Starting your Australian visa application means preparing a lot of documents to prove that you are qualified for an immigrant or permanent residency visa.
This can, of course, be a time-consuming task since you will need to visit various government or issuing agencies in your country to get the documents you require which, in turn, may take several days or weeks to be released. It can be quite expensive as well since you will have to pay for all the paperwork.
But no matter how tedious and costly these processes can be, you will have to weather through them since the documents you will get are crucial for the approval of your visa application.
Preparing Your Documents for Your Australian Visa Application
To be sure you will have all the documents you need for your visa application, follow the tips below:
1. Have a required documents checklist
There are a number of documents you need to support your visa application. The general ones include:
- Passport (at least valid for six months at the time of your application)
- Birth certificate
- Evidence of qualifications (college or university diploma and transcript, certificates, and skill assessment reports)
- Proof of English language competency
- Good conduct documentation
- Personal Character Assessment (Form 80)
- Curriculum vitae or resume, employment certificates and references, and mark-sheets
- Marriage certificate and proof of dependents (if you have a family)
- Medical or health evaluation certificate
- Health and travel insurance
In case you will be applying for a Skilled Independent visa (subclass 189) or Skilled Nominated visa (subclass 190), you also need to submit a formal letter of invitation issued by the Australian Government and evidence that you passed the points test and formal skills assessment.
For subclass 190, you need to submit proof that you have been nominated by an Australian state or territory government agency as well.
Once you have your checklist (which you can download from the Internet or get from your immigration consultant), tick off the document as you have it to ensure you won’t miss anything and have to rush to get it only a few days before the date of your visa application submission.
2. Prepare other third-party supporting documents
Although you may already have a lot of documents, providing additional evidence to back up all of your claims will also greatly help you. Bank statements and pay slips, for instance, are effective in proving you were or are gainfully employed.
In case you will be applying for your visa in a day or two and you still don’t have your skills assessment certification, you need to provide evidence that you already underwent assessment. This means submitting copies of the receipt issued to you by the assessment or testing center.
3. Make sure you complete the right visa application form
The visa application is a key document that all visa applicants have to complete and submit. All visa processing officers or assessors read this document and will use it in making their decision to approve or deny a person’s visa application.
To ensure your application form won’t be a source of contention or any issue whatsoever, follow these additional tips:
- When completing your visa application form, make sure you fill out the correct form based on your visa category. Do this whether you are downloading the form and manually answering it or completing it online.
- Be consistent. Whether you are writing or typing out details or choosing your answer from a drop-down list, you need to place or select the same answers. For instance, if you are divorced, choose this as your default response for questions involving marital status instead of ‘single.’
- Be honest. All visa application forms have questions regarding your immigration history. In case your application for an Australian tourist visa was denied two years ago, declare it. Assessors will always find out the truth and, if you lie, you will simply put your application (and future ones) in jeopardy.
- Double-check your form. Once you have completed your form, read all the questions and your answers carefully. Make sure your responses and choices are consistent and true to the best of your knowledge.
You can also avoid making small mistakes that can affect your application by having another person or your immigration consultants in Dubai double-check your application form before printing and submitting it.
4. Organize all your documents systematically
When arranging your documents, lay them out logically, chronologically, or according to a checklist. This will help the assessor go over all your documents more efficiently and avoid missing out on anything accidentally.
Consider printing out a table of contents and placing this on top of all your documents to serve as a guide for you and the assessor. You should also highlight relevant sections as needed in some documents as well.
The more you make all your documents organized, easy to find, and understand, the more you will make everything easier for yourself and the visa application assessor.
5. Be aware of timing and follow deadline rules
Lastly, schedules and deadlines are important considerations in the whole visa application process.
For instance, if you were given a deadline to submit proof of your English language competency, make sure you do so before the closing date. Even if you got high scores but didn’t submit the exam results before the deadline, your application will still be negatively affected.
In addition, be aware of expiration dates as well. Make sure your passports, English language competency certificate, and medical certificate are still valid when you submit them. This will help you avoid delays that can be caused by your need to renew your passport or undergo the tests again.
Whether you are still starting your visa application or are already in the middle of the process, follow the tips above so that you will experience less stress and delays.
Do you need help with completing your Australian visa application?
Contact us here at Pathway Visas now to find out how we can best assist you.
Our professional immigration consultants are always ready to answer your queries and provide assistance every step of the way so you get the visa you need with minimal stress.