You want a tourist visa for your Filipina girl to Australia? A 1 year tourist visa? If you look on the Department of Immigration website, you will see that tourist visas are “available for 3, 6 or 12 months”.
Looks easy! You love each other, right? 12 months sounds like the go. “I’ll have a 12 month tourist visa, please!”, and wrap it up too!
And we at Down Under Visa cannot for a second blame anybody for thinking otherwise! It looks simple. Three options. Why not get the bigger and brighter one?
The problem is that there are so many factors that go into a decision whether the Department will grant a visa or refuse it. I suppose the first shocker is considering that they might not grant it in the first place, especially when it looks like you can just select what you want. The fact is, they will NOT grant a 1 year tourist visa! Will not happen!
Visas are GRANTS and not “rights”!
No one is entitled to a visa. The fact that you are an Aussie Citizen (or Permanent Resident) does not give you an inherent right to bring your girlfriend, fiancée or even wife into Australia. She may make an application, and the officers or delegates of the Department will make a decision on whether she meets the criteria laid out in the Migration Regulations, an Act of the Commonwealth Parliament.
The “Regs” give them a legal duty to only grant a visa is the applicant clearly meets those criteria, and to refuse if they’re not convinced that they do.
“Genuinely intends to stay temporarily in Australia for the purpose for which the visa is granted”
An applicant for an Australian tourist visa may visit Australia for the purposes of visiting friends/family, patting koalas, admiring the Harbour Bridge, and then going back again.
If you plan to use the visa to live together, then they will refuse it in a heartbeat. Why? Because you’re planning on using it as a partner visa. That’s not “genuinely intending” to stay for the “purpose for which the visa was granted”. That’s playing the system, and they don’t like that. It’s their job to make sure you don’t do that.
I’ve had people come to us with refusals after they’ve actually said in their application that they are applying for a 12 month tourist visa because a partner visa takes too long to process! Does a partner visa take too long to process? Probably! However that doesn’t come into it. If you want to live together, you apply for a partner visa. If you want a short holiday, you apply for a tourist visa!
Why do they offer tourist visas of 12 months length?
Because they offer these visas to all countries and for all situations! If somebody is wealthy enough to take a 1 year holiday and intends to visit friends and pat koalas, then they’ll get probably a 12 month tourist visa.
However, no one believes that your Filipina girlfriend is going to take a 12 month holiday to visit you and pat koalas and then go home again. It’s very obvious that you have an ulterior motive. And they also need to believe she has strong motives to return at the end of the stay. Visitors from countries like the Philippines have less incentive to return than does somebody from a more developed nation with assets and good prospects back at home. The longer your Filipina lady stays (especially when living in a loving relationship with you), the less she is going to want to return. When you think of it, it’s fairly obvious, isn’t it?
So, please try to understand why we don’t want to apply for a 12 month tourist visa for your Filipina lady! We’re not lazy or mean, nor are we incompetent. We want to see you get together, and we don’t want to see you wasting your time or money. We have a great success rate for couples in the Philippines.
if you’d like our help, please visit our website and complete our free visa assessment form.
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My separated husband has a much younger Filipino mistress and he has bought her to Australia and is indeed living with her. I have been told on a 3 month tourist visa with every intention of extending after 3 months, which they have done. Is this right, I thought I read that you can’t live together on a tourist visa ?
Hello Manny
You can live together, as long as you intend to leave at the end of the stay. And yes, you can apply for another visa whilst still in the country.
Sir, I just wanna ask about “multiple entry” oct. 2014-oct 2015 in tourist visa granted..does it mean 3 months stay only within a year..or you can stay 3 months go home and stay 3 months again back an forth until a year is finished? Thank you..:)
It depends on what the visa grant letter says.
Mostly they will allow you to stay up to 30 days, and after that you need to leave the country. But you can return again and stay another 30 days. You can keep arriving and staying 30 days up and until the last date to arrive.
sir good morning i am in relationship with an australian citizen man we are in loving relationship and i need to go home before i consume my 90days stay in australia and my visa is only single entrywhich is only for 3months to stay in australia and whilst i am in australia can i apply for another tourist visa for multiple entry which is 12 months to to be with my boyfriend
You can try, but I don’t believe you would get 12 months. You would probably get another 3 months. If you want to stay together that length of time, why not look at a partner visa? Tourist visas are designed for visiting only.
hi sir ,i have a son in australia and he wants me to go the for his birthday on july 26,do i have possibilities to stay atleast 1 year in australia?and hes going to move out to her mom house ,and i want to take care him cause he dont how to cook and to washed his clothes her mom have already a husband she cant take care of his son anymore because the responsibilities to his husband,thats why i want to take care of him atlease 1 year and get back in the philippines.
Very unlikely for that reason. He’s an adult, I assume?
Hi,
My husband is filipino worker in queensland.
He is not supporting our children here in phil.
He wants to get his mistress there and leave all the obligations with me. What should I do.
Thank you
Sorry, but neither you nor I can influence personal decisions made by your husband in Australia. I sympathise with you, but I can’t help.
Hi Jeff,
Me and my partner had emailed you last year regarding our visa, this year we would like to apply for a tourist visa for me. Could you help us on this?
Best,
Yeng
Happy to help, Yeng. I’ll email you.
I. My Filipino fiencee has just had her prespective marriage visa refused. We are sad and she is now back in Phils. Can we mow apply again and if so is there a period we should wait to do so. We did not appeal as I misread the timeframe to do so. This time we will use your services. Thank you
You can re-apply anytime at all, Alan. Please email me with the decision record attached so I can see if there are any restrictions at this point.
Hi jeff. I’m still on a temporary visa. but i want my boyfriend to apply for a tourist visa for next yr. would that be ok?
I can’t comment here, and I can’t comment without information, Niks. Suggest you use the free visa assessment form on the website.
Hello sir i just want to ask coz they refuse my application for a tourist visa and my australian bf wants me to apply again?pls i need your help and suggestion..thanksss
We help a lot of applicants who have had refusals of their own applications. Suggest you complete our free online visa assessment form. https://www.downundervisa.com/visa-assessment/
Hey hi Jeff, I am about to apply a partner visa for my wife- I will be getting married to her in November’17 . I am a naturalized Australian citizen but my wife is not.
Once I apply partner visa for her ,is it possible to bring her to Aus on a visitor visa while we are waiting for The partner visa decision ?
It’s possible to apply for a visitor visa, yes Chris.
hi Mr.Jeff Harvie
i have Australian bf and he wants me to visit him..can he sponsor me going there?
I would imagine so, Sandy. Please complete one of our visa assessment forms.
Hi sir Jeff
My australian fiance is not divorce yet and we are planning to get partners visa after my tourist visa expire on march 2019. I came here Nov 2017 and stay here for maximum of 3 months and leave Australia for couple of days and come back again.Can we apply for de facto visa?
Possibly, Jenlie. I would need to assess your case to see if you met the criteria, as it takes more than just living-together to be in a de facto relationship. I suggest you spend five minutes doing one of our free online visa assessment forms on our website. Top right, and you will see it.
Hello Jeff,
my partner and I were living together for the last 3 years in Cebu, I came home to visit family and due to Covid I am still here in Australia, what do I need to have my Partner/Fiancee to visit here for 6 months , she has met several members of my Family and would like her to see some of my Home before we settle down in Bohol .
cheers Rob
She needs to be your spouse (by marriage or by de facto relationship) in order to get an exemption to the current travel ban, Robert. Without that she can’t enter Australia until the travel bans are lifted.