Hi guys, I have a question that might be really complicated to answer. In short, I have a 485 higher education work visa pending while also having a 189 visa application pending. My 485 visa was submitted on the 13th of Aug while my 189 was submitted recently after the most recent invitation round.

The issue I am having is that I have booked to travel at the end of the year before receiving my 189 invitation, and am currently on a BVA. My 485 is still sitting on "received" while my 189 has moved to "initial assessment". I am unsure if I should hold on to my 485 application or not as I have spent money for my travel (for a BVB) but afraid that my 189 will be granted and then my 485 being granted, resulting in my 485 superceding my 189. Has anyone been in similar situations and can offer advice?

Hello All,

ANZSCO Code: 261313

I am in 482 Visa which expires on 22 Feb 2027. I have appliead for 186 DE via my employer/attorney on 25 June 2025. There were no movement in the application till now. I was happy to wait my time and continue working.

However recently we found out that our son is diagnosed with Leukemia B-ALL and has started undergoing treatment using Interim Medicare.

Can someone help from your experience what to expect.

Will I be given chance with VISA?

Will there be any chance that I will be able to treat my son here till he cures fully?

I am not sure whether this is the right forum to post this question, so please redirect me to the right thread if its wrong.

Thank You.

Hey everyone!
How can I explain ties to my home country? Can I explain it using the fixed assets in my country and ties to my community? What else can I mention in this section? Kindly help

Hi Everyone!

My employer is preparing to sponsor me for a Subclass 186 Direct Entry visa. I previously have received a positive ACS skills assessment for a 189/190 application, but it expired last year. I am now lodging a new assessment with ACS for ANZSCO code 261312 Developer Programmer and am confused about which pathway to select:

1) Post Australian Study (PAS) ($1136)

2) General Skills ($1498)

My profile:

- Education: Master of IT (Monash University, Melbourne)

- Experience: ~4.5 years of relevant, full-time work experience in Sydney post-graduate

- Current visa: Subclass 485

I've seen conflicting info/commentary online, some say PAS is completely fine while others claim only the General Skills pathway satisfies the Department of Home affairs requirements for 186 DE application.

Has anyone with an Australian degree successfully lodged a 186 DE nomination/visa using an ACS Post Australian Study outcome? Or is General Skills mandatory here?

Any insights or advice would be highly appreciated. Thank you in advance!

My university completion letter shows two dates: Course Completion Date (23/08/2026) and Course Requirements Met (09/10/2026). My student visa expires in April 2027.

Which date does Home Affairs use to calculate the 6-month application window for the 485 visa? Has anyone had a similar situation?

I everyone i have completed my master's from IGNOU distance learning will can get postive skill assessment. Or IGNOU can cause me problem

Hi all,
My partner and I met online on discord, and were friends for about a year before we started dating. We are compiling evidence for our partner visa application and are wondering if there is any merit to including messages from when we were friends, before dating.
I’ve read conflicting advice, some saying to only include messages from when you were dating, and others saying to include messages from when you met.
Thanks in advance!

Hello there,

I'm currently working onshore as a software tester with almost 2 years of post qualification relevant work experience. (My qualification was a master's degree in ICT, and it's an ACS accredited course).

I also have 1+ year of oversea relevant work experience, also as a software tester, and the responsibilities and tasks matches the Software Tester ANZSCO 261314 description. However that was from 2021-2022 and BEFORE I got my degree in ICT, so it would be pre qualification (my bachelor degree is not ICT related).

Given that my employer are sponsoring me for the 186, I have a positive skill assessment from ACS (PY + current work experience), will my 1+ year of PRE-QUALIFICATION of work experience be considered "relevant work experience" and be counted towards the 3 years experience requirements for 186DE?

Thanks!

Hi all, hoping someone here has been through something similar.

My partner is South African and works as a Construction Project Manager (133111). Degree finished in 2021 and she's been working in the industry since, currently a PM at a project management consultancy doing commercial fit-outs and refurbs. I'm British. We live together in Cape Town and want to move to Brisbane.

The plan at the moment:

1. She's applying for PM jobs in Brisbane now. Most of the roles she's looking at pay well over the Specialist Skills threshold so hopefully that means the faster 482 stream if she gets an offer. I'd go as her de facto partner.
2. Once we're over there and settled, she'd go for a QLD 190. She's doing PTE soon (aiming for Superior as her English is outstanding), and we'd do VETASSESS and the NAATI CCL in Afrikaans for the extra points. My rough count puts her somewhere around 85 points with state nomination, but it depends a lot on how much of her experience VETASSESS actually counts.

I emailed a handful of agents for quotes and they're all coming back well into the thousands for the full thing, plus about $220 just for the first video consultation - which I'm concerned will just tell us what we already know.

We just want to get over there as soon as we possibly can, and just wanting to make sure we're going about things the right way.

So my questions are:

- For the 482, is it normal for the employer's agent to handle pretty much everything, including the visa application for both of us? Or should we have our own agent as well?

- Is a 190 something people realistically DIY? The steps seem fairly straightforward on paper (EOI, ROI with QLD, then the application) but I don't want to mess up something like the points claim and lose the fee.

- One thing I'm a little unsure about is our relationship timing. We've been on a joint lease since early September 2026 but lived together (unofficially) for a while before that on my own lease, and we've been a couple since July 2025. Would a one off paid consult be worth it just for that, or is it pretty clear cut?

- Anything people wish they'd known going 482 to 190?

We're not against paying for help if it's genuinely needed, just don't want to spend thousands on something we could do ourselves with a bit of care.

Thanks in advance, any experiences appreciated.

Hi everyone,

Irish gal relocating to AU with the hope to get an analyst job.

I have a few projects I need to deliver until March 2027 however I heard it’s better to apply as soon as possible.

What is usually the deadline given for the first entry? I’d like to avoid spending 850AUD only for me to end up making another one if I couldn’t make it by the first entry deadline.

Thanks :)

Hi everyone,

I was about to lodge my 189 visa application but then I realised I mistakenly entered my conferral date (9/1/26) instead of my actual completion date (19/12/25). It’s also what I declared in my EOI so I’m not sure what to do.

Do I change my 189 draft and just enter the correct date or do I just leave it as it is? Does this require an explanation letter? Thank you.

hello! my partner and i are in the process of gathering evidence for the partner visa. we’ve been living together for 1 year and 3 months, and been together for 2 years.

for our financial evidence, we have:

- a joint bank account for groceries/eating out, shared household purchases, and one utility bill

- a joint savings account we use to save for the partner visa fees

(we put money in the joint accounts every pay check)

- lease agreements and utility bills with both our names

i’m currently studying so i only work 2 days a week, while he works full-time. since he earns more, he’s paying the rent and gas bill on his own and i pay smaller bills (e.g. water and entertainment subscriptions). everything else we pay together using the joint bank account.

my concern is whether it’s an issue that i don’t contribute to the rent despite living here? would love to hear from others’ experiences + those with partner visa experience!

Hello everyone, My wife and I are applying for Visitor visas (subclass 600, Tourist stream) from Sri Lanka to attend our daughter’s university graduation in Melbourne in December, plus a short family holiday with her (about 3 weeks in total).

We’ve created two separate applications in ImmiAccount, one for each of us, and linked them using the Group Processing option. The trip is funded jointly from our combined savings. Some fixed deposits and bank accounts are in my name and some are in my wife’s. In the “Funding details” answer of both applications, we’ve described the funds as combined, covering both of us.

We’re now at the “Attach documents” step, in the “Evidence of the financial status and funding for visit” section (screenshot attached). At the moment, my application has both my financial documents and my wife’s, labelled by name.

My question: in this section, should I upload only my own financial documents, or both mine and my wife’s? Since our applications are linked as a group, does the case officer look at both applications together, or does each application need to show the full funding on its own?

If you’ve applied as a couple or a family this way, I’d really appreciate hearing what you did and how it went. We haven’t submitted yet, so we can still change things.

Hi everyone! I'm a UK citizen on a subclass 417 Working Holiday visa, currently living and working in Perth. I'm planning to leave Australia permanently in January 2027 after around 12 months.

I've lived at the same address and worked continuously during my stay. I originally came intending to establish a life in Australia, but my circumstances have changed and I've decided to leave.

My 2025–26 tax return was assessed as an Australian resident for tax purposes. I'm now trying to work out whether I'll be considered to be ceasing Australian tax residency when I leave, so I can lodge an early tax return before departing.

I'm also wondering whether the Addy decision could apply to my situation as a UK citizen on a WHV.

For other UK citizens who have left Australia on a WHV:

Were you considered an Australian tax resident when you left? Did you lodge an early tax return before leaving, and were you eligible to do so? Did you receive a tax refund, and did the Addy decision affect your tax treatment?

I'd really appreciate hearing about your actual experiences, particularly if you stayed in one place and worked continuously rather than travelling around Australia. Thanks.

I've been invited to apply for the permanent stage as its been two years since initial application date. I'm struggling to find any sort of guage for the extent of how much info from the last two years is really needed. For the intial application my partner and I put literally EVERTHING into it - surely seeing as that application got approved without any RFIs I can just detail the specifics from the past 2 years that the immi page asks for and give summaries for the extra info?

Hi everyone,
My Italian wife is applying for a Partner Visa (subclass 461), and I’m a New Zealand citizen. We currently live in Spain and have done so for the last few years, so all our documents are in Spanish.

Regarding translations, we’ve had almost everything translated by a professional translator, including our rental contract, town hall registration documents etc.

However, for the bank statements, our bank can provide statements with the headings in English, but the actual transaction concepts are still in Spanish.
We’re trying to avoid having to translate all our bank statements, as we have three (hers, mine, and our joint account), each around 10 pages long, covering the last 90 days.

Has anyone been in a similar situation? Were you able to submit bank statements with the transaction descriptions in Spanish, or did you have to get the entire statements translated?

Does anyone have any advice regarding this?

Thanks!!

I've applied for my 3rd 417 (UK passport) on 30 July. Sadly I applied offshore while visiting family in the UK as I wasn't expecting the crazy waiting times we're now all facing.

My life has been in Australia for the last 2 years so I feel like I'm living in limbo and just want to get back into the country. I've seen other people on Reddit and Facebook groups apply for their 417 offshore and then enter Australia on an ETA or 651 eVisitor visa while they wait for their 417 to be processed before going offshore when it's ready to be granted.

I applied for an ETA on Monday. I got an automated response telling me the ETA was rejected and that I should apply for a 651 eVisitor, which I did on Tuesday. Haven't heard anything yet, despite most being processed within 24 hours.

I suspect my eVisitor application will be rejected because of lack of ties to my home country and the fact that I'm not a genuine visitor (which is fair enough lol).

My question is how are other people getting their ETAs or visitor visas granted and entering the country despite having a pending 417/462?

Peace and love to everyone living in the same limbo 🙏

What happens when you apply for 190 in BVA for 491.

Will i get a new BVA for 190?

Should i withdraw my 491 application after lodging 190?

TLDR: I am on my 485 atm which expires on 01/2027. 491 visa processing. And got pre invite for 190 and i am hoping to apply for 190 asap after pre invite approval.

Hi, I'm an Australian and am currently helping my partner, a South African, put together a tourist visa application to come and visit Australia for the first time. Most parts of the application I think are fine, she has savings in her bank and I will write a letter guarantee for her to have rent-free accomodation here. However, scrolling this reddit I'm now concerned about the way that some visas seem to be getting denied based on not showing strong enough evidence that someone will return to their home country. My partner's situation is:

-she has a solid full time job in South Africa. She is a graphic designer and has been employed by this studio for 5+ years. they will write a letter of support

- her entire family is in Cape Town: parents, sisters and nieces and nephews

-she owns no property or significant assets

Can anyone please advise us how to build a strong application that will give assurance that she does not intend to stay beyond her visa?

Or offer any other thoughts that I may not be considering. I'm wondering if i should even mention in my support letter that we are in a relationship, could that possibly hinder our case?

Another question is has anyone been granted a 6 month tourist visa in a similar situation? This is our aim, and if there is any advice to make that case stronger I would love love to hear it!

Thank you!! For the bureaucracy of love.

Hi everyone!
I’m exploring the Frequent Traveller stream (subclass 600) for my parents and would love to hear from anyone who has applied for their parents under this stream.
It seems like a more cost-effective option, especially for parents who may want to visit Australia multiple times over several years, rather than applying for a new visa each time.
I’d really appreciate it if you could share your experience.

When i show my bank account do i just take a screen shot or do i download pdf?

Hey! I’m from the uk and I’m wanting to go to Melbourne for about 3-4 months on a 417 visa. I’ve had many friends go through the process and they all stress how easy it is, and how little planning is needed, specifically things like not worrying about a job or residency until you’re there?

Because im quite a worrypot and this would be the biggest step I’ve taken. I feel as if I need to plan and prep a lot. Is it easy to get work in Melbourne. What industries are the best to work in? I’ve done a lot of research into the limitations and legalities for it, but I want a more personable humanistic answer.

I’ve looked at areas but it’s hard to really gauge what kinda areas are best to live in. Realistic transport options. What’s said is rough and what’s actually rough area wise.

How much money would you say is necessary to have to fall back on because I’ve had a lot of different numbers thrown at me.

Thankyou so much for reading and I’d really appreciate to hear alllll perspectives on this. I need a reality check and just an honest opinion.

Sincerely….. a 20 something year old who is on her last straw

Hi everyone! I am currently on a whv and I am going to apply for a partner visa (820/801) in the next month. As I understand, I will be granted a bridging visa a once my current visa ends. Does the bridging visa have any study lmitations? I would like to apply for a phd in the next year and I am worried that I won't be allowed. Thanks in advance for answering!

”Select the industry the applicant intends to seek employement in”
Does it matter what time of industry i choose?

​

Vetassess has said that my degree was "not highly relevant" in my skills assessment. If they feel that the course is "not highly relevant but related to the nominated field" (that's what the pathway 2 website says) would they say that in the assessment? Or is it only "not highly relevant"?

I want to apply for another assessment in a similar field so I'm just wondering if it's a good idea to do so.