Australian Holiday Visa

[orinoco womble]

Hello people

This is my first so apologies if i am covering old ground

I am UK citizen with a thail girlfriend resident in koh samui.

I want to take my girlfriend to australia on holiday

Can anyone advise me on the process she needs to adopt to obtain an australian holiday visa and the timescales involved in obtaining this visa. (Can i also apply for my visa to australia at the british/australian embassy in thailand at the same time or am i better obtaining it in the UK first.

Thanks for your help

Orinoco womble

[thohts]

Not sure about your girlfriend, but you should be able to get an ETA visa

See http://www.eta.immi.gov.au/ and http://www.immi.gov.au/e_visa/visit.htm

Took me about 5 minutes and costs AUD $20

It'll take much longer than 5 minutes for your girlfriend, though.

[Cossi]

Hello people

This is my first so apologies if i am covering old ground

I am UK citizen with a thail girlfriend resident in koh samui.

I want to take my girlfriend to australia on holiday

Can anyone advise me on the process she needs to adopt to obtain an australian holiday visa and the timescales involved in obtaining this visa. (Can i also apply for my visa to australia at the british/australian embassy in thailand at the same time or am i better obtaining it in the UK first.

Thanks for your help

Orinoco womble

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Basically unles she is very well educated and has plenty of money it will be very difficult for your gf to come to Australia. On the bright side if she trades you in for an Aussie fella then her chances will dramatically improve.

You on the other hand will have no trouble obtaining an ETA.

Goodluck.

Go speak to the guys at Thai CC building, level 34.

Thats assuming you are both Bangkok now.

[Mighty Mouse]

You're a UK citizen!!! .....I won't hold that against you.

Will your trip to Australia be your first trip Down Under? If so, it might be difficult for your g/f unless you can provide proof that you have your accommodation pre-booked, and that you must return to Thailand on a certain date...........with her of course.

The shorter your stay in OZ the better your chances of obtaining a tourist visa for your g/f.

The Embassy will be looking at the usual things..the length of your relationship, her background, occupation etc. etc.

I think it would be preferable for you both to attend the Aust. Immigration Section together and lodge joint applications there. That way they can interview you both, should they need to.

If her application is rejected, don't be too upset. There are hundreds of thousands of Thai women here all wanting to latch onto good looking ( and rich) guys.

Good luck, and I hope you enjoy Australia...the weather down her lately has been great. Just bring some drinking water with you, we are running out fast.

[Aussietraveller]

As a UK Citizen, you will find it fairly straightforward.

A recent change to Australian Immigration Laws will however require you to record a statement at your point of entry to Australia, apologising for winning the Ashes , and confessing to some sort of cheating in the process....

Don't worry, this is a standard condition for all Brits there days....

On The Bright Side...

You should not have to apologise for Winning the world cup, i believe that we have now convinced ourselves that it never happened...

Your Girlfriend should find it easier once she has her Visa, no such apologies are required by the Thais....

Seriously though, your GF will have to Jump through lots of hoops to get a Visa, Keep a positive attitude, and keep throwing large volumes of paper at them.... Beaurocrats..they love paperwork....

[Cossi]

A recent change to Australian Immigration Laws will however require you to record a statement at your point of entry to Australia, apologising for winning the Ashes , and confessing to some sort of cheating in the process....

Don't worry, this is a standard condition for all Brits there days....

..

Nobody cares about the ashes in Australia. Thats why we seant our "B" grade team.

[ProThaiExpat]

I would suggest you search the archives of Thaivisa as there are many threads on this subject with detailed information as to what documents to submit in support of your g/f's application.

If you are resident in Thailand and you have lived with your g/f for six months or more, your chances are a lot better as her "compelling reason to return" to Thailand is to continue to live with you and maintain the realtionship.

You cannot give them too many documents. I have been successful three times, the last being a multiple-entry visa for a year for my Thai and documents I have submitted include:

1. Familty pictures by year and event

2. My bank statments and sworn statement I will pay all expenses out of the accounts submitted.

3. Chanots of land owned by my Thai.

4. Current college enrollment.

5. Guarantee letter from Australaian citizen/host he will pay if I don't.

6. Detailed iteinerary with addresses and copy of airline confirmation of reservations. (Two or three week trip first time is best)

7. Car registrtion document. (Tambien lot)

8. Copies of bank accounts available to my Thai.

9. Proof of co-habitation in any form, joint accounts, joint bills, etc.

10. G/f's employment and work history if available, return to work doc.

11. Your employement in thailand or copy of long stay visa if retired.

12. Letter from MP or Australian government official, if one is obtainable.

Use your imagination and produce as many documents that you can dream up that are even remotely suggestive of a long time committed relationshp of co-habitation in Thailand with you and your financial worth. Her ties to Thailand relative to property ownership, job, bank accounts, etc.

Taking the matter lightly may well result in a refusal. You really don't know which document will overcome the bias against granting the visa so give them everything and let them decide which of them is important. It is a "sales job" in many respects.

Good luck and please post the results of your efforts and details of documents submitted, so we can all add to our knowledge base.

Edited October 4, 2005 by ProThaiExpat

[orinoco womble]

Dear All

Thanks for the information so far very helpful

My plan is to go to oz for approximately 1 month with the girlfriend , what do you think my chances are of obtaining a holiday visa for this period.

I have a rough itinerary set up , sydney for a few days , brisbane , my sister lives there for a few days, and then upto cairns and the barrier reef for a long time possible to learn to dive.

do i need to write all this down and book the hotels before i submit the application for my Girlfriend.

Regards

Orinoco Womble

[ProThaiExpat]

If your serious about the itinearary and are going to book the reservations anyway, why not do it before you try for the visa, unless, of course, they require a non-refundable deposit, and then in that case, just indicate the dates of stay, name of hotel, address and telephone number without booking.

The invitation and host letter from your sister is the most important.

We really can't evaluate your chances until we have more information about you and your girlfriend..

[Mighty Mouse]

How do you intend to travel between those locations? If by air, you may have pre-booked flights and this is all good evidence to provide the embassy.

Provide them with your rough itinerary. Your first night in OZ should be pre-booked anyway. Customs officials at the airport can be quite inflexible on this. They have been known to send travellers home on the return flight if they couldn't show evidence of accommodation bookings and/or sufficient means of support.

As your sister lives here, that is also strong evidence of the reason for you visiting Down Under. I suggest that you make this one of the main reasons for applying for a visa.

I can't see any problems with them granting you a visa for a one month visit. You may need to prove to them that you have sufficient funds in your bank account to cover the travel costs for the both of you. You also will need to show some evidence that compels your g/f to return home to Thailand before the expiration of her visa. Work committments, family committments etc.

Let us know how you get on. Good luck.