A L E R T - New Australian Tourist Visa

[David48]

... From 23 March 2013 the government intends to introduce significant
changes to the Visitor visas. These changes are subject to the approval
of the Governor-General in Council. Tourist Visa Options

NEW ... Visitor Visa (Subclass 600)

A temporary visa allowing a stay in Australia of up to 3 or 6 or 12
months. Applicants can apply from both outside and in Australia. Some
tourists or business visitors are eligible to lodge an online
application for an e600 Tourist visa.

OLD ...Tourist visa (Subclass 676)

A temporary visa allowing a stay in Australia of up to three or six
or 12 months. Applicants can apply from both outside and in Australia.
Some tourists are eligible to lodge an online application for an e676
Tourist visa.

The 'New' 600 Visa ...

This visa has replaced the following visas:

• Tourist visa (subclass 676)
• Sponsored Family Visitor visa (subclass 679)
• Business (Short Stay) visa (subclass 456)
• Sponsored Business Visitor (Short Stay) visa (subclass 459).

Edited March 28, 2013 by David48

[krisb]

Hmm, from reading your post David without going to the specific site to read pages of mind boggling info, it seems diac just piled all these visas into 1. Correct? Makes it easier more simplified to find what your looking for.

I'd hesitate at a guess price went up?

[David48]

Just adding a bit more meat to the bones ...

Visitor and Medical Treatment Visas

From 23 March 2013 the government intends to introduce significant changes to the Visitor and Medical Treatment visas. These changes are subject to the approval of the Governor-General in Council.

We will no longer be accepting new applications for the following visas:

• Tourist visa (subclass 676)
• Sponsored family visitor visa (subclass 679)
• Business (short Stay) visa (Subclass 456)
• Sponsored business visitor (short stay) visa (subclass 459)
• Medical Treatment (short stay) visa (subclass 675)
• Medical Treatment (long stay) visa (subclass 685)
• Electronic Travel Authority (visitor) (subclass 976)
• Electronic Travel Authority (business – short validity) (subclass 977)
• Electronic Travel Authority (business – long validity) (subclass 956).

Applicants who were previously eligible for the visas listed above may be eligible for one of the following five visa subclasses below.

• Temporary work (short stay activity) visa (subclass 400)
• Visitor visa (subclass 600)
• Electronic Travel Authority (subclass 601)
• Medical Treatment visa (subclass 602)
• eVisitor (subclass 651)

All the good oil is here

Edited April 15, 2013 by David48

[OZEMADE]

Your passport

If you plan to get a new passport, you should do so before applying for your visa. Your visa is linked to the passport number you used in your application and you must use the same passport to travel to Australia.

The above information is important, however I believe it would also be necessary to notify Immigration, if you have been granted a Visa and your passport has to be renewed. As the above says the new passport will have a new number and it would not be linked to the old passport that the original Visa was granted.

For instance, when a Thai renews their passport the Thai Embassy normally keeps the old passport, therefore Australian Immigration would not have the new passport number recorded on their system and the visa that was granted in the old passport would not have been transferred to the new one.

Edited April 17, 2013 by OZEMADE

[theoldgit]

For instance, when a Thai renews their passport the Thai Embassy normally keeps the old passport, therefore Australian Immigration would not have the new passport number recorded on their system and the visa that was granted in the old passport would not have been transferred to the new one.

Are you sure about that, when my girlfriend renewed her passport she was given the old one back, stamped cancelled.

The UK, Schengen, and maybe others, require sight of cancelled passports with visa applications.

[OZEMADE]

For instance, when a Thai renews their passport the Thai Embassy normally keeps the old passport, therefore Australian Immigration would not have the new passport number recorded on their system and the visa that was granted in the old passport would not have been transferred to the new one.

Are you sure about that, when my girlfriend renewed her passport she was given the old one back, stamped cancelled.

The UK, Schengen, and maybe others, require sight of cancelled passports with visa applications.

I know that if you have an Australian Passport they do as you say, stamped cancelled and return to you. However some years ago my wife had to renew her passport in Bangkok and they kept the old one and said she could not have it back. Things may have changed now.

I will let you know as her passport runs out on the 1st Sept and has a perm residency stamp glued into it. We will be renewing it in Sydney at the Thai Embassy/Consulate. If she gets it back all good and well, if not report to OZ Immigration as I have said. They no longer glue in any visas to your passport in OZ, it is all on computer and they go by the passport number.

[Will27]

For instance, when a Thai renews their passport the Thai Embassy normally keeps the old passport, therefore Australian Immigration would not have the new passport number recorded on their system and the visa that was granted in the old passport would not have been transferred to the new one.

Are you sure about that, when my girlfriend renewed her passport she was given the old one back, stamped cancelled.

The UK, Schengen, and maybe others, require sight of cancelled passports with visa applications.

I know that if you have an Australian Passport they do as you say, stamped cancelled and return to you. However some years ago my wife had to renew her passport in Bangkok and they kept the old one and said she could not have it back. Things may have changed now.

I will let you know as her passport runs out on the 1st Sept and has a perm residency stamp glued into it. We will be renewing it in Sydney at the Thai Embassy/Consulate. If she gets it back all good and well, if not report to OZ Immigration as I have said. They no longer glue in any visas to your passport in OZ, it is all on computer and they go by the passport number.

We had the same experience as theoldgit.

Last year wife was issued with a new Thai passport and was given the old one (with the visa in it) back.

So, as long as you travel with bost passports, no problem.

Regards

Will

[OZEMADE]

I took the wife to the Thai consulate in Sydney to have her Thai passport renewed. had to have copy of her old passport particulars and Thai I.D. Card. Waited half hour for her to have her new photo taken and all finger prints taken for the electronic,(e-passport). Paid the $55 AU and told to wait 3 to 6 weeks for it to come back from Bangkok. Pretty straight forward.

I asked about the old passport. they said it would be cancelled when she picks up the new one and returned to her.

We then have to inform the Australian Immigration of the new passport number and they can enter it into their computer system and if requested place a Permanent Resident sticker into the new e-passport.

I thought this would be a good idea as Thai Immigration don't have electronic monitoring at the airport yet.

Less hassles.

I also spoke to another Thai lady who was there to renew her Thai passport, she was from Brisbane.

I asked why she did not have her passport renewed in Brisbane, she replied they told her Sydney and Canberra were the only places that would renew Thai passports and she had to fly from Brisbane to Sydney to do it? Sounds a bit strange to me, maybe someone else can throw some light on this.

[bobrussell]

Cancelled Thai passports are returned. There is no requirement to transfer (UK at least!) visas as long as the old passport is carried as well.

[Songhua]

I took the wife to the Thai consulate in Sydney to have her Thai passport renewed. had to have copy of her old passport particulars and Thai I.D. Card. Waited half hour for her to have her new photo taken and all finger prints taken for the electronic,(e-passport). Paid the $55 AU and told to wait 3 to 6 weeks for it to come back from Bangkok. Pretty straight forward.

I asked about the old passport. they said it would be cancelled when she picks up the new one and returned to her.

We then have to inform the Australian Immigration of the new passport number and they can enter it into their computer system and if requested place a Permanent Resident sticker into the new e-passport.

I thought this would be a good idea as Thai Immigration don't have electronic monitoring at the airport yet.

Less hassles.

I also spoke to another Thai lady who was there to renew her Thai passport, she was from Brisbane.

I asked why she did not have her passport renewed in Brisbane, she replied they told her Sydney and Canberra were the only places that would renew Thai passports and she had to fly from Brisbane to Sydney to do it? Sounds a bit strange to me, maybe someone else can throw some light on this.

She's right. Brisbane don't do passports.

[krisb]

I took the wife to the Thai consulate in Sydney to have her Thai passport renewed. had to have copy of her old passport particulars and Thai I.D. Card. Waited half hour for her to have her new photo taken and all finger prints taken for the electronic,(e-passport). Paid the $55 AU and told to wait 3 to 6 weeks for it to come back from Bangkok. Pretty straight forward.

I asked about the old passport. they said it would be cancelled when she picks up the new one and returned to her.

We then have to inform the Australian Immigration of the new passport number and they can enter it into their computer system and if requested place a Permanent Resident sticker into the new e-passport.

I thought this would be a good idea as Thai Immigration don't have electronic monitoring at the airport yet.

Less hassles.

I also spoke to another Thai lady who was there to renew her Thai passport, she was from Brisbane.

I asked why she did not have her passport renewed in Brisbane, she replied they told her Sydney and Canberra were the only places that would renew Thai passports and she had to fly from Brisbane to Sydney to do it? Sounds a bit strange to me, maybe someone else can throw some light on this.

She's right. Brisbane don't do passports.

That's crazy! So that means she had no choice? Could she have her particulars sent via courier?

[simple1]

I took the wife to the Thai consulate in Sydney to have her Thai passport renewed. had to have copy of her old passport particulars and Thai I.D. Card. Waited half hour for her to have her new photo taken and all finger prints taken for the electronic,(e-passport). Paid the $55 AU and told to wait 3 to 6 weeks for it to come back from Bangkok. Pretty straight forward.

I asked about the old passport. they said it would be cancelled when she picks up the new one and returned to her.

We then have to inform the Australian Immigration of the new passport number and they can enter it into their computer system and if requested place a Permanent Resident sticker into the new e-passport.

I thought this would be a good idea as Thai Immigration don't have electronic monitoring at the airport yet.

Less hassles.

I also spoke to another Thai lady who was there to renew her Thai passport, she was from Brisbane.

I asked why she did not have her passport renewed in Brisbane, she replied they told her Sydney and Canberra were the only places that would renew Thai passports and she had to fly from Brisbane to Sydney to do it? Sounds a bit strange to me, maybe someone else can throw some light on this.

As said BNE consulate don't provide Thai passports, but you can register for the next time the embassy people visit and have a passport processed then,; they visit approx every six months.

[krisb]

I took the wife to the Thai consulate in Sydney to have her Thai passport renewed. had to have copy of her old passport particulars and Thai I.D. Card. Waited half hour for her to have her new photo taken and all finger prints taken for the electronic,(e-passport). Paid the $55 AU and told to wait 3 to 6 weeks for it to come back from Bangkok. Pretty straight forward.

I asked about the old passport. they said it would be cancelled when she picks up the new one and returned to her.

We then have to inform the Australian Immigration of the new passport number and they can enter it into their computer system and if requested place a Permanent Resident sticker into the new e-passport.

I thought this would be a good idea as Thai Immigration don't have electronic monitoring at the airport yet.

Less hassles.

I also spoke to another Thai lady who was there to renew her Thai passport, she was from Brisbane.

I asked why she did not have her passport renewed in Brisbane, she replied they told her Sydney and Canberra were the only places that would renew Thai passports and she had to fly from Brisbane to Sydney to do it? Sounds a bit strange to me, maybe someone else can throw some light on this.

 

As said BNE consulate don't provide Thai passports, but you can register for the next time the embassy people visit and have a passport processed then,; they visit approx every six months.

Same in Adelaide. Next visit is in June actually.

[OZEMADE]

Went to the Thai Consulate in Sydney and picked up the wife's new Thai Passport. The new one has new passport numbers, the old one was returned and stamped cancelled over the first page above the photo.

I asked the Thai Consulate if the new Thai E-Passport recognized the Australian Permanent Residency (APR) status. They told me nothing would be in the new e-Passport re the (APR) and that I should go to Immigration at Central Railway and enquire there.

We spoke to the DIAC officer there re the (APR) status, he asked for the new and old passport, he informed us that all the information and new Passport numbers would be put on the (DIAC) computers and there would be no problem Australia's end re exit and entry. He did say however that there could be problems in other country's that don't have the electronic recognition and asked if we wanted a APR Label put in the new Thai Passport. We agreed and the new label cost AU$70.

They also stamped all old labels in the old Thai Passport LABEL INOPERATIVE Immigration Australia, making it Null and Void.

He said you could also use the Entitlement Verification Online Certificate as some country's would recognize this. You have to register on line to get this certificate.

He did say, that these new (APR) labels would not be available next year and did not know what was going to happen then. I presume you would have to get the on line certificate?

Hope this helps, any queries and I would be glad to answer.

OZEMADE

Edited July 1, 2013 by OZEMADE