VisaAustralia’s Business Visitor visa does not authorise work for local firms
This current-rule guide helps subclass 600 business visitors separate permitted meetings from providing services, then prepare their evidence and use the correct application route.
Official announcement date: not established (undated guidance)
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Edited and checked by the VisaWand editorial team
Check the activity before choosing the Business Visitor stream
People considering Australia’s subclass 600 Business Visitor stream should check the proposed activity rather than rely on the trip being called business travel. Home Affairs permits business enquiries, contract negotiations, official government visits and conferences or trade fairs where organisers do not pay the traveller to participate. It excludes working for or supplying services to an Australian business, and selling directly to the public.
The applicant must be a genuine temporary visitor and be outside Australia both when applying and when the decision is made. For illustration, discussing a potential contract and actually delivering the contracted service are different activities. The visitor category does not turn the second activity into permitted work merely because the stay is short or an overseas company arranged it. Other business travel arrangements require their own eligibility check.
Document the invitation, employment and trip funding
The Australian Embassy in Brazil’s business-visitor checklist gives practical examples: passport identification, a recent photograph, an employer statement and an invitation or event registration for meetings, conferences or seminars. The employer statement identifies the role, service history, visit purpose and intended stay; if the employer pays, it should explain that financial support.
For self-funded travel, the checklist gives examples including recent bank statements, tax information and payslips. This is a regional checklist last updated in February 2018, not a universal replacement for the current application’s requirements. Applicants elsewhere should check their own requested evidence. It asks for an itinerary or flight bookings but also expressly advises against buying flights before the visa decision. An itinerary should therefore not be read as a demand for a non-refundable ticket. The embassy also requests clear colour scans of original documents. The embassy may also request additional evidence or original documents.
Do not assume the downloadable paper form is open to everyone
Home Affairs form 1415 is marked January 2023 and describes online application through ImmiAccount as the preferred route. The paper form is restricted to applicants outside Australia who have written departmental notice permitting its use. Downloading it does not establish that permission.
Where such notice is issued, follow its submission directions rather than choosing a receiving office independently. The form also says family members cannot be included in the same application: each needs a separate application. Accompanying relatives should identify their own intended activities and appropriate visa; a business invitation addressed to one employee does not establish the family’s immigration arrangements.
Upload evidence through the application and keep your own copies
The current ImmiAccount management service distinguishes starting an application from continuing a saved one and sharing it with another account. It directs applicants to read the visa’s own requirements and personalised step-by-step instructions. Someone helping with the account should not select the visa category solely from a saved application’s title.
The separate document-attachment instructions say the application form identifies which documents to attach and whether that happens before or after submission. Do not email documents instead. Once an application is finalised, further attachments cannot be added through that function. Home Affairs also warns that uploaded supporting documents cannot later be accessed from ImmiAccount, so retain your own copies. Together, those instructions support preparing a complete evidence set and keeping the submitted version outside the account, rather than relying on a later opportunity to repair omissions.
Check the current charge before completing payment
Form 1415 warns that the full application charge is required for a valid application and charges are generally not refunded after refusal or withdrawal. Its dated edition directs readers to current pricing rather than guaranteeing a fixed amount. No current numerical Business Visitor charge was established from the official pricing display in this check; verify it for the actual application before payment.
The official online-payment instructions allow payment through ImmiAccount and say one application cannot be split between multiple credit cards. They also allow multiple online applications to be paid in one transaction. A combined payment is an administrative convenience, not one visa application covering the whole family. Application payment, any separately required medical or other services, and travel expenses should not be treated as a single all-inclusive visa price. Neither payment nor a conference invitation guarantees approval by a particular travel date.
