Watching the Kettle Boil: The Australian Subclass 600 Visitor Visa

On April 9th, I applied for a Subclass 600 Visitor Visa (Tourist Stream) with a plan to land in Australia on May 7th or May 12th at the latest.

Since then, I've spent way too much time wondering about whether it will get approved, or whether it will get approved in time. It's like watching a kettle boil!

I have many other things I want to do, but it's hard to plan ahead when I'm not sure what my next few weeks will look like. All it takes is that one email from ImmiAccount to let me know whether I can make my visit... But all I can do now is wait.

1. Getting a Subclass 600 Tourist Visa Approved

I've been scouring Reddit and Facebook groups online to see how other applicants are faring, and I've also read quite a number of refusal letters that others have shared. I'll post the links to the Facebook groups at the end of this post.

A very common sentence I notice in the refusal letters for the Subclass 600 Tourist Visa is:

"I am not satisfied that the applicant genuinely intends to stay temporarily in Australia for the purpose set out above."

... or something to that effect. This basically means that the Case Officer is not satisfied that you are visiting Australia for tourism purposes only.

So when applying for this visa, it seems very important that you demonstrate in your application that:

You will not overstay, nor engage in non-tourism activities such as working.

Of course, there are many other factors that could lead to a refusal, such as if your length of stay requested doesn't make sense, or if you don't pass their health conditions or background checks.

To decide on your risk level, it appears that Case Officers evaluate the combinations of following factors:

1. Your country of citizenship
2. Your country of residence
3. Your visa or travel history
4. Your employment status (e.g. student, employee, business owner)
5. Your financial ability and history
6. Your assets that ties you to your country of citizenship or residence
7. Your family ties and other personal relationships
8. Other personal circumstances
9. and more

Family ties and personal relationships are tricky. On one hand, having family or friends in Australia shows your purpose to visit Australia, but on the other hand, they can be deemed reasons for you to overstay.

It's important to see your application from the perspective of Case Officers and ask yourself whether you have shown any risk of overstaying or attempting engage in non-tourism activities if you were granted one.

Having the following attached in your application should help. Not all is necessary, but depending on your situation, being able to show some or all of these should make your application stronger.

1. Extensive travel history
2. Visa history from countries deemed economically and politically comparable to Australia (e.g. United States, Schengen Area, Canada, New Zealand, etc.)
3. Student or employee at a reputable or verifiable organization
4. Stable financial history as shown in bank statements
5. Assets that tie you to countries outside Australia (e.g. property, land, etc.)

2. My Purpose of Travel

I live in Canada, and some of you may think that it'll be an easy approval, but I noticed a recent Facebook post in this Facebook group showing an applicant from Canada getting a refusal, so it's never a guarantee. I don't want to screenshot or post their refusal letter here without permission though.

But essentially, in the refusal letter shared, the officer wasn't satisfied of the applicant's visiting purpose, even when the applicant is employed and also enrolled in an educational institution in Canada.

Around the time this applicant applied, 90% of application were processed within 35 days as shown in the Global visa processing times, and they received a refusal on Day 36. (The processing time may have changed by the time you are reading this post.)

When I applied, 90% of applications were also shown to be processed within 35 days, but around 2 weeks later, it changed to 28 days as shown in the screenshot below. (The Global visa processing times are updated monthly by the Australian Department of Home Affairs.)

In any case, both of my parents have been granted Australian tourist visas, and my brother is currently working in Australia.

I intend to visit Australia to join them on a family trip for around 2 weeks from May 8th–19th, and I indicated this in my application. I also explained it a little more in the itinerary I submitted.

I know I applied a little late because I wasn't sure about joining them, but then I changed my mind.

This is just a conjecture, but I believe Case Officers consider intended dates of travel in applications to decide whether to process it sooner or later. When I called the Australian Department of Home Affairs, I asked them whether this is the case and the person answering my called hinted that it should be taken into consideration but of course, they did not confirm 100% that it is.

3. My Application Status

On Day 24, my application still shows that it's Received. I've been logging in pretty much almost every day only to be greeted by the same status, and I keep telling myself not to check and just wait for the email but the temptation is just too much.

In the same call I made to Home Affairs, I was essentially informed that the application status could change directly from Received into a decision, or it could show some other status.

The Home Affairs webpage shows that the status Received means that "the application has been received by the Department and will be assessed".

Technically, at the time I'm writing this, my application is still within the standard processing timeframe, but I do feel that some parts of my application is a little weak and could be grounds for refusal.

4. The Weak Parts of My Application

The weak parts in my application hover around my self-employment situation. I have my own company in Canada which I incorporated over a year ago, but the revenue I had in my first year of business wasn't that much and it wasn't very consistent. This can be seen in the business bank statements I submitted.

However, I receive a regular salary hrough my own company, and I submitted the payslips in my application. The personal bank statements I submitted are a little convoluted, as they show funds coming in and out from myself to my company, and from my company to myself. Totally normal for self-employed individuals, but not very good for visa applications.

I have seen refusal letters for self-employed applicants citing the reason that their income was not consistent. Technically though, I am on a regular payroll from my own company and that is a consistent pay—just not sure whether they'll consider it as such because it's from my own company.

I also uploaded a GST/HST tax return that shows my company's total revenue for last year, as well as my personal income tax return to help mitigate the somewhat convoluted bank statements that I sent in. I probably wouldn't have submitted these if my bank statements were stronger and more proper.

5. The Stronger Parts of My Application

I live in Canada and that should bear some weight into deciding against my risk of overstaying. I've worked hard to be able to live in Canada to start a business, why on the maple syrup would I throw that away and risk overstaying in Australia? I hope the Case Officer sees it that way.

I visited Australia around 15 years ago as a child so I have been granted an Australian tourist visa previously. I also have a visa history in a number of other countries.

I submitted an itinerary of flight and hotel bookings confirmed for my parents where they will be staying together with my brother. I mentioned that I will be joining them if my visa is approved in time.

The total funds I showed in both my personal and business bank accounts are definitely more enough for a tourist visa, it's just that the inflows or outflows of funds can be deemed a problem if they want it to be.

6. The Unknown Parts of My Application

For some reason, I notice quite a number of refusals for siblings and family relatives of Australian residents in the Facebook groups I've been frequenting. I suspect they deem relatives of current residents are more likely to overstay?

Again, there are weak points in my application around my self-employment they can focus on if they want to refuse my application, but at the same time it's also perhaps a tiny bit unreasonable considering my visa and immigration history.

7. Why I Might Withdraw My Application

I believe Case Officers would likely consider the intended travel date when prioritizing which applications to process first. I did put in very clearly throughout my applications that I intend to travel from May 7th/8th to May 19th/20th.

The closer it gets to the date, the more I suspect maybe something's wrong. I'm aware that it's probably simply still in progress, but seeing the case of how that other applicant from Canada gets a refusal makes me doubt my application even more.

I've set a deadline for myself—I'm considering to wait until May 9th (Day 30 of my application). This is a little bit after 90% of when applications are expected to be processed currently.

If you're reading this, the current expected processing time may have changed—do check out the latest Global visa processing times.

If there's no news by May 9th, I'll most likely withdraw my application. I suppose withdrawing is better than getting refused, as that refusal record would end up staying with me and I would have to disclose it in other future visa applications that ask for it.

And it's not like I would want to visit Australia any time soon when my parents leave on May 19th.

Now, if I were to be granted a visa on May 9th, I would make a last-minute booking for May 10th, and I'd get to Australia by May 12th at the earliest (considering the time difference between Canada and Australia). I would then have around 1 week left to hang out with my family, if I do get to do that, so let's see...

Update: I Withdrew My Application

On Day 26, I withdrew my application. This was on May 5th on Friday, 2 days before Day 28, the day where 90% of applications are supposed to be processed.

I very much doubt my application would've been approved on a Saturday or a Sunday (especially if it's processed in the Ottawa office—though I have no idea if it is).

If it was supposed to be approved, it most likely would have been already considering I stated throughout my application that I intended to travel from May 7th to the 19th.

I felt such sense of relief after I decided I'm no longer going to Australia. This past month has been a huge practice on my patience.

It's May 7th today, and I'm visiting Vancouver in BC instead. I'm typing up this update as I'm in the Vancouver airport after I've just landed around 1–2 hours ago.

Goodbye Australia, and hello Vancouver.

Facebook Groups Discussing Subclass 600 Visas

• AUSTRALIA TOURIST VISA SUBCLASS 600
• Australia Visitor Visa Subclass 600
• Australia Visitor Visa Help (Subclass 600)

In these Facebook groups, you can search keywords of the country you are applying from, so you can find discussions from applicants who perhaps have similar situations as you do. For example, if you are applying from Canada, you can search for "canada" or "canadian" in the groups to pull up discussions mentioning these keywords.

You can also visit r/AusVisa on Reddit, but it's more generalized for all other Australian visas, not just Subclass 600 ones.