Australian Resident Return Visa (155/157)

To be eligible to apply for a Resident Return Visa (Subclass 155/157), the Applicant must:

• Be an Australian Permanent Resident or a former Australian Permanent Resident whose last visa was not cancelled or a former Australian Citizen who lost or renounced Citizenship.
• Meet the Residence Requirements or the Substantial Ties Requirements.
• Meet the Character Requirements.
• Not have any adverse immigration history.

The abovementioned criteria are the bare minimum. More information will need to be provided by the Applicant to confirm eligibility. Please contact our Office for a complimentary consultation to discuss your matter.

The Applicant must either:

• Have been present in Australia for 2 years in the last 5 years as the holder of a Permanent Visa, or as an Australian citizen, in which case they will get a 5-year travel facility; OR
• Be outside Australia and:
  • not absent for 5 continuous years or more before the date of application (unless they have compelling reasons), and
  • hold a Permanent Visa or last left Australia as a Permanent Resident or Citizen (but subsequently lost citizenship), and
  • be able to demonstrate substantial ties to Australia that are of benefit to Australia, in which case they can only be given a maximum 12 months travel facility; OR
• Be outside Australia and:
  • were an Australian Citizen or Permanent Resident less than 10 years before they applied, and
  • not absent from Australia for periods that total more than 5 years (unless they have compelling reasons) between the date they left Australia as a Permanent Resident or Citizen and the date of application, and
  • be able to demonstrate substantial ties to Australia that are of benefit to Australia, in which case they can only be given a maximum 12 months travel facility; OR
• Be in Australia and:
  • be able to demonstrate substantial ties to Australia that are of benefit to Australia, and
  • not been absent for 5 continuous years since grant of the most recent Permanent Visa or when they stopped being an Australian Citizen (unless they have compelling reasons), in which case they can only be given a maximum 12 months travel facility; OR
• Be the member of family unit of a person who already holds an Resident Return (Subclass 155/157) Visa or has lodged a separate application for an Resident Return (Subclass 155/157) Visa, and meets the time of application criteria for grant, in which case they can only be given a maximum 12 months travel facility.

In calculating the Residence Requirement relating to the first dot-point above, the:

• 2-year period is counted as 730 days.
• 5-year period is counted back from the Resident Return (Subclass 155/157) Visa application lodgement date (not from the date of Resident Return (Subclass 155/157) Visa decision).
• Date of arrival and date of departure are both included in the count of days in Australia. Only one day is counted if the applicant arrives and departs on the same day. Only one day is counted if a visa expires and another one is granted on the same day. A part-day spent in Australia by a permanent visa holder is counted as a full day. 

If the Applicant is overseas when they apply for this Visa, it is recommended that they wait overseas for a decision.

If the Applicant is in Australia when they apply for the Visa, they will remain on their current Visa. They will not receive a Bridging Visa.

Approximate Processing Time for a decision: The DHA’s indication is between a few days and 3 months for a decision. However, this changes on a monthly basis.

A large number of previous Resident Return Visa applications that Andreas Athanasiou has lodged have been granted in a shorter period, due to the detailed and thorough decision-ready applications he has submitted.

If the Resident Return Visa (Subclass 155/157) is granted, then the Applicant is a Permanent Resident of Australia with an active Travel Facility.

During this time, they can live, work and travel within Australia and overseas without any restrictions.