To avoid the risk of becoming an “unlawful non-citizen” or “illegal migrant”, anyone in Australia on a temporary visa must apply for another visa before their original visa runs out. Australia allows onshore visa applications, which means that you don’t have to leave the country to be able to apply for another Australian visa.
Your original visa could expire while you wait for the outcome of your new visa application (usually due to processing times). Expecting this visa gap, the Department issues an interim visa (Bridging Visa) that gets automatically activated to bridge that gap between the expiration of the existing visa and the outcome of the new application. This allows you to remain lawfully in Australia whilst awaiting this outcome.
There are multiple types of Bridging visas. A person’s migration status determines the type of Bridging
visa they are eligible for. In most cases, Bridging visas inherit the work rights prescribed by the previous visa(s). So, if your previous visa had no work rights, this restriction will be carried over to the Bridging visa, whilst you wait for your new application to be processed.
Please see below for the types of Bridging visas which may be granted:
The number of migrants on Bridging Visas in Australia has increased dramatically over the past 10 years however with the commitment from the government to provide an additional $36M for visa processing support (500 new staff over the coming months) this number will hopefully fall significantly for the remainder of 2022 and the 2023 period.
For further information on Bridging Visas or to discuss your migration options (whether on-shore or off-shore) please click this link Assessment (mmportal.cloud) to lodge an enquiry or call 1800 567 663.
#bridgingvisas #migration #regionalmigraton
Source: Migrant Workers Centre