Rules as of 26 October 2026

Visa conditions, breaches and overstaying in Australia

Almost every visa carries a work condition. This guide covers the common conditions, what a breach can lead to and what overstaying means.

Verified Written 26 October 2026

Do all visas have conditions?

Only Australian citizens, permanent residents and New Zealand citizens on Special Category (subclass 444) visas have no work conditions; every other visa carries some form of work restriction.

Home Affairs says neither a Visitor visa nor an ETA allows work, so a non-citizen holding either who works in Australia is doing so illegally.

VEVO lets visa holders, employers, education providers and other organisations check visa conditions, and a registered organisation needs the visa holder's permission to see the details.

How do work-hour and student conditions work?

Condition 8101 is the standard no-work condition. Condition 8104 caps work at 40 hours in any fortnight, but for a Subclass 500 (Student) visa the figure is read as 48 hours.

For conditions 8104 and 8105 a fortnight is a block of 14 days that starts on a Monday, so hours are counted per block, not per rolling 14 days. For a Subclass 500 holder, condition 8105 limits work to 48 hours per fortnight while the course is in session.

A student on condition 8105 cannot do any work before the course has commenced, unless the previous visa they held when applying already permitted work. Condition 8202 is breached if the education provider certifies the student as not achieving satisfactory course progress or attendance.

What conditions apply to working holiday and sponsored workers?

Condition 8547 bars a working holiday maker from being employed by any single employer for more than 6 months unless the Secretary gives prior written permission. Condition 8548 stops a working holiday maker from studying or training in Australia for more than 4 months.

Under condition 8607 a Skills in Demand (482) holder may work only in the occupation nominated in the application for their most recent 482 visa and, generally, only for the nominating employer or its business.

Sponsored workers on condition 8607 or 8608 may stop working in the nominated role for no more than 180 consecutive days at a time and no more than 365 days in total over the visa period. A 482 or 494 holder must start work within 90 days of arriving in Australia, or of the grant if the visa was granted onshore.

What is the no further stay condition?

Condition 8503, "no further stay", means that once the holder is in Australia they cannot be granted any substantive visa other than a protection visa while they remain here. The Minister can waive it if compelling and compassionate circumstances beyond the holder's control have caused a major change in their circumstances since the visa was granted.

The Minister may also waive condition 8503 where the holder has a genuine intention to apply for a General Skilled Migration, 186, 187, 188, 191, 482 or 494 visa.

Form 1447 says a waiver request is generally decided in up to 28 days, and lodging one does not by itself let the person stay lawfully: if the visa expires before a decision, the person becomes unlawful. A refusal cannot be reviewed by the Administrative Review Tribunal.

What can happen if a condition is breached?

The Minister may cancel a visa if its holder has not complied with a condition of the visa, which is the basic power used for breaches such as working without permission or exceeding work-hour limits.

A re-entry ban can follow a cancellation for breaching a visa condition, for example working while the visa carried a no-work condition. Public interest criterion 4013 bars a new visa for 3 years after cancellation on certain grounds, and it catches a person whose earlier visa was cancelled because they worked without authority.

A decision to cancel a visa held by someone in the migration zone is generally reviewable by the Administrative Review Tribunal (ART), with some exceptions. An application must be made within 28 days of notification, or 14 days in immigration detention, and the ART cannot extend that time limit.

What happens if someone overstays?

A non-citizen in the migration zone who does not hold a valid visa is an unlawful non-citizen. Home Affairs states that anyone staying without a valid visa and not leaving can be detained, removed from Australia and billed for the removal cost.

Home Affairs says a person who leaves Australia after being without a valid visa for more than 28 days may be refused another visa for up to 3 years, except in limited circumstances. The 3-year bar in criterion 4014 does not apply to someone who left within 28 days after their substantive visa ceased.

A re-entry ban cannot be removed, but for a temporary visa application a person can ask in writing for a waiver by showing compassionate or compelling circumstances. Home Affairs tells people whose visa has expired and who cannot leave to apply for a free Bridging E visa through ImmiAccount, which keeps them lawful while they arrange to depart.

For advice on your own case, ask a registered migration agent (MARA) or an Australian legal practitioner. Rules change, so always check the official source.