Pending applications · Second opinion
Second Opinion on a Lodged Visa Application — Independent Review of a Pending File
Many people lodge, then worry: a long silence, a processing time well past the published figure, something they are no longer sure was right, an agent who has stopped replying. A second opinion on a lodged application is a defined piece of work: the file as lodged, read by a registered agent who was not involved, with a written view on where it is strong, where it is exposed and what, if anything, should be added before the Department asks.
By Keshab Chapagain, registered migration agent (MARN 1576536) since 2015 · WIDEN, Sydney · Reviewed October 2026
Keshab Chapagain · MARN 1576536 · Registered since 2015 - What is reviewed
- The application and documents as lodged in ImmiAccount
- Format
- Extended consultation + written summary
- Who it suits
- Self-lodged files and files with another agent
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About the CPD →MARN 1576536
Get the file read by someone who was not involved in preparing it.
In the extended consultation I read the lodged application and documents, identify the criteria the Department will test and the evidence against each, tell you where the exposure is and what can still be added, and give you the view in writing. If a request for information or a natural justice letter has arrived, the review becomes the response plan.
What it costs. $550 inc. GST for 60 minutes by video with Keshab Chapagain (MARN 1576536), credited in full against our professional fee if you engage WIDEN. Advice confirmed in writing after the call. There is no free consultation or free assessment.
When a second opinion is worth it
- The application has been pending well beyond the Department’s published processing time with no request issued.
- You lodged yourself and have since read something that makes you doubt a document or an answer.
- The agent who lodged has stopped responding, or you no longer trust the advice.
- A request for more information or a natural justice letter has arrived and you want an independent view of how to answer it.
- A deadline depends on the application: a current visa ending, a start date, a child turning 18 or 23.
- The application is high-stakes and complex: a 407 or 408 for an organisation, an employer-sponsored file with a genuineness question, a partner file with gaps in the history, a character or health issue on the file.
What the review covers
- Each criterion the Department must be satisfied of for the subclass and stream applied for, and the evidence on the file against it.
- Consistency: dates, names, roles and histories across the form, the documents and any earlier applications visible on the file.
- Documents that are missing, out of date, unsigned, untranslated or in the wrong form.
- Known patterns of refusal for the subclass and whether the file shows them.
- What can be added now without a request, and what should wait for one.
- The status position: what the current visa and bridging visa allow, and what happens at decision either way.
What it can and cannot do
A second opinion cannot speed the Department up, and it cannot change what was lodged. It can tell you, before the Department does, whether the file is likely to attract a request or a refusal and on what point, so that the evidence is ready and the response is not written under a 28-day clock. It can also tell you that the file is sound and the delay is ordinary, which is worth knowing. The written summary is yours to act on, with me or with your existing agent.
If you have another agent
Your existing agent remains your agent unless you change the appointment. A second opinion does not require you to change agents, and I will not contact your agent or the Department about the file unless you appoint me. If the opinion identifies something that should be added, you can ask your agent to do it, or appoint me to do it; what you cannot do is have two agents acting on the same application at once.
Before you book
Download the application summary and the document list from ImmiAccount, gather the documents as lodged, and any letters received since. Upload them when you book so the hour is spent on the file rather than on describing it. If a letter with a deadline has arrived, say so in the booking notes and I will prioritise the time.
General information only, current at October 2026; not advice on your own case. Outcomes depend on the Department’s assessment of each application; no registered migration agent can guarantee a result (Code of Conduct, Migration Agents Regulations). Keshab Chapagain, MARN 1576536.
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Questions we get asked first
Can you look at my application if it was lodged by another agent?
Yes. The review is of the file as lodged. You do not need to change agents to get a second opinion, and I will not contact your agent or the Department unless you appoint me.
Can you speed up my application?
No one can. What the review does is find the point on which a request or refusal is likely, so the evidence is ready and nothing is answered in a hurry.
What do I need to provide?
The ImmiAccount application summary, the document list, the documents as lodged, and any correspondence since. Upload them when you book.
What if the review finds a serious problem?
You will be told plainly, with the options: add evidence now, wait for a request, withdraw and re-lodge, or prepare for review. The decision is yours; the written summary sets out the consequences of each.
How is the second opinion priced?
As the extended consultation, $550 inc. GST, credited in full against our professional fee if you then engage WIDEN for the application or the response.
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