Your visa is ending and you cannot safely return home

Many people arrive in Australia on a student, work or visitor visa expecting to return home. Sometimes the situation at home changes while they are here. A government falls. A conflict starts. A person becomes involved in politics, changes religion, or comes out to their family. Sometimes nothing changes at home, but the person's own circumstances do.

If your visa is running out and you are afraid to go back, you need accurate information before you do anything. The wrong step at this stage is difficult to undo.

A protection visa is one option, not the only one

People in this situation often assume a protection visa is the only path. It is not, and it is frequently not the best one.

Depending on your circumstances, you may be eligible for a partner visa, an employer-sponsored visa such as a Subclass 482, a further student visa, a skilled visa, or another temporary visa that gives you time. These options are usually faster, more certain, and they do not carry the consequences described below.

We will look at every option that applies to you before we discuss protection. If another pathway is open, we will tell you.

What a protection visa involves

Australia grants protection visas to people who are found to be refugees, and to some people who face a real risk of serious harm for other reasons. The decision is made by the Department of Home Affairs on the individual facts of your case.

A protection application is different from most visa applications. There is usually no checklist of documents that decides the outcome. The decision turns on your own account of what happened and what you fear, tested against independent information about conditions in your country. This means the application must be prepared carefully and honestly from the beginning.

Things you should know before you apply

You generally get one chance. If your protection visa application is refused, the law prevents you from making another protection visa application while you remain in Australia, except in limited circumstances that are outside your control. A weak or rushed application does not simply fail. It closes the door.

False documents can end the application by themselves. If bogus documents or false information are given in support of a protection application, the law can require refusal regardless of the strength of the underlying claim. Never submit anything you are not certain is genuine.

A refusal can affect your future. A refused application becomes part of your immigration history and can affect later visa applications, both in Australia and elsewhere.

It takes time. Protection applications are not decided quickly. You will usually hold a bridging visa while you wait, and the conditions on that visa, including whether you can work, depend on when and how you applied.

Bad advice is common. People in this position are often told by friends, employers or unregistered advisers that a protection visa will "buy time" or "get a work permit". Applying for a visa you are not eligible for is not a strategy. It has real consequences, and the people who suggest it do not bear them.

How we work

We charge for an initial consultation of 30 minutes. There is no free assessment. In that consultation we will look at your visa history, your current status, and your circumstances, and we will tell you plainly which options are realistically available to you.

If your case is one we can act on, we will explain what is involved and what it costs before you commit to anything. If it is not, we will tell you that too, and where appropriate we will refer you to a community legal service that specialises in this area and may be able to assist at no cost.

We do not take on protection matters that we do not believe in. That is not a judgement about you. It is how we keep the advice we give worth paying for.

Book a consultation

If your visa is expiring soon, do not wait. Options that exist today may not exist after your visa ends.

---

The information on this page is general information only and is not personal migration advice. It does not take into account your individual circumstances. You should obtain advice specific to your situation before making any decision or application.

WIDEN Migration Experts is a business of Dynamic Consultancy Pty Ltd. Keshab Chapagain, Registered Migration Agent, MARN 1576536.