Australia Former Resident visa (Subclass 151)
This permanent visa allows former permanent residents and certain people who served in the Australian Defence Force to live in Australia.
- Route type
- Residence-based status
- Can bring
- — Not stated in the official source
- Requirements
- 8 each quoted below
Who this route is for
Every item below is the government’s own wording, quoted from the official source. Whether you personally qualify depends on your full profile.
8 requirements quoted from the official source.
- Age Requirement
To meet the long residence requirement, you must be younger than 45 at the time of application. There is no age requirement for the defence services requirement.
- Assurance Of Support
You might be asked to provide an Assurance of support
- Australian Government Debt Cleared
If you or any family members owe the Australian Government money you must have paid it back or have a formal arrangement to pay it back
- Be Able To Meet The Defence Services Requirement If Applicable
You must be able to show us that before 1981 you met one of these conditions: completed at least 3 months of continuous Australian defence service discharged from the Australian Defence Force before 3 months of service because you were medically unfit because of your Australian defence service.
- Be Able To Meet The Long Residence Requirement If Applicable
You must be able to show us that you meet all these criteria: if you are 18 years or older, spent at least 9 years in Australia as a Permanent resident before you turned 18 or if you are younger than 18, spent at least half of your life in Australia as a permanent resident younger than 45 years of age at the time you apply have never been an Australian citizen kept close business, cultural or pers
- Character and security
You and any family members aged 16 years or over must meet our character requirement . If you apply for this visa from outside Australia, family members who are not coming to Australia might also have to meet our character requirement.
- Health Requirement
You and any family members who apply for the visa with you must meet our health requirement . If you apply for this visa from outside Australia, family members who are not coming to Australia might also have to meet our health requirement.
- Not Have Had A Visa Cancelled Or A Previous Application Refused
We will consider your immigration history when we make a decision on your application, which means you might not be eligible for this visa if you have had a visa cancelled or refused. In some circumstances you may still apply for a permanent visa if you have had a visa cancelled or an application refused, see Limitations on applications in Australia . If applying for a visa from outside Australia,
- Eligibility summary
You must be able to show us that you meet all these criteria: if you are 18 years or older, spent at least 9 years in Australia as a Permanent resident before you turned 18 or if you are younger than 18, spent at least half of your life in Australia as a permanent resident younger than 45 years of age at the time you apply have never been an Australian citizen kept close business, cultural or pers
- Official Rights Text
stay in Australia permanently work and study in Australia enrol in Australia's public health care scheme, Medicare .
- Official source basis
You must be able to show us that you meet all these criteria: if you are 18 years or older, spent at least 9 years in Australia as a Permanent resident before you turned 18 or if you are younger than 18, spent at least half of your life in Australia as a permanent resident younger than 45 years of age at the time you apply have never been an Australian citizen kept close business, cultural or pers
- Report summary
You must be able to show us that you meet all these criteria: if you are 18 years or older, spent at least 9 years in Australia as a Permanent resident before you turned 18 or if you are younger than 18, spent at least half of your life in Australia as a permanent resident younger than 45 years of age at the time you apply have never been an Australian citizen kept close business, cultural or pers
- Visa Subclass
The official page identifies this route as subclass 151.
Who you can bring
What the source prices
- Official Cost Text
From Cost concession for eligible Pacific Island and Timor-Leste Former Resident Visa applicants From 1 July 2026, a lower visa cost applies to eligible Pacific Island and Timor-Leste citizens who lodge a valid visa application. See About this visa . To work out what your visa will cost, use the Visa Pricing Estimator . Note - the estimator does not take into account other costs relating to your v
checked 2026-07-26
- Official Stay Text
Permanently
- Processing time
For an indication of processing times for this visa, use the visa processing time guide tool . This will show the processing times for recently decided applications. It is a guide only and not specific to your application.
From here to a yes
Straight answers
01Who qualifies for the Subclass 151 to Australia?
This permanent visa allows former permanent residents and certain people who served in the Australian Defence Force to live in Australia.
Every answer is quoted from the official immi.homeaffairs.gov.au page for this route, last read 2026-07-26.
We checked 16 points against the official source; 16 are quoted on this page. The other 0 are either not addressed by the source or not yet backed by a quote — we would rather show you the edge of the record than fill it with a plausible guess.
See the 0 open points
Not stated in the official source — the official source names no exclusion for this route.
Where every quote comes from
Official government source immi.homeaffairs.gov.auLast read 2026-07-26 Every quote on this page is from this Australia government page.Other residence-based status routes to Australia
1 other residence-based status route to Australia.
Residence-based status routes in other countries
186 other countries publish at least one residence-based status route. Nearest first.
Does the Subclass 151 fit your numbers?
That depends on your income, savings and family — the parts of the story only you know. The free 3-minute check scores your profile against every Australia route at once, this one included. Then the full Australia report takes you the rest of the way.
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