This visa allows you to come to Australia on a temporary basis to:
You must:
Last updated 17 October 2018 (for month ending 30 September 2018)
Processing times vary.
For more information read Global visa and citizenship processing times
You might be able to get this visa if you:
You must not intend to engage in any activity that will have adverse consequences for employment or training opportunities, or conditions of employment, for Australian citizens or permanent residents.
The genuine temporary entrant requirement (GTE) is an integrity measure to ensure that the temporary visa programme is used as intended and not as a way to maintain ongoing residency in Australia. Temporary residents are generally not able to extend their stay in Australia beyond four years by applying for this visa.
The GTE requirement applies to all temporary activity visa applicants. The officer assessing the visa will consider whether the individual circumstances of the visa applicant indicates that their intention is for a temporary stay in Australia.
You must satisfy us that you have a genuine intention to stay in Australia temporarily.
While you are in Australia, you must be able to support yourself and any eligible dependant family members who come with you. You might be asked to provide evidence of funds, such as an employment contract, bank statements or a letter from your financial institution stating your financial position. Allowances, accommodation and other assistance from your employer can also be considered when looking at your ability to support yourself.
You must meet certain health requirements. The results of your health examinations are generally valid for 12 months.
This applies to you and any dependent family members included in the application.
You are able to organise your health examinations upfront before lodging a visa application.
You are responsible for all your health costs while you are in Australia. You will not be covered by Australia's national health scheme (Medicare) unless your country has a reciprocal health care agreement with Australia.
You must make adequate arrangements in Australia for health insurance, for the period of your intended stay in Australia, unless you are covered by Medicare. You should ensure that your insurance will provide at least the level of coverage required for the purpose of your stay. Your health insurer could be in either Australia or your home country.
Attachment A in the health insurance standard template letter (142KB RTF) is a guide to the level of health insurance we will accept as adequate.
This applies to you and any dependent family members listed in the application.
If your proposed duration of stay in Australia will be for a period of 12 months or more, then police certificates should be provided when you lodge your application for this visa. For all other situations, do not arrange for police certificates until we tell you to.
You must meet certain character requirements. You must provide a police certificate from each country you have lived in for 12 months or more during the past 10 years after you turned 16 years of age.
If you intend to work as a domestic worker (executive): Provide police certificates when you lodge your application for this visa.
Sponsors, and visa applicants are required to provide a statement in relation to current or previous conduct that constitutes a breach in 'paying for visa sponsorship' activity. This declaration is included in the visa application form.
See: Paying for visa sponsorship – declaration requirement.
You must have no outstanding debts to the Australian Government or have arranged to repay any outstanding debts to the Australian Government before this visa can be granted.
This also applies to all dependent family members in your application who are 18 years of age or older.
Visa applicants for special program should have functional English language. This is to ensure that participants fully experience the cultural and social benefits of the special programme and to ensure occupational health and safety standards are met.
There is no nomination required for this visa.
This is a temporary visa. You can be in or outside Australian when you apply for this visa and when the visa is granted.
If you apply in Australia you must be sponsored by an approved temporary activities sponsor or sponsor who passes the sponsorship test.
If you apply from outside Australia and you intend to stay in Australia for three months or less, the organisation or individual in Australia who has responsibility for the events/activities you will be involved in must pass the support test.
If you apply from outside Australia and you intend to stay in Australia for more than three months you must be sponsored by an approved temporary activities sponsor or sponsor who passes the sponsorship test.
This visa allows you to:
Note: For some activity types such as superyacht crew members and special program participants, the stay period is usually no more than 12 months.
Temporary visa holders are generally not able to extend their stay in Australia beyond four years by applying for this visa.
From AUD 285
You might not need to pay the visa application charge.
You might have to pay other costs, such as the costs of health assessments, police certificates, or any other certificates or tests. You are responsible for making the necessary arrangements.
Use the Visa pricing estimator to estimate the cost of your application.
Visa pricing estimator
You can apply when you are in or outside Australia.
Workers in Australia – including visa holders with permission to work – have rights under Australian workplace law.
The Fair Work Ombudsman’s Pay and Conditions Tool (PACT) provides information on pay rates, shift calculations, leave arrangements and notice and redundancy entitlements.
See also: Workplace rights for all visa holders working in Australia
Note: For some activity types such as superyacht crew members and special program participants, the maximum stay period is usually no more than 12 months.
If your Temporary Activity visa (subclass 408) is granted when you are outside Australia, the stay period starts from the day that you first enter Australia as the holder of this visa.
For detailed information regarding who you can include in your application see including family members in your application. You should read and understand this before completing your applications.
Members of your family unit must be able to show that they have access to adequate means of support for their stay and meet health and character requirements.
Members of your family unit can apply for this visa as either a combined applicant (included in your application) or as a subsequent applicant (at a later time, separate from your application). Applications can be made using ImmiAccount. Subsequent applicants should apply using the Temporary Activity, International Relations or Training Visa (Subsequent Entrant) (403,407,408) form in ImmiAccount.
Your family cannot enter Australia before you. When your visa ends, your family must leave Australia with you or stay after you finally depart.
Your family can work or study in Australia while their visa is valid.
We will tell you if there are any other conditions they must comply with when you are granted the visa.
Outside Australia:
If you apply for this visa from outside Australia, do not make arrangements to travel to Australia until you are advised in writing that you have been granted a visa. Wait for a decision from us before you leave your job, sell your home or book your travel.
In Australia:
If you apply for this visa in Australia, you could be eligible for a Bridging visa that allows you to stay in the country lawfully while your application is processed. If you are given a Bridging visa A, you can apply for a Bridging visa B (BVB) to travel outside Australia while you wait for a decision.
You and your family must comply with all visa conditions and Australian laws.
You can check your visa conditions in Visa Entitlement Verification Online (VEVO).
Note for entertainers only: It is a condition on your visa that you must not change details of the times and places of engagements specified in the application to be undertaken in Australia during the visa period, without the prior permission in writing of the Secretary of the department. You must ask permission from the Entertainment Visa Centre (NSW) to make any changes to your itinerary, including new events, changes in times or new venues. You can contact the Entertainment Visa Centre at: entertainment.visas@border.gov.au
This information is for a person who wants to sponsor or support someone for a Temporary Activity visa (subclass 408).
To become a Temporary Activities sponsor you must lodge your application online through your ImmiAccount.
You can use Visa Entitlement Verification Online (VEVO for Organisations) to check the visa details and entitlements of a person that you have sponsored.
All activities types for the Temporary Activity visa (subclass 408) do not require sponsorship where the visa applicant is outside Australia and intends to stay for three months or less. Instead the individual or organisation in Australia who is responsible for the events or activities must meet the Support test.
These support or sponsorship requirements do not apply to persons applying for a Temporary Activity (subclass 408) visa to enter Australia under endorsement for an Australian Government Endorsed Event.
they must be sponsored (with the exception of Australian Government Endorse Events).
To sponsor an applicant for a Temporary Activity visa (subclass 408) you must meet the Sponsorship test.
To sponsor or support someone for this visa you must be one of the following types of individuals or organisations:
Your organisation must be lawfully established and actively engaged in business activities in Australia.
Further information is provided in Adverse information for sponsors.
A sponsorship lasts for up to five years.
If you are approved as a temporary activities sponsor, you can apply to vary (extend) your sponsorship before it expires to allow you to continue to sponsor people. If the sponsorship period expires, you will need to re-apply and be approved to sponsor further visa applicants.
You are responsible for meeting all igigations, even if you have authorised someone else to act on your behalf, including a migration agent.
You must comply with your obligations as a sponsor. We monitor your compliance with the sponsorship obligations and whether your visa holders are upholding their visa conditions.
Your compliance with the sponsorship obligations might be investigated by Immigration inspectors who have investigative powers under the Migration Act 1958. Failure to cooperate with inspectors is a breach of the sponsorship obligations.
If you do not meet your obligations, we could take one or more of the following actions:
You could be invited to enter into an enforceable undertaking. Enforceable undertakings require you to promise, in writing, to undertake to complete certain actions to demonstrate that the failures have been rectified and won’t happen again.
If the person you want to bring to Australia applies from outside Australia and intends to stay in Australia for three months or less they do not need to be sponsored for this visa. Instead the individual or organisation in Australia who is responsible for the events or activities must meet the Support test
AUD 420
If you were approved before 19 November 2016 as a long stay activity, training and research, professional development, entertainment, special program or superyacht crew sponsor, you can use this approval to sponsor a Temporary Activity (subclass 408 ) visa applicant (who is engaging in the relevant activity) during the transitional period, that is until 18 May 2017, or until your sponsor approval ceases (whichever is earlier).
From 19 May 2017 must apply online for approval as a temporary activities sponsor if you want to sponsor a Temporary Activity (subclass 408) visa applicant.
If you apply for approval before 19 November 2016 as a long stay activity, training and research, professional development, entertainment, special program or superyacht crew sponsor, your application would continue to be assessed under the pre-19 November 2016 legislation. The sponsorship would only be valid for new Temporary Activity (subclass 408) visa applications until 18 May 2017.
Individuals can no longer sponsor entertainers and will not meet the sponsorship test.
Consult with unions
Visa application charges (for entertainers only)
and must be directly responsible for the event(s) or activities or have a formal role in preparing for or conducting the event(s) or activity.
that administers or promotes sport or sporting events
To sponsor a sports trainee, if you are an Australian organisation you must have an international reputation for training elite sportspeople or adjudicators. You cannot be a sporting club that, as its primary activity, competes in sporting competitions below the Australian national level for the sport.
To sponsor or support a researcher you must be either tertiary or a research institution lawfully operating in Australia.
To sponsor or support a member of the crew of a superyacht you must be the captain, owner or operator of the superyacht or an organisation that operates a superyacht.
To be a sponsor for a special program or to support a person for a special program, your organisation must be lawfully established and actively operating in Australia. Individuals or sole traders are not eligible to be sponsors or supporters for this activity type.
Youth exchange, cultural enrichment or community benefit programs
Applying for special program approval
Cost: There is no application fee for a submission for special program approval
In some cases, you might be asked to provide additional information.
If your application is approved, we will notify you in writing and will finalise a special programme agreement with your organisation.
If your application is not approved, we will advise you in writing.
There is information on steps to apply for applicants
Sponsor or Supporter documents
Additional documents
You need to provide documents to prove the claims you make in the application.
Some documents could take some time to obtain. You should have them ready when you lodge the application to reduce any delays in processing.
To be a temporary activities sponsor, you must lodge your application online.
You must lodge your sponsorship application before the person you want to sponsor lodges their visa application/s. The person you want to sponsor will require your sponsorship application ID or Transaction Reference Number (TRN) to be able to complete the online visa application form and make a valid visa application.
You must provide all relevant documents and pay the visa application charge by credit card when you apply. You should upload your documents through your ImmiAccount when you apply. This will help reduce delays in processing your application.
There is a fee for applying to become an approved sponsor. Payment of this fee must accompany your application. Payment does not guarantee approval of the application.
If your application to be a sponsor is approved, we will send you a letter with:
If this sponsorship is not approved, we will send you a letter stating:
You need to contact the relevant visa processing office to report any changes in circumstances that could affect the processing of your application.
More information is available in the Tell Us of Changes tab.
Follow these steps if you are an applicant for a Temporary Activity visa (subclass 408).
If your intended stay in Australia is for more than three months, or you apply in Australia, you must be sponsored for this visa. The sponsoring organisation or agency must apply to become an approved temporary activities sponsor or sponsor who passes the sponsorship test before you can lodge your application (see the 'Sponsors and supporters' tab for more information about how an organisation can do this).
You cannot apply for this visa if you already hold another visa that has a ‘No further stay’ condition.
Contact us if you are not sure whether your current visa conditions prevent you from applying for a further visa while you are in Australia.
If you plan to get a new passport, you should do so before applying for your visa. In most cases, you and your family members must have valid passports to be granted this visa.
Applicant documents
Additional documents for specific activity type
You need to provide documents to support your application for this visa. We can make a decision using the information you provide when you lodge your application. It is in your interest to provide as much information as possible with your application.
Provide certified copies of original documents. Do not include original documents unless we specifically ask for them. Police certificates should be original documents. Documents not in English must be accompanied by accredited English translations.
If you apply in Australia, you must be sponsored by an approved temporary activities sponsor or an approved sponsor who passes the sponsorship test. You may be in or outside Australia when your visa is granted but not in immigration clearance.
If you apply from outside Australia and you intend to stay in Australia for three months or less, the organisation or individual in Australia who has responsibility of the events/activities you will be involved in must pass the support test.You may be in or outside Australia when your visa is granted but not in immigration clearance.
Visa applications must be made online. Applicants and agents can access online services by creating an account in ImmiAccount.
After you have gathered and scanned the documents that support your application, create an account and apply using our online application system ImmiAccount.
Create an ImmiAccount
If you do not provide the documents requested, your visa application could be refused.
Please refer to preparing your application, for information on:
Your application could take longer if you need character or health checks (including x-rays), if you need to provide more information, or if your application is incomplete.
You might be asked to provide biometrics (a scientific form of identification) as part of the application. Countries and visa subclasses included in the biometrics program has more information.
You must tell us if your circumstances change. This includes a new residential address, a new passport, or a pregnancy, birth or death in your family.
More information is available in the Tell us of changes tab.
Tell us if your circumstances change. This includes a new residential address, a new passport, or a pregnancy, birth or death in your family.
You can withdraw your application at any time before a decision is made. You can do this by logging into your ImmiAccount