What is a Resident Return Visa for Australia, and How Does It Work?

If you have been given a permanent visa, you can settle in Australia for a long time. The person with this kind of permanent visa can leave and return to Australia within five years of the date the visa was given. This permission starts on the date that the visa was given. 

During this time, you can either apply for Australian citizenship or keep the nationality of your home country. If you fall into the second category, you will have to renew your travel facility every five years if you want to be able to come back to Australia after going somewhere else on a resident return visa Australia. Only people born in Australia can legally go straight to the country without going through immigration first.

Some people who get permanent residency don’t know they can no longer travel with their permanent visa after five years. Applicants for an Australian permanent resident visa aren’t always told enough about this requirement, which is one of the most confusing parts of the visa when they apply to live in Australia permanently.

What is a Resident Return visa, and What can You do with One?

A Resident Return visa can be applied for by people with permanent residents living in Australia but whose permanent visas no longer allow them to travel. Permanent visa holders can stay in Australia forever, but after five years, their visas no longer allow them to travel outside Australia. 

So, if they want to go abroad after this time, they must apply for an Australian Resident Return visa to ensure they can get back into Australia and won’t lose their right to do so.

Suppose a person with a permanent resident visa has been living outside Australia for longer than usual. In that case, they may get a resident return visa Australia if they can show they had to be away from Australia for a good reason. If they apply for a Resident Return visa, they can return to Australia and keep their permanent resident status.

Since you have a Resident Return visa, you can travel to and from Australia without any restrictions for up to five more years. You will still be considered a permanent resident and have all the rights that come with that status. 

This will only renew your permission to travel. When the travel authorization on your current Resident Return visa runs out, you can apply for a new one. You can apply for a Resident Return visa as many times as you want in a row.

What You Need to Do to Get a Resident Return Visa?

Whether you qualify for a resident return visa depends on your unique situation. The most important thing is your visa status for Australia. If you presently have a valid permanent resident visa, you can apply for a resident return visa. You can also apply for this visa if you used to be an Australian citizen or a permanent resident and your previous permanent visa did not end.

Requirement for residency

If you checked one of those boxes, find out how long you have been a permanent resident of Australia. To meet this supposed residence criterion, the person must have lived in Australia for at least two of the last five years. You can add up the time over the last five years before sending your application. The two years don’t have to be in a row. Under certain circumstances, you may be able to get a Resident Return visa for an extra five years, and Visapath Australia makes it easy to do so.

Conclusion

To meet the residency requirements for a resident return visa Australia, you must have been physically present in Australia for at least 730 days in the five years before you apply for this visa. Please remember that you can only count your time in Australia while you have a permanent visa. You can’t count any time you spent there on a temporary or bridging visa.