The following information has been provided by the Australian Government Department of Immigration and Border Protection. It contains information about visa requirements to visit Australia and how to apply for an eVisitor visa or an Electronic Travel Authority (ETA) visa.
eVisitor and ETA visas are electronically stored authority for travel to Australia. You must be outside Australia when you apply and when the visa is decided. Please wait for a decision once your application has been completed, do not make arrangements to travel to Australia until you are advised that you have been granted a visa.
An ETA visa may be required to travel to Australia. Only certain passport holders can apply for this visa online. You may need to use a travel agent to apply for this visa.
You will not receive a stamp or label in your passport. You will be provided with a confirmation for your records. Due to COVID-19 some visa processing times have been affected and applications may take longer to finalise. Your ETA lets you enter Australia for up to three months at a time as a tourist or for business visitor purposes. You are also permitted to study in Australia for up to three months in some circumstances.
You might be able to get this ETA visa if:
• you hold an
eligible passport and your passport will be valid for at least six months from the time you leave Australia
• you are travelling to Australia as a tourist or for business visitor purposes.
• meet Australian health requirement
Tourist activities include holidays, recreation or seeing family and friends.
Business visitor activities include participating in conferences, trade fairs or seminars. As long as you are not being paid by the organisers for your participation as well as:
• making general business or employment enquiries
• investigating, negotiating, signing, or reviewing a business contract
• activities carried out as part of an official government-to-government visit.
Business activities do not include short-term work. If you want to work in Australia, you can apply for a
Temporary Work (Short Stay Activity) visa (Subclass 400). To find the right visa for you, please visit
hereOther important things to note:
• apply for your visa in advance to allow for variances in processing times.
• consider Australia's health and character requirements, which you may have to meet as part of the visa application process.
• ensure you obtain a confirmation of your registration or a letter of invitation, to attach to your visa application.
• participants required to lodge paper-based visa applications should do so at the Australian visa office nearest to their current country of residence.
• applicants outside of Australia will need to provide biometrics when they apply for a visa that is part of the Australian biometrics program, or where they are from a country, or located in a country at time of application that is part of the
Australian biometrics program.
The International Event Coordinator Network might not be able to help if participants do not lodge their visa applications within recommended timeframes.
If you require a letter confirming your registration for the conference etc. please email
conferences@asmirt.org requesting this. We are also happy to collect your passport information and details and forward it onto the INTERNATIONAL EVENT COORDINATOR NETWORK (IECN), so they can expect your Visa application.
GENERAL INFORMATION FOR VISA APPLICANTS VISA OPTIONS FOR CONFERENCES, SEMINARS, TRADE FAIRS OR EXPOSParticipants, attendees, and speakers that will not be working, performing, or otherwise be paid to contribute at the event:
• Visitor (subclass 600) (Business stream) visa. For more information see:
https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-listing/visitor-600/business-visitor-stream• Electronic Travel Authority – ETA (subclass 601). For eligible passport holders and more information see:
https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-listing/electronic-travel-authority-601• eVisitor (subclass 651) (Business Stream) visa. For eligible passport holders and more information see:
https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-listing/evisitor-651NB: These are the visa options available presently, but the Department reserves the right to change regulations. IECN assistance will NOT guarantee a visa grant. Visa applicants must demonstrate that they meet all the legislative requirements for an Australian visa.
Visa Application Process and Processing Times:
Visa applications are assessed on a case-by-case basis, and actual processing times can vary due to individual circumstances including:
• whether the applicant has lodged a complete application, including all necessary supporting documents, and paid associated visa application charges
• how promptly the applicant responds to any requests for additional information
• how long it takes to perform required checks on the supporting information provided
• how long it takes to receive information from external agencies, particularly in relation to health, character, and national security requirements
• when the application is lodged taking the current global visa processing times into account
Processing times are impacted each month by cases that are complex, changes to volume of applications and changes to Ministerial Directions.
More information about visa processing times please see:
https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-processing-times/overview.
For this reason, we would advise that visa applications be lodged at least 4 to 6 weeks prior to a person’s intended date of travel.
To assist timely processing by Australia's visa offices overseas, you can complete the bio-data collection sheet available from the ASMIRT conference team once you have registered for the event, that will be passed onto the IECN team.
NB: In accordance with Australia's Privacy Act 1988, any information an event organiser or participant provides to the IECN will only be used to facilitate visa processing with the relevant Australian visa office overseas.
Border and Entry Requirements:
Travellers should familiarise themselves with Australia’s border and entry requirements. For further information, see ‘Entering and leaving Australia’ at:
https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/covid19/entering-and-leaving-australia
