COVID-19 UPDATE
New Delhi visa office is working with reduced staffing levels in response to the global COVID-19 pandemic, please visit the Department of Home Affairs website for information on Australia's border arrangements including guidance on applying for an exemption to the current travel ban, mandatory quarantine requirements and lodging an online visa application.
Additional requirements before travelling to or transiting through Australia
From 22 January 2021, in addition to completing the Australia Travel Declaration, passengers travelling to or transiting through Australia need to provide evidence of a negative COVID-19 (PCR) test to their airline, taken 72 hours or less before their scheduled departure. Please visit What I need to do before I travel page on Department of Home Affairs COVID 19 and the border website for detailed information.
You can also visit here for a range of frequently asked questions and answers.
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Welcome to the website of the Department of Home Affairs at the Australian High Commission in New Delhi. Our office manages many of the visa and citizenship services for citizens of Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal.
Detailed information is available on the Home Affairs website at www.homeaffairs.gov.au.
On this website we have included additional information that may be of interest to citizens of Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal.
Reopening of VFS for biometric collection and online assist for Bangladesh and Bhutan
VFS Australian Visa Application Centres will re-open for Biometric collection, enquiry and assisted online visa and Citizenship lodgement services on the following dates:
- Bangladesh – Dhaka – Monday 2nd November 2020
- Bhutan – Thimphu – Monday 2nd November 2020
- Nepal - Kathmandu - Wednesday 4th November 2020
Please make an appointment online through this link: https://www.vfsglobal.com/en/individuals/index.html
Applications can be lodged online through the Department of Home Affairs website (www.homeaffairs.gov.au), Australian citizenship website (www.citizenship.gov.au) or in person at VFS in Dhaka. Paper applications cannot currently be accepted due to COVID restrictions and border closures.
VFS Australia Visa Application Centres in India remain temporarily closed.
Please note that Australian border entry restrictions remain in place. Refer to the Department of Home Affairs website for further information on when you may be eligible to travel to Australia.
Lodging online is the fastest way to get your visa
For example, most online lodged Visitor visa (subclass 600) Tourist stream applications for citizens of Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal are currently processed within 14 days, whereas paper lodged applications usually take between 28 to 42 days.
IMPORTANT: You should apply for your visa well in advance of your intended travel date. We recommend that you do not finalise your travel arrangements until you have a valid visa to travel to Australia.
We will not respond to application status enquiries within the global visa processing times.
FAQs (frequently asked questions)
News
Australian visas
You must have a valid Australian visa to travel to and enter Australia. Use the Visa Finder to help you find the visa most likely to meet your specific circumstances.
Lodging online using ImmiAccount
Online lodgement is the most convenient and efficient way of lodging a visa application.
Online lodgement is available for many visa and citizenship applications, including the most common visa options for citizens of Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal.
Other ways to lodge your application
Australian Visa Application Centre - VFS Global
VFS Global has been appointed by the Department of Home Affairs as a service delivery partner to collect visa and Australian Citizenship by Descent applications on behalf of the Visa Office in New Delhi.
VFS offer Online Visa Assist
VFS Global’s Online Visa Assist service provides you expert, personalised assistance with completing, submitting and paying for your online application at the visa application centre.
Please visit: https://www.vfsglobal.com/Australia/
Visa holders
Before you travel to Australia you should check that your visa is valid, that you understand the conditions of your visa, and that all your details are correct. You can use online services to:
- Check your visa details and conditions
- Update your passport details and
- Notify us of any other changes in your situation
Expatriate adoptions
Australian Government has no role
The Australian Government, including the Department of Home Affairs and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), has no role in the overseas expatriate adoption process.
The Australian Government, including the Department of Home Affairs and DFAT, does not provide documents that support or endorse expatriate adoptions overseas. This includes no objection certificates or letters of support.
As such, please do not contact the Australian High Commission, New Delhi to request these documents.
If an overseas authority, such as CARA in India, asks you to obtain a document of support for an expatriate adoption, you can advise them to email [email protected]
The Department of Home Affairs only assess and decide adoption visa applications. A visa will only be granted if all eligibility requirements are met.
Eligibility requirements for expatriate adoptees entering Australia
If the child is adopted through an expatriate adoption, and you are considering bringing them to Australia, then, amongst other criteria:
- at least one adoptive parent must have lived outside Australia for more than 12 months before lodging a visa application
- the adoptive parent must not have lived overseas to avoid Australia’s intercountry adoption laws
- the adoptive parent must have full and permanent parental rights. No remaining legal ties between the child and the birth parents can exist. The adoption must adhere to adoption laws of the home country.
Seek legal advice
We recommend you obtain independent legal advice both in Australia and in the child’s country of usual residence before proceeding with an expatriate adoption.
Check which goods you can bring to Australia – don’t be sorry, just declare it
It is more important than ever for travellers to be prepared and know their obligations before travelling to Australia. When you’re travelling to Australia, there are some items that can’t be brought with you. For others you need to get permission.
This includes food, plant products and animal material which have the potential to introduce serious pests and diseases into Australia.
Everyone has a role to play in protecting Australia’s $60 billion agriculture industry as well as our unique environment, native flora and fauna, our tourism industries and lifestyle.
Biosecurity officers use 3D X-ray machines, detector dogs and inspections to screen travellers and their baggage for harmful pests and diseases.
If you fail to answer questions about goods, don’t follow directions given by a biosecurity officer or provide false or misleading information in answer to questions or provide false information on your Incoming Passenger Card, you could face serious consequences.
This includes having your visitor visa cancelled, being removed from Australia and prevented from returning to Australia for three years.
If you’re visiting Australia, don’t be sorry, just declare it.
More information on what you can and can’t bring into Australia can be found at:
http://www.agriculture.gov.au/travelling
https://www.abf.gov.au/entering-and-leaving-australia/can-you-bring-it-in
Contact us
Before contacting us, we encourage you to use our online services and the Home Affairs website, to get the information you require.
If, after checking the information on our website, you still require additional information or assistance you can contact Home Affairs via the online immigration enquiry form.
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