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Category: All Blogs

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All BlogsBlogsBy Bharti

How To Extend Tourist Visa – Australia

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TL;DR: 

  • This blog is aimed at tourists, visitors, and non-citizens in Australia who are planning to extend their stay and need guidance on legally extending a tourist or visitor visa.

  • Before applying for an extension, verify your current visa’s conditions using VEVO or the ETA portal to ensure you are eligible and do not have a “No Further Stay” restriction.

  • Understand the different visa options available, including applying for a new visa or using Bridging Visas (A or B) to remain in Australia legally while your application is processed.

  • Extensions must be applied for through the official ImmiAccount portal, providing required documents like passport, funds proof, health insurance, and reasons for extending your stay.

  • Overstaying a visa can lead to detention, deportation, and bans on future visas; always apply before your current visa expires and plan according to processing times and fees.

Introduction

If you’re planning to stay longer in Australia than originally intended, you might be wondering how to extend your tourist visa in Australia. Whether it’s for tourism, visiting family, or attending events, understanding the correct process is essential to remain compliant with Australian immigration laws. Overstaying your visa can lead to serious consequences, including detention, deportation, and restrictions on future visa applications. This guide will walk you through the steps, options, and requirements for legally extending your stay in Australia, helping you plan your visit safely and smoothly.

Know more about extending your stay in Australia:

How To Extend Tourist Visa in Australia

If your plans have changed and you wish to stay in Australia longer than you initially assumed, you may be wondering how to extend a tourist visa in Australia or extend a visitor visa in Australia. Many travelers also ask, “Can I extend my tourist visa in Australia?” or “Can you extend a tourist visa in Australia?”

Overstaying your visa is not a sensible option, and it’s recommended that you do everything possible to avoid it. Remaining in Australia after your visa has ended will make you an unlawful non-citizen. Illegal non-citizens may face detention and deportation and could be banned from applying for an Australian visa in the future.

Know How to Extend Your Australian Visa: Steps to Take

There are several options for travelers who want to extend tourist visa in Australia legally. Different visas will have different procedures, so it’s important to understand which option applies to your situation.

Check Your Visa Conditions

Before applying for an extension, tourists must gather accurate and complete information about their current visa. Key questions to consider include:

  • When will my visa expire?
  • What are my Australian visa conditions?
  • Are there any conditions in my visa that prevent me from applying for a new visa?

You can easily check the status and conditions of most visas online. For those seeking an Australia ETA extension or an Australian e-Visitor extension, this step is essential.

Use the official portals such as VEVO (Visa Entitlement Verification Online) and the Check an ETA service to verify your visa details.

If your visa has a condition stating that further stay is prohibited (e.g., “No Further Stay”), you will be required to leave Australia before your visa expires. While you can apply for a new visa from abroad, you cannot extend your existing visa within Australia.

Study Your Visa Options

Once you have confirmed that you are eligible to extend a tourist visa in Australia or extend a visitor visa in Australia, you can explore your options and submit a new visa application before your current visa expires.

Some visas can act as pathways to other visas. This means your current visa may give you opportunities that applicants outside Australia do not have and might even be a requirement for your next visa.

If your situation does not allow this, you can research all visas available to see which ones let you stay for the duration you need and for which you meet the eligibility criteria.

Applying for a new visa before your current visa ends will usually grant you a Bridging Visa A, a temporary visa that allows you to remain in Australia legally while your new application is being processed.

Apply Online via ImmiAccount

To extend a tourist visa in Australia or extend a visitor visa in Australia, you need to apply online through the Department of Home Affairs’ ImmiAccount portal. When applying, you will generally need to provide:

  • A valid passport
  • Evidence of sufficient funds to support your stay
  • Health insurance documents (if required)
  • A genuine reason for wanting to extend your stay

Important: Do not leave Australia while on a Bridging Visa A. Leaving the country will cancel the visa, and you won’t be able to return without a new visa.

If you need to leave temporarily, you can apply for a Bridging Visa B, which permits you to travel and return to Australia while your new visa application is under assessment.

Be Aware of Processing Times and Costs

Processing times for extending a tourist visa in Australia or extending a visitor visa in Australia can vary, but they generally take a few weeks. The cost depends on the visa type; for example, the Visitor Visa (Subclass 600) starts from AUD $190+.

It is always recommended to apply for a new visa before your current visa expires to avoid complications and ensure a smooth transition.

What to Do if Your Australian Visa Has Expired

The options for travelers who overstay their visa are very limited, as they have violated their visa conditions and Australian immigration laws. The Australian government expects tourists to leave before their visa expires and considers overstayers as unlawful non-citizens.

If you have stayed in Australia after your visa expired, it is highly unlikely that you will be granted a Bridging Visa or that your expired visa can be extended.

Your best course of action is to leave Australia immediately to comply with immigration regulations. If you wish to return, you will need to apply for a new visa from outside Australia.

In cases where you need assistance, your consulate or embassy can provide legal or financial guidance.

FAQs 

Q1: How to extend tourist visa in Australia?

To extend your stay, you generally need to apply for a new visa before your current tourist visa expires. You can apply online through the Department of Home Affairs website, and depending on your circumstances, you may be granted another Visitor Visa (subclass 600) or a Bridging Visa.

Q2: How to extend a visitor visa in Australia?

If you’re already in Australia on a visitor visa and want to stay longer, you must check your visa conditions first using VEVO. If your visa does not have a “No Further Stay” condition (8503, 8534, or 8535), you can submit an application for a new visa online before your current visa expires.

Q3: Can I extend my tourist visa in Australia?

Yes, you can extend a tourist visa in Australia, but only if your visa does not have a “No Further Stay” condition. You must apply for a new visa before your current one expires to remain compliant with Australian immigration laws.

Q4: Can you extend a tourist visa in Australia after it expires?

No, you cannot extend or apply for a new visa after your tourist visa has expired. If your visa expires while you are still in Australia, you may become unlawful. To avoid this, always apply for a new visa before your current one runs out.

Q5: Can you extend a tourist visa in Australia if you’re on a Visitor Visa (Subclass 600)?

Yes, eligible travelers on a Visitor Visa (Subclass 600) can extend a visitor visa in Australia by applying for another Subclass 600 visa before their current visa expires.

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All BlogsIELTSIELTS CoachingIELTS PracticeBy Bharti

5 IELTS MYTHS THAT CAN MISGUIDE YOU

5 IELTS MYTHS THAT CAN MISGUIDE YOU

If you have been getting ready to give your IELTS exam in the near future, you might want to take a quick look at this article to help you differentiate between what is really going to be helpful to you. 

And what are just useless and untrue statements that will lead you astray. 

It is quite common for lot of people to fall for these tricks, so it’s important to remember that a lot of what you find online is often just a myth.

In this article, we will debunk 5 major IELTS myths that can confuse and mislead you in your genuine practise towards getting a high band score in your exam.

Myth 1: British/American accents help you score more

IELTS is an English language test, hence there is an assumption that speaking with a British or American accent will give the candidate an advantage when it comes to their speaking scores. 

However, a fake foreign accent is not the way to success.

In fact, it will most likely cause you to be less accurate in your speech and make you lose points because using your energy focusing on your accent will lead to your fluency and coherence decreasing. 

You should try to be as clear as possible, no matter where you are from or what accent you have. There are no evaluation criteria for accents, but there is for fluency, precision of topic, grammatical sense and pronunciation. 

Rather than focusing on your accent, focus on how to pronounce each word as accurately as possible. This means you need to pay attention to sounds, intonation and sentence structures.  

In order to improve your pronunciation, try to practise saying words and sentences out loud. Repeating what you hear from native speakers and imitating their exact tone can help improve your own pronunciation as well.

Myth 2: Grammar is the only thing that matters

In the speaking test, there are four evaluation criteria; Fluency and coherence, Lexical resource, Grammatical range and accuracy, and Pronunciation. 

All four of these have the same weightage and are just as important as the others. Just being good at any one will not give you a great advantage. 

This holds true for grammar as well. Many people think that if they have the basic English grammatical sense, that it will be easy for them to score in this section. 

However, good grammar will only give you a fourth of the marks you need to do well. If your goal is a 7+ band in speaking, then you will need to practise a great deal on the other criteria as well. 

This is especially true for your vocabulary. Knowing more words and using them correctly can show that you have good fluency. 

Using connectors in your speech (e.g., Firstly, secondly, lastly, moreover, in addition, therefore, so as to etc.) can help with its overall structure and can help you speak in an organised manner. 

Myth 3: Speak faster without hesitation to get a high score

Vocabulary and grammar can assist with your fluency but you also need to make sure that you are speaking coherently. What that means is that in addition to speaking in English, you also need to speak in a logical manner. 

You have to be understood by the examiner in order to receive a good score. 

If you speak fast to show that you know a lot about the topic, but find yourself not making much sense, then you need to change the way you are attempting your speech. The examiner’s impression of you will not be a good one. 

When you practise speaking, try to avoid hesitation. However, do not do that by increasing the pace at which you speak. A certain level of hesitation is normal, you can take a breath and talk as you normally would. 

Myth 4: Computer based exam is harder than the paper based alternative

Some people tend to believe that for the IELTS exam, it is always better to do the paper-based test rather than the computer-based one, due to the increased difficulty in attempting the computer-based one. 

This is a complete myth; the difficulty of each test only depends on the skills of the person attempting it. There are no reasons within the test itself that can be blamed for low scores. 

The type of questions in every exam will remain the same. 

However, if you know that you prefer typing over writing and are comfortable with technology, then the computer-based exam would be better for you. 

In contrast, if you are more confident writing as compared to typing, then the paper-based test will be easier for you. 

You can play by your strengths and take advantage of your skills, rather than thinking that one exam is just purely more difficult than the other.

Myth 5: Writing more will lead to high scores

A common and misleading assumption about the IELTS is that the more you write, the higher your scores will be. IELTS is a test that will assess your language skills. 

This is judged not by the number of words you write, but rather the quality of what you are writing. There is no easy trick such as “write 10% more than required” to get you a good score. 

When the question offers a word limit for the answer, you should try your best to follow that limit. 

This doesn’t mean you need to be exact and absolutely cannot write fewer or more words, but the general idea is to match your content to the needs of the question. 

However, do not write below the word limit either, that can lead to a loss in marks. 

CONCLUSION

The IELTS is not a difficult test. With enough practise and dedication, anyone can score a high band. 

Avoid the above myths and misconceptions as much as you can, and rather spend your time focused on how you can actually improve your score. 

It is always advisable that you get good training from experts in the field, so that you can not only practise extensively but so that you can also receive adequate feedback in your speaking and writing abilities. 

At A One Australia, we consider our team to be our strongest asset. Our tutors have helped more than 20,000 students with the best PTE Coaching to get the scores they desired, and continue to do so every day. 

Not only are they completely competent in what they teach, they are passionate about providing all the support that our client’s need. 

Our feedback is always on a one-to-one basis, and we prioritise your need in order to make sure you get the scores you want. 

We are here to give you the best chance possible to secure a score you can be proud of. Use the tips and techniques above to help practise for your test, and if you still need more help, we are here to provide that for you. 

We provide a detailed and in-depth IELTS coaching course if you are looking for assistance before your IELTS exam. 

People find it easier to get coaching as it makes the process easier and you can ensure getting a good grade in the first attempt. Check out our IELTS course here: https://oneaustraliagroup.com/ielts-coaching/

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