When Does a Bridging Visa Cease to Be in Effect? A Look at Bridging-Visa Validity Periods

About the Author

Jason ZHANG

• MARA-registered migration agent, CTO of the Newstarsec group, and a top education and migration consultant at our Melbourne branch, writing under the pen name “Mitu Weiyuan”.

• With extensive experience in handling migration and study-abroad matters, he enjoys solving all kinds of visa problems through migration law and specialises in tackling complex, tricky cases. He has authored hundreds of in-depth study-abroad and migration articles for Newstarsec, helping applicants understand not just the “what” but also the “why”.

Introduction

For the question of when a bridging visa begins to take effect, please see my earlier article“Does a Bridging Visa Take Effect Immediately After You Lodge? A Breakdown of Priority Between Different Visas”. Today, let us turn to another question:when does a bridging visacease to be in effect?

In most cases, the validity period of a bridging visa does not need to be discussed,because normally, once the substantive visa you applied for is granted, the bridging visa naturally ceases to be in effect.So what we are really discussing todayare some special situations.

Why Understanding a Bridging Visa’s Validity Period Matters

While a bridging visa is in effect,there is actually still plenty you can do. For example, while holding a Bridging Visa A, B or C, you can stilllodge a skilled migration visa application—and even during avisa refusal appeal, you may stillapply for a Subclass 190 or Subclass 491.For the details, see my earlier article “Is There Still Hope After an Onshore Refusal? A Breakdown of Section 48, AAT Appeals and Visa-Refusal Rescue Strategies“.

In addition, if you fail to understand a bridging visa’s validity period and end up becoming unlawful, you may face the penalty of being “barred from applying for an Australian visa for three years”.This will be described in detail in my next article, “Which Situations Lead to a 3-Year Bar on Visa Applications?A Breakdown of PIC 4013, 4014 and 4020″ — so stay tuned.

A Quick Tip for

Reading

the Legislation

Many people find legislation difficult to understand when they read it, so before we get into the validity period of a bridging visa, I would like to share a small tip for reading the legislation:simply set the adverbial clauses aside for the moment (or put them in brackets) and first read the subject, verb and object.

For example,the Introduction noted that a bridging visa ceases once the substantive visa is granted. Taking Bridging Visa A as an example, this comes from Clause 010.511(b)(i). You only need to read the blue portion in the image below to understand it (bridging visa permitting the holder to remain in Australia until the grant of the visa); the rest (the yellow adverbial portion) can be set aside for now.Read and understand the blue portion first, then extend your understanding to the yellow portion — it becomes much easier to grasp.This is also one of the techniques for tackling long, difficult sentences in the IELTS reading test:

Validity Periods in Special Situations: Refusal, AAT Appeal, Withdrawal and Visa Cancellation

Once you have mastered the method for reading the legislation from the previous section, it becomes very easy to understandhow long Bridging Visa A remains in effect in other special situations.The original legislative text is set out below:

The legislation above can be broadly summarised in the table below:

So, as you can see,a bridging visa ceases immediately only when the visa you hold is cancelled.In most other special situations,the bridging visa, after a certain “event” occurs,still remains in effect for 35 days.

It is worth noting, however, that there is another special situation:an appeal to the Federal Circuit Court (FCC) (judicial review).In this case, the period is not 35 days as it is after an AAT decision,but only 28 days.Part of the original legislative text is set out below:

A Bridging Visa Ceases on Departure

The very purpose of a bridging visa is to allow you to remain in Australia while you wait for the outcome of a visa application. Once you depart, it ceases to be in effect under Section 82(8) of the Migration Act,and a Bridging Visa B will also cease on departure if its travel facility has expired (so you cannot re-enter).The original legislative text is set out below:

Of course,departing and re-entering on a Bridging Visa B before its travel facility expires will not cause it to lapse. After all, a Bridging Visa B exists precisely to allow travel. For more on the validity period of a Bridging Visa B, see my previous article “Once a Bridging Visa B’s “Validity” Ends, Does It Automatically Revert to Bridging Visa A?“.

Travelling In and Out While a Substantive Visa Is Still in Effect Does Not Cause the Bridging Visa to Cease

The rule that a bridging visa ceases on departure comes with a precondition:the bridging visa must first be in effect before you depart for it to cease.This is explained in detail in the Department’s Procedures Advice Manual (PAM), as shown below:

For example,Suppose Xiao Ming’s Subclass 485 visa expires on 30 June 2023. If Xiao Ming lodged a Subclass 189 application on 1 April and was granted Bridging Visa A, then his returning home on 1 May and coming back to Australia on 1 June will not cause the Subclass 189 Bridging Visa A to cease. After his Subclass 485 expires on 30 June, the Subclass 189 Bridging Visa A will take effect immediately.

Closing Remarks

That covers the validity period of bridging visas. Compared with the validity period of a substantive visa,a bridging visa has no fixed length and is clearly far more complex.This article only scratches the surface, covering the Bridging Visa A, B and C situations you are most likely to encounter; other bridging visas (such as Bridging Visa E) are not discussed here.If you come across other complex situations, feel free to contact me to discuss them.

Stay tuned for my migration-law column, where I will share more handy migration-law insights.

If you need help with a visa matter, get in touch with me

MARA-registered migration agent (MARN 1805429)

Jason’s Migration-Law Column

[Does a Bridging Visa B Automatically Revert to A Once It “Expires”? ]

Could You Accidentally Become an Unlawful Non-Citizen?

[After Lodging, Can You Wait Onshore in China for the Grant?]

After Lodging Onshore, Can You Return Home to Wait for the Grant? A Breakdown of Migration Regulation xxx.411!

[Refused Onshore? What Now?]

Can You Still Apply for Migration? A Breakdown of Section 48, AAT Appeals and Visa-Refusal Rescue Strategies!

[Does a Bridging Visa Take Effect Immediately After Lodging?]

Does a Bridging Visa Take Effect Immediately After You Lodge? A Breakdown of Bridging-Visa Priority!

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When Does a Bridging Visa Cease to Be in Effect? A Look at Bridging-Visa Validity Periods

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