste who regularly travel to Australia for tourism or business visitor activities. May be granted for up to 10 years. You can stay up to 3 months each time you enter.
- Subclass 601 Electronic Travel Authority (ETA) visa: You must have an ETA eligible passport. This visa allows you to visit Australia on an unlimited basis in a 12-month period. You can stay up to three months each time you enter Australia.
- Subclass 651 eVisitor visa: You must have an eligible passport. This visa allows you to visit Australia on an unlimited basis in a 12-month period. You can stay up to three months each time you enter Australia.
Why work with an expert visitor visa lawyer?
- Your visitor visa lawyer will have experience in all visa subclasses and visa refusals.
- An immigration lawyer for visitor visas can assess your eligibility for the different types of visitor visas and find the right visa for you, based on your circumstances and what you plan to do in Australia.
- Doing your visitor visa application yourself puts you at risk of making potentially irreversible errors.
- Your visitor visa lawyer will be fully informed of the law, regulations, policy, Review Tribunal and case law decisions. Applying the law is critical; just knowing it isn’t sufficient.
- Each visa application is different and your PAX visitor visa lawyer will treat it as such.
- Your dedicated PAX visitor visa lawyer will manage your case from start to finish, and be available anytime for questions.
Our promise to you
- We get things right the first time, helping you avoid mistakes on visitor visa applications that lead to costly and stressful refusals or delays.
- We’ll provide you with professional support and immigration assistance to lighten the burden of your legal matters, so you can focus on what matters.
- We’re considerate of your financial circumstances. Our visitor visa immigration lawyers provide you with accurate and fair visa costs throughout the legal process.
- Ethics and integrity underpin everything we do at our law firm, from the corporate clients we service to the quality of work we deliver.
The Australian visitor visa process
Some of the things we do as your immigration lawyer for a visitor visa include:
- Develop a strategy: We make sure you are applying for the best visa for you and that you will meet the requirements when the time comes to lodge your application
- Complete analysis of visa eligibility
- Tailored guidance on how to obtain the documentary evidence for your application
- Guidance on police checks, sponsor applications and health checks including when to arrange for them
- Guidance on bridging visas (for our onshore clients) and work conditions on visas
- Lodgement of your application on time and complete before any deadline
- Deal with the Department of Immigration on your behalf
Depending on the type of visa you’ve applied for, the processing time can take anywhere from 5 to 70 days. Working with a visitor visa lawyer can help you avoid costly delays, reduces your risk of errors and makes your application process more efficient.
FAQs
“The right visitor visa for you will depend on your country of passport or citizenship and your purpose in visiting Australia,” says Mario Amor, Principal Lawyer at PAX Law and a solicitor member of the Law Society of New South Wales.
“For example, if you hold an ETA eligible passport, the Subclass 601 Electronic Travel Authority (ETA) visa may be the right visitor visa for you. Or, if you’re visiting Australia for business, then you may like to consider a Subclass 600 Visitor Visa under the Business visitor stream. Your PAX immigration lawyer can help you to identify the best visa for your travel.”
There are several eligibility criteria that will be considered by the Department of Home Affairs when reviewing your visa application:
- You must have an eligible passport.
- You must be outside Australia when you apply for your visa until it has been approved.
- You must meet the Genuine Temporary Stay (GTS) requirement – this means you only intend to stay in Australia temporarily and will follow your visa conditions.
- You should have access to enough funds to support your stay.
- You must pass the health and character requirements – meaning you should be free of any diseases that may cause a public health risk or place a significant burden on Australian healthcare, and also demonstrate good character.
Other requirements may apply depending on which visa stream you are applying for. Your PAX visitor visa lawyer will be able to help you gather documents to support your application and understand which requirements apply to you.
“The length of time you can stay in Australia on a visitor visa will depend on the type of visitor visa that you apply for,” says Mario Amor, Principal Lawyer at PAX Law and a solicitor member of the Law Society of New South Wales.
“The period of stay in Australia can range from 3 months up to 10 years. Commonly, a multiple entry visa is issued, allowing you to enter Australia for a maximum of 3 months for each stay,” says Mario.
“Depending on your circumstances and what you want to do in Australia, you may be eligible for a further visa to stay in Australia once your visitor visa expires,” says Mario Amor, Principal Lawyer at PAX Law and a solicitor member of the Law Society of New South Wales.
“There are certain restrictions, however, that apply in specific circumstances. For example, you can’t apply for a student visa while you’re onshore in Australia and you hold a Visitor visa. In this case, the visa applicant will need to depart Australia and apply from offshore,” says Mario.
“No, you cannot work in Australia if you hold a visitor visa,” says Mario Amor, Principal Lawyer at PAX Law and a solicitor member of the Law Society of New South Wales. “You can’t work for or provide services to a business or organisation based in Australia, or sell goods or services directly to the public.”
“You can conduct certain business activities in Australia if you hold a Subclass 600 Visitor Visa under the business visitor stream, which allows you to make general business or employment enquiries; investigate, negotiate, enter into or review a business contract; conduct activities as part of an official government visit; or take part in a conference, trade fair or seminar.
If you’re visiting Australia to work, you may consider a work visa.
“No, you cannot include family members in your visitor visa application. A separate application must be made for each member of your family,” says Mario Amor, Principal Lawyer at PAX Law and a solicitor member of the Law Society of New South Wales.
Most visitor visas are designed for people who are visiting Australia as tourists or to see family and friends. There are visa streams for other purposes, like the business visitor stream, or the Approved Destination Status stream for certain travellers visiting Australia on a tour organised by an approved travel agent. Our visitor visa lawyers will be able to help you find the visitor visa that best suits your needs.
Meet the PAX Law Team
PAX Law founders Mario and Constantine are respected thought leaders in Australian immigration law, and lead our team with the highest standards of ethics and integrity. We recognise the level of trust you place in us and provide emotional support throughout the entire visa process.
Mario Amor
Principal Solicitor
Constantine Paxinos
Director
Christina Paxinos
Practice Manager
Natalia Zambrano
Assistant
Hear from our clients
Next steps
Fill in the below form to book a personalised, one-on-one consultation with one of our expert immigration lawyers for visitor visas. We can meet online or in person at our Sydney or Adelaide offices.
The personalised consultation costs $330 (this includes GST) and we’ll credit this fee against the overall price for the visa process. During the hour-long consultation, you’ll receive a genuine analysis of your case and personalised advice to help you understand your strategy, risks, timelines, costs, and pros and cons of different options.
Together, we’ll work to achieve your immigration goals and secure your future in Australia.
Book a consultation