Bridging visas · BVA / BVB / BVC / BVE
It is a group of temporary visas tied to a specific immigration situation. The right class, activation date, work conditions and travel position must be checked against the complete visa history.
BVA, BVC and BVE do not provide return travel. If travel is necessary, an eligible person generally needs a BVB granted before departure and must return within its travel period.
01 · Which bridging visa?
Usually connected to a valid onshore substantive visa application made while the applicant held a substantive visa.
The bridging visa to consider when an eligible person must travel overseas and return while an immigration matter remains pending.
Often relevant where a valid onshore substantive visa application was made when the applicant did not hold a substantive visa.
Used in defined circumstances to resolve immigration status, pursue an eligible matter or make departure arrangements.
02 · Is it automatic?
Most eligible onshore substantive visa applications include a bridging visa application, and Home Affairs will tell the applicant if one is granted. But an EOI is not a visa application. A separate application may also be needed where the automatic application did not occur, an earlier bridging visa ceased, different work conditions are sought, or judicial review is underway.
03 · Can I work?
Work may be unrestricted, restricted or prohibited. Check the grant letter and the visa currently in effect through VEVO.
For some BVA or BVC holders, financial hardship can be relevant when asking for a further bridging visa without work restrictions. It is not an automatic entitlement.
Special restrictions can apply to protection, judicial-review and status-resolution matters. The exact application history must be checked before giving a conclusion.
04 · How to check the position
Confirm the visa currently in effect, its expiry date and conditions. A granted bridging visa may not yet be in effect, so VEVO can show only the current substantive visa.
Check the valid visa application, ART review, judicial review, status-resolution or departure process on which the bridging visa depends.
Read the grant letter for when the visa starts, when it ends, and what happens after a refusal, withdrawal, review outcome or missed deadline.
Do not start work or leave Australia on an assumption. Confirm the conditions and obtain a BVB before departure where eligible and required.
05 · Refusal, ART and judicial review
A decision letter states whether merits review is available, who may apply and the deadline. Lodging a valid review in time can affect how long a bridging visa remains in effect, but not every refusal is reviewable and not every review automatically produces a new bridging visa.
Judicial review examines legal error rather than remaking the visa decision. A person entering judicial review may need a separate BVA application and should check work and travel conditions again.
06 · Charges and lodgement
Charges checked 2 August 2026. BVA, BVB and BVC applications are generally lodged online through ImmiAccount or the Department's bridging-visa webform, depending on the matter. BVE applications follow the relevant status-resolution process.
Before work, travel or a deadline
We can review grant letters, applications and decision records together, then identify the current visa, the next deadline and the action required.
General information only; not immigration advice or a decision by Home Affairs, the ART or a court. Information checked 2 August 2026.
