Electronic Visas (Australia)

Electronic Visas (Australia)

From 2013 citizens of all countries will be able to apply for tourist visas online.

• New Zealand

Citizens of New Zealand can enter Australia, live and work indefinitely if they present a valid New Zealand passport, and met the following conditions; no criminal convictions, no untreated tuberculosis and have not been deported, excluded or removed from any country. Qualifying New Zealand citizens are issued with a Special Category Visa on arrival at any Australian port, unless they already hold another type of Australian visa.

Electronic visas are issued by the Department of Immigration and Citizenship to some foreign nationals for entry into Australia. Unlike ordinary visas, when electronic visas are issued, no stamp or other documentation is affixed inside the traveller's passport; the computer-based system links the passport number to the electronic visa and is accessible by immigration officials and airline carriers.

Holders of 44 different passports are eligible for the Electronic Travel Authority (ETA) and/or eVisitor, which is a subset of the ETA for European nations:

As of June 2007, more than 23 million people had been granted ETAs and ETAs accounted for almost 80% of all Australian tourist and short-term business visas granted worldwide.

An Electronic Travel Authority (ETA) is an authorisation for entry to Australia available to holders of certain passports. Established in 1996 to remove the need for some people to apply for full visas, they can be applied for over the Internet, through travel agents and through airlines. Unless there is some problem with the application, the ETA is granted immediately.

ETAs are issued by the Australian Department of Immigration and Citizenship in three different types:

• Short validity tourist ETA (Subclass 976)
• Short validity business entrant ETA (Subclass 977)
• Long validity business entrant ETA (Subclass 956) - can only be obtained through a travel agent, airline, specialist service provider or an Australian visa office outside Australia, not online.

The short validity tourist and business entrant ETAs are each valid for 1 year or until the date of expiry of the passport (whichever is sooner). The long validity business entrant ETA is valid for the life of the holder's passport. All three types allow entry as often as desired during the validity of the ETA for stays of up to three months (and for a stay up to three months beyond the expiration of the ETA provided entry is during the validity period).

All ETAs permit the holder to study or engage in training in Australia for up to 3 months. Holders of the short validity tourist ETA (subclass 976) are not allowed to work, although limited volunteer work is acceptable. Holders of the short validity and long validity business entrant ETA (subclasses 977 and 956 respectively) are generally not allowed to work, although they are allowed to engage in limited work if, for example, it is highly specialised and not ongoing (generally less than 6 weeks).

At the time of travel to, and entry into, Australia, all holders of an ETA (regardless of which subclass) must be free from tuberculosis and must not have any criminal convictions for which the sentence or sentences (whether served or not) total 12 months or more.