Australian Visa Bureau

One of the questions I usually get from friends and acquaintances both online and off was about the Australian tourist visa. Is it easy to get one? Are they strict? How did you apply for your visa?

I applied on my own, but if you would feel more at ease with having somebody guiding you through the process, there are a number of agents who can help. One of them is the Australian Visa Bureau.

The Australian Visa Bureau guides you through the visa application process, and even allows for submitting online application for an Australian ETA (Electronic Travel Authority) visa. The ETA visa gives you the ease of applying online, with a 90% chance of instant visa grant upon submission. Unfortunately, only passport holders of 33 countries are eligible for this visa. Among the 33 are Andorra, Austria, Belgium, Brunei, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Malta, Monaco, The Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, San Marino, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom, United States of America and Vatican City.

Unlike the regular visa, the ETA visa is linked to your passport number, so there’s no need to stamp the visa unto your passport. The visa is valid for one year from the date it was granted. Visitors with this visa are allowed to stay for a maximum of three months upon entry. From what I understand, this is also a multiple entry visa. Meaning you can go in and out of Australia within the span of 12 month that the visa is valid.

So if you’re a passport holder of one of the 33 countries and plan to visit Australia head on to the Australian Visa Bureau for your Austalian visa needs.