How to Quickly Apply Online for an Australian Visa

G’Day Mates! We just came back to the Philippines from Australia where we toured Sydney, Canberra, and Melbourne!

Our idea to visit Australia came about in December 2017 when we wanted to visit a relative by 2018 and perhaps celebrate our wedding anniversary in Australia as well, if possible. We thought at first that it might take a long time to get an Australian visa (more specifically Australian Tourist Visa). Surprisingly, it took us only less than a week to apply and receive the visa grant.

How to Apply Online for an Australian Visa

We applied for a Tourist Visa in Australia primarily to celebrate our 5th year wedding anniversary at ‘The Land Down Under’ and second, to visit a close relative in Canberra, the capital of Australia.

We heard a lot of stories – how difficult to apply for an Australian visa. But to make the long story short, we were granted the visa 3 days after submission. However, our planned trip in February was moved to a later date due to personal reasons.

Here are the steps how to get Tourist Visa in Australia. Take note that this is for those who holds a Philippine Passport, living outside Australia, and will be doing it online via the Internet.

• 1. Visit the website https://online.immi.gov.au and create an online account.

Make sure to use an updated email where you would want to receive correspondents and updates regarding your visa application.

In the application, there’s an option for  “group and individual application“, we ticked  the individual application.

• 2. Choose “Tourist Visitor (class FA) subclass 600” if you’re traveling for recreation and holiday.

The minimum tourist visa they give is 3 months.

• 3. Completely Fill-up a 20-page form.

The form is called the Australian Visa Application Form which you can only do online.

• 4. Submit the following requirements for Australian Tourist Visa Application.

  • Evidence of Invitation or simply Invitation Letter
  • Planned Tourism Activities (Itinerary)
  • Travel Stamps of Previous Travels
  • Evidence of Financial Capacity such as Bank Certificate
  • Travel Document (Passport)
  • Photos of Passport

You may scan the documents or take a photo of each but make sure the photos are clear and readable.

We also suggest to put a file name of every document, for example “Passport-Photo-Front” or “Travel-Stamp-HK“. It is important to submit all necessary requirements before submitting the application.

If you’re not yet done, just click “save” so you can go back to it again or on another day.

• 5. Pay the Total Application Charge of AUD140 (per person),

There’s an additional fee if you are using the credit card so the total amount we paid was AUD141.37 or Php5,796.30 (exchange rate in January 2018).

Once payment was settled, IMMI Account will provide with a receipt number.

Payment cannot be disputed so make sure all the information you put on the application form are correct and best that you already submitted the requirements.

After payment, you will be notified via email that your application was received by the department.

Tips in Applying for Tourist Visa Subclass 600 in Australia

Here are additional tips in applying for an Australian Visa.

1. We submitted the visa requirements we think are most relevant such as the invitation letter and bank certificate.
2. As for the bank account savings amount, it’s safe to have at least Php 50,000 on your account. You can easily request for a bank certificate. We got ours on the same day we requested and paid Php 100. You may also submit a copy of credit card billing statement if you feel there’s a need to support your application.
3. A detailed travel itinerary or planned tour activities including the date and time of your arrival and departure to Australia is a must. Ours is a 13-day Australia Travel itinerary covering Sydney, Canberra, and Melbourne. Last minute changes in our itinerary was added when we added Werribee for our Klook activity.
4. It took us about about 2-3 days to finish the application process, answered a 20-page Australian Visa Application form which you can only do online.
5. In result, we were granted with Multiple Entry Australian Tourist Visa three days after submission without an embassy phone interview. We’ve read in other online sources that some can take more than a week.

Keep updated onn the activities we did in Australia by tuning in to Seats For Two for by subscribing to our blog through email and liking the Seats For Two Facebook Page. Follow our Twitter and Instagram accounts too!

We hope the step-by-step procedure in applying for an Australian Tourist Visa will help in your application soon. Coming up next is our 14 days Australia Travel Itinerary!