Resident Return Visa
(Subclass 155) (Subclass 157)
Who Can Apply For This Visa?
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Once you are granted a permanent visa that lets you stay in Australia, that visa allows you to leave and enter Australia as many times as you want within five years from the date of grant of that permanent visa. Once that five-year period is over, you cannot re-enter Australia if you leave unless you have been granted an Australian Resident Return (‘RRV’) Visa or have acquired Australian citizenship/passport.
Therefore, if you held a permanent visa for the last five years and did not subsequently acquire Australian Citizenship, you must double-check before departing Australia whether or not the travel facility of your permanent visa has expired.
However, you do not need to apply for another permanent visa or a Resident Return Visa if you do not intend to depart Australia. It is because your permanent visa allows you to live in Australia indefinitely.
You can also apply for a Resident Return Visa if you previously held permanent residency in Australia but have been living outside Australia for a more extended period. In this case, if the Australian Department of Home Affairs is satisfied that you have ‘compelling reasons’ for your absence from Australia, you may be granted a Resident Return Visa – allowing you to re-enter and live in Australia as a permanent resident. Once again, you will be able to leave and re-enter Australia for another five years. After five years, you will need another Resident Return Visa to extend your travel facility for the next five years unless you have acquired Australian Citizenship. You may apply for a Resident Return Visa as many times as you like.
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Main Benefits of This Visa​
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Live, work, and study in Australia indefinitely.
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Travel to and from Australia as many times as you like.
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Enrol or stay enrolled in Australia’s public healthcare scheme, Medicare.
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Apply for Australian Citizenship upon becoming eligible.
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What Do You Need To Qualify For This Visa?​
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You must be an Australian permanent resident; or
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You are a former Australian permanent resident whose last permanent visa was not cancelled; or
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You are a former Australian citizen who has lost or renounced Australian Citizenship.
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If you are IN Australia, you must have lawfully lived in Australia as a permanent resident or an Australian citizen for at least two years in the last five years immediately before making the Resident Return Visa application; or
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If you have lived outside Australia for more than two years but less than five years, you must be able to establish that you have ‘substantial’ business, cultural, employment, or personal ties with Australia that are of benefit to Australia.
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You will also have to establish that:
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You had ‘compelling reasons’ for your absence from Australia; and
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You hold a permanent visa; or
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You held a permanent visa at the time you last departed Australia; or
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You last left Australia as an Australian citizen but later lost or renounced your Australian Citizenship.
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You can also apply for this visa if you are in Australia. However, you will need to show ‘substantial’ personal or other ties with Australia. In this case, you must not have been absent from Australia for five years or more since the date of grant of your most recent permanent visa or ceasing of your Australian Citizenship, unless there were ‘compelling reasons’ for your absence.
​​Your Potential Questions Answered For You
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If you make a Resident Return Visa application outside Australia, then you must be outside Australia at the time of grant of this visa.
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An applicant making a visa application outside Australia will also need to:
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present a valid passport;
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satisfy a special return criterion known as ‘criterion 5001’. [Criterion 5001, generally speaking, applies to those applicants who left Australia under deportation orders or because their visa was cancelled on character grounds.]
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If you apply for a Resident Return Visa in Australia, you may be in or outside Australia at the time the visa is granted.
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AUD $475 (if applying online)
AUD $555 (if paper application)
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Estimated Processing Time
2 days – 2 weeks (if applied in Australia).
4 - 9 months (if applied outside Australia).
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See Our Blog(s) On This Visa To Learn More
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Search ‘Australian Resident Return Visa’, ‘RRV’, ‘subclass 155’ or ‘subclass 157 visa’ on our Blogs Page.
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Should you wish to discuss your circumstances and options with us, please feel free to Contact Us. We are here to help you with your Parent visa application.
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Warning! Please note that Australian immigration laws and policies are highly complex and dynamic. Therefore, no information provided on this website in relation to Australian immigration laws and policies (or on any other matter) is intended to be legal advice. Please read our Terms and Conditions.
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