At a glance
- Visa type
- TemporaryStays of 3, 6 or 12 months
- Streams
- Tourist, Sponsored Family, Business Visitor, Approved Destination StatusFour in total
- Work
- Not permitted on any visitor visaBreaching this risks cancellation and exclusion
- Study
- Up to three months may be permittedIf study is the main purpose, a student visa fits better
- Our fee
- AUD 600AUD 400 for a parents visitor application
Subclass 600
Four streams, and the stream matters
People treat the visitor visa as a form-filling exercise, which is why refusals surprise them. The assessment is about whether you are a genuine visitor who will leave, and whether you can support yourself. Choosing the right stream is the first part of answering that well.
Tourist stream
Holidays, recreation, or visiting family and friends. Lodged either onshore or from outside Australia, and the requirements differ slightly between the two.
Sponsored Family stream
Where an Australian citizen or permanent resident formally sponsors the visitor. Sponsorship can strengthen an application that would otherwise struggle, and it carries obligations for the sponsor.
Business Visitor stream
Short business visits — meetings, negotiations, conferences. Not for working.
Approved Destination Status stream
For organised tour groups from approved countries, travelling with an approved tour operator.
Eligibility
What decides a visitor visa
The rules are short. The judgement calls are where applications are won and lost.
- 01
A genuine intention to visit temporarily
And to leave at the end of the stay. This is the central question, and everything else is evidence for or against it.
- 02
Adequate means of support
Enough funds for you and any family travelling with you, including health insurance where required. Where the money came from matters as much as the balance.
- 03
A reason to return home
Employment, property, family and other ties that make it credible you will go back.
- 04
No work in Australia
Work is not permitted on any visitor visa. Working in breach can lead to cancellation and an exclusion period.
- 05
Health and character
Requirements apply, and can involve examinations depending on your circumstances and intended stay.
- 06
A sponsor, for the Sponsored Family stream
With the obligations that come with sponsoring.
How we work
What we actually do for you
You should know whether an application is viable before you spend money on it. If it is not yet, we say so and set out what would change that.
- 01
Pick the stream deliberately
Tourist or Sponsored Family is the usual choice for family visits, and it changes what evidence helps.
- 02
Build the genuine-visitor case
Ties at home, purpose of the visit, and a plausible plan. This is the part templates cannot do for you.
- 03
Get the financial evidence right
Source and history of funds, not just a closing balance.
- 04
Lodge with a covering explanation
Where circumstances need context — a previous refusal, a long intended stay, a complicated family situation — explain it rather than hope it is not noticed.
- 05
If refused, get advice quickly
Reapplying without addressing the reason for refusal usually produces the same result.
Where it goes wrong
Why these applications fail
Refusals are rarely a surprise in hindsight. These are the patterns we see most, and all four are avoidable with advice before lodgement rather than after a decision.
A weak genuine-visitor case
Strong ties at home are the heart of the application. Applicants with few ties and family already in Australia need to address that directly, not avoid it.
Funds that appeared recently
A large deposit shortly before lodging raises exactly the question you do not want asked. Show history.
Working on a visitor visa
Not permitted, and it can lead to cancellation and an exclusion period that affects future applications for years.
Reapplying without changing anything
A refusal is information. Reapplying with the same evidence tends to confirm it.
Fees
What we charge
General information, not personal advice. This page explains how the visa works in general terms. It is not immigration assistance for your circumstances, and reading it does not create a client relationship.
Requirements, thresholds, charges and processing priorities change. The Department of Home Affairs is the authority on current settings, and we confirm them against your case in a consultation. Reviewed August 2026.
Advice on this page is provided by a MARA-registered migration agent, MARN 1793706. In Australia only registered agents may lawfully give immigration assistance for a fee.
Migration agent consultation
60 minutes, in person or online
Full assessment of your options with customised advice. Credited towards your visa professional fee if you proceed.
AUD 150Free for Scholar Hub students
Visitor Visa (Subclass 600)
Our professional fee
Document preparation, drafting and lodgement, and responses to the Department through to a decision.
AUD 600AUD 400 for a parents visitor application
Our professional fees only. They exclude Department of Home Affairs visa application charges, skills assessment fees, English test fees and medical examinations.
See the full pricing page for other services.
Related pathways
Other visas we advise on
Most people are choosing between two or three of these. The immigration services page compares them side by side.
Sponsored Parent
870Up to five years for a parent, no balance of family test, and no work rights.
Parent visas
FamilyAll the parent pathways compared, including the queues nobody warns you about.
Student visa
500Full-time study with a registered provider, and the Genuine Student test.
Partner onshore
820/801Applied for in Australia, decided in two stages. The 801 is not automatic.
Questions
What people ask
General guidance only, and policy changes. Your own circumstances are assessed in a consultation.