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Get in Australia

All visitors - apart from citizens of New Zealand - require a visa in advance of travel.

If you are visiting for a holiday of less than three months, there are three types of visas you may apply for, depending on your nationality.

• Electronic Travel Authority (ETA) subclass 976, is available on-line Online Immigration Web to nationals of Brunei, Canada, Hong Kong SAR, Japan,Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea (ROK) and United States. A service fee of $20 applies. This fee can be waived if you obtain your ETA through a travel agent.

• eVisitor (subclass 651) for citizens of the EU, Iceland, Norway and Switzerland and a few European microstates. These visas are free, but otherwise effectively identical to the ETA. You must apply on-line.

• Tourist Visa (subclass 676). Passport holders of 55 countries, including all the ETA and eVisitor eligible countries and Argentina, Bahrain, Brazil, Chile, Croatia, Kuwait, Maldives, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE can make applications online. Other nationalities must apply using the paper form, and may need to visit an embassy or visa processing centre.

Like the ETA and eVisitor, a 676 Visa is by default issued for a three month stay. Unlike the other options however, a 676 visa can be issued for longer stay of up to one year. That said, immigration is somewhat reluctant to approve tourist visas for more than three months, no matter how legitimate your reasons for staying so long. You will likely be asked for extensive supporting documentation about the reason for your visit and your ties to your country of origin and may need to attend an interview. Depending on your nationality, the embassy or visa processing centre may also require you to have an Australian sponsor prior to issuing the visa. The fee is $110.In most cases, Electronic Travel Authorities and eVisitors are approved instantly and the visa will issued and available for use immediately. If further enquiries are needed you may be asked to return to the application system later to see if you've been approved. In the worst case scenario your application can be diverted for manual checks that can take weeks. Best to apply early, just in-case.

If you are visiting Australia for employment, study or for medical treatment you will need to obtain the appropriate visa. If you are staying longer than 3 months continuously you are ineligible for an ETA or eVisitor, and should apply for a Tourist Visa (subclass 676).

For all tourist visa classes you must be able to demonstrate your ability to support yourself financially for the time you intend to spend in Australia. If you have a criminal conviction, obtain advice from the Australian Embassy or visa processing centre.

All fees are payable in Australian Dollars, converted to your local currency at the current rate of exchange.

If you are transiting through Australia, remain airside for a maximum of 8 hours, have a confirmed onward booking, have the correct entry documentation for the onward destination and are a citizen of New Zealand, the European Union, Andorra, Argentina, Brunei, Canada, Cyprus, the Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Iceland, Indonesia, Japan, Kiribati, Liechtenstein, Malaysia, Mexico, Monaco, Nauru, Norway, Palau,Papua New Guinea, Philippines, South Africa, the Republic of Marshall Islands, Samoa, San Marino, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, South Korea (ROK), Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Tonga, Tuvalu, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom (regardless of nationality status), the United States, the Vanuatu or Vatican City, you do not need to apply for any advance visa. All other passengers who transit through Australia must apply for a free-of-charge Transit Visa (subclass 771) prior to travel.

New Zealand citizens may travel to and work in Australia for any length of time without a pre-arranged visa. Non-citizen permanent residents of New Zealand are not eligible for visa-free entry. New Zealand citizens may still be rejected entry on the basis of criminal convictions or being HIV positive, and should seek advice before travel.


Customs and quarantine

Australia has strict quarantine requirements regarding importing animal and vegetable derived products (any food, wooden products, seeds, etc).[4]. You must declare all such material and baggage is frequently scanned and may be examined by dogs. You may be fined $220 on-the-spot if you fail to declare, or even prosecuted in very serious cases. Processed and sealed commercially prepared foods (chocolates, cookies, etc) are often permitted. They will be examined and returned to you, but still must be declared. Some prohibited items can be treated by quarantine at your expense and picked up at a later time.

Some shells, coral and items made from a protected species are also prohibited to discourage the trade in items that may originate from a threatened ecosystem or species.

While there are no restrictions on the amount of money that can be brought in or out, Australian customs also requires you to declare if you are bringing A$10,000 or more in or out of the country and you will be asked to complete some paperwork.

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