This is a temporary visa. Nearly all bridging visas are applied for automatically as part of applying for a substantive visa. We may grant you a BVC if you have made a valid application in Australia for a substantive visa but you do not already hold a substantive visa.

A separate application for a BVC might be necessary where:

• you are seeking a further BVC without work restrictions
• you have applied for judicial review

You can’t use a bridging visa while you wait for a citizenship application to be decided.

A BVC comes ‘into effect’ when:

• it is granted; or
• your current substantive visa ceases; or
• another bridging visa that is more beneficial than your current bridging visa ceases

Visa holders must adhere to the conditions imposed on their visa. Where you are granted a BVC, you will be notified about the conditions that apply. 

If you hold a substantive visa when your BVC is granted, you must continue to comply with the conditions of the substantive visa. When your substantive visa ceases, the conditions of your BVC will apply.

The BVC does not support return travel to Australia. 

Remaining lawful during judicial review
If a merits review tribunal upholds our decision to refuse your substantive visa application and you apply for judicial review, you will need to apply for a bridging visa to maintain your lawful status during the judicial review proceedings.

The initial BVC we grant when you apply for your substantive visa will not let you work, unless the substantive visa you have applied for is one of the following SkillSelect visas:

• Business Talent visa (subclass 132)
• Business Innovation and Investment (Provisional) visa (subclass 188)
• Business Innovation and Investment (Permanent) visa (subclass 888)
• Employer Nomination Scheme visa (subclass 186)
• Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme visa (subclass 187)
• Skilled — Independent visa (subclass 189)
• Skilled — Nominated visa (subclass 190) 
• Skilled — Regional (Provisional) visa (subclass 489).

If your BVC does not let you work, or has restrictions on working, you can apply for another BVC that lets you work. To be considered for a BVC that lets you work, you will usually have to demonstrate that you are experiencing financial hardship.

We will assess your circumstances in relation to your claim that you need to work. If you do not meet the requirements for work and you are still eligible for a BVC, we will grant you a new BVC with the same work prevention or restriction condition that was on your previous BVC.

If you are a Protection visa applicant and you apply for a BVC for judicial review, we can only grant you a new BVC that allows you to work if the last BVC you held allowed you to work.

If you are a SkillSelect visa applicant and you are granted a BVC for judicial review, this visa will not initially allow you to work. To be considered for a BVC that lets you work, you will need to make a further BVC application and demonstrate that you are experiencing financial hardship.  

If you are not a Protection or SkillSelect visa applicant and you apply for a BVC for judicial review you will only be granted a new BVC that does not allow you to work, even if your last BVC allowed you to work.

Stay lawfully in Australia until your substantive visa application is finally determined, or it granted in association with judicial proceedings, until those proceedings are complete.

A BVC will end immediately if the following situations occur:

• you leave Australia while your BVC is in effect
• you are granted the substantive visa you applied for
• you are granted another bridging visa in relation to the same substantive visa application that this BVC is associated with, or
• we cancel either your BVC or the substantive visa that you held when you were granted the BVC

In all other situations one of the following outcomes will determine when your BVC ceases: 

• your substantive visa application is refused or deemed invalid
• your merits or judicial review is decided
• you withdraw your application for the substantive visa, merits review or judicial review
• a merits review tribunal tells you that it has no jurisdiction to consider your application for review

Once you have been notified of an outcome you can see exactly how long you can stay in Australia in VEVO. 

BVC granted on or after 19 November 2016

Your BVC will cease 35 calendar days after:

• our refusal decision or a decision by the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) in relation to your associated substantive visa application
• a determination that your substantive visa application or an application for review by the AAT is invalid
• you withdraw your substantive visa application or application for review by the AAT

You BVC will cease 28 calendar days after:

• a judicial review body upholds the decision to refuse your substantive visa application
• you withdraw a related judicial review application

BVC granted before 19 November 2016

Your BVC will cease 28 days after the date that 1 of the following happens:

• we notify you that your substantive visa application is not valid
• we notify you that your substantive visa application has been refused
• you withdraw your substantive visa application
• a merits review tribunal notifies you that it has upheld our decision to refuse your substantive visa application
• a merits review tribunal notifies you that it has no jurisdiction to consider your application for review
• you withdraw your application for merits or judicial review from a merits review tribunal or a judicial review body
• a judicial review body upholds the decision to refuse your substantive visa application

You can’t stay in Australia longer by extending this visa. You must apply for a new visa if you wish to stay longer.

If you and your family have applied together for a substantive visa in Australia, you might have also applied together for a BVC. Check if family members already hold a BVC in VEVO.

If you apply separately for a BVC, you can include members of the family unit in your BVC application, if they are included in your substantive visa application.

We will assess each member of the family unit’s application and decide which bridging visa they can be granted.

You and anyone included in your application must be in Australia when the BVC application is submitted and granted.

Processing times are not available for bridging visas.

Your application can take longer to process if:

• you do not fill it in correctly
• you do not include all the documents we need or we need more information from you
• it takes us time to verify your information

You and anyone included in your application must:

• comply with all Australian laws
• comply with the conditions of the current visa (if any held)
• comply with the conditions of your BVC when it comes in to effect

If you leave Australia on this visa when it is in effect you will not be able to return on it.  A BVC that is in effect will cease upon departure from Australia. To see if your BVC is in effect, see VEVO.

As BVC holder, we cannot grant you a Bridging visa B (BVB) that allows you to travel and return to Australia whilst your substantive visa application is being processed.

If you leave Australia and you do not hold another visa that allows you to return, you will have to apply for and be granted a substantive visa before you can return to Australia. There is no guarantee that you will be granted a visa.

We will digitally link your visa to your passport. You will not get a label in your passport.