How to Apply for an Australia Visa in San Francisco : visasupply.com

San Francisco, known as the “City by the Bay”, is one of America’s most famous and beautiful cities. Located in Northern California, San Francisco is just one of the many cities that together make up the San Francisco Bay Area, or Bay Area for short. The 14-county combined statistical area (that comprises the Bay Area) has nearly 10 million people, making it the fifth-most populous region in the United States. The Bay Area includes cities such as Oakland, Berkeley, Vallejo, Concord, Pleasanton, Fremont, San Jose, San Mateo, Palo Alto, and San Rafael. The economy of the Bay Area is one of the most vigorous and entrepreneurial on the planet. San Francisco has attracted engineers from all over the world, including those from Australia. The United States has a close relationship with Australia and offers its citizens a preferential visa (the E-3 visa) that provides opportunities for Australian engineers and scientists a pathway to work for Bay Area life science and information technologies companies. There are about 25,000 Australians living in the Bay Area and the city of San Francisco is home to the Australian American Chamber of Commerce and several Australian social organizations and clubs. United Airlines offers a daily flight to Sydney, Australia from San Francisco International Airport (SFO).

Australia is the largest country in Oceania and sixth largest in the world, covering almost three million square miles. It is also the oldest, flattest, and driest inhabited continent in the world. Due to its unique geographic location south of the equator, Australia is a country of vastly diverse climates, landscapes, and wildlife, with tropical rainforests in the northeast, mountains to the southeast, deserts in its midsection, and incredible beaches along its coasts. The coastal cities of Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane are popular entry points for tourists and businesspeople from San Francisco. The largest is Sydney, one of the 15 most visited cities in the world. Best known for the iconic Sydney Opera House, Sydney Harbour Bridge, and Bondi Beach, the city has more than 2.5 million acres of parks, including Hyde Park, the oldest in Australia. Melbourne, the birthplace of Australian rules football, is also home to many of Australia's best-known landmarks, such as the National Gallery of Victoria, the Cricket Grounds, and the World Heritage-listed Royal Exhibition Building. Brisbane is another popular tourist destination, with the Queensland Cultural Centre, King George Square, the Story Bridge, St John's Cathedral, the Mount Coot-tha Botanic Gardens and Lookout, Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary, and Moreton Bay.

Away from its major cities, Australia has long been popular with backpackers from San Francisco drawn to its unique natural attractions. The Great Barrier Reef in the Coral Sea off Queensland is the world's largest coral reef system with more than 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands stretching over an area totaling 133,000 square miles. The reefs draw scuba divers, snorkelers, and fishermen from around the world. While surfing is too dangerous around the reefs north of Australia, there remain thousands of miles of coastline where surfers can hang ten. Inland draws include Uluru (Ayer’s Rock), the iconic red sandstone formation in the Northern Territory; the vast central plains known as the outback; and the Tasmanian Wilderness. More than 80% of the animals and plants in Australia are not found anywhere in the world, including kangaroos, dingos, koala, platypus, wallabies, wombats and the Tasmanian devil.

Australian Entry Eligibility

Since early 2020, Australia has severely limited international travel to prevent further spread of the COVID-19 virus. In late 2021, it began easing some restrictions, admitting its first vaccinated international visitors that November. While many preventative measures remain in place, the rules may change frequently as new COVID variants arise. The most current information is available at https://www.health.gov.au/health-alerts/covid-19/international-travel/inbound.

Citizens of the United States living in San Francisco and permanent residents of the United States with foreign passports, are eligible to enter Australia if they meet various criteria. The current requirements are providing proof of vaccination for COVID-19 and passing a COVID test. For more details, visit https://www.health.gov.au/health-alerts/covid-19/international-travel/proof-of-vaccination.

Beyond COVID-19 restrictions, applicants for most types of visas for Australia are required to meet certain health requirements, including being free of tuberculosis (https://www.australia-migration.info/medical-and-health-requirements). All applicants for permanent migration visas are required to undergo a full medical examination and chest x-ray with an approved doctor before a visa can be granted. Some applicants for temporary stay visas may also be required to undergo one or both examinations, or provide a “fitness to travel” letter from a doctor.

Other general requirements include:

U.S. passport valid for at least the next six months.
Two passport-sized photos.
Good character. This primarily means proof that you have no major criminal convictions, such as obtaining an FBI or state police clearance. Other requirements can be found at https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/help-support/meeting-our-requirements/character.
Maintain health insurance throughout your stay.
Have enough money to cover your stay and return trip home.
Valid email address and debit/credit card to pay visa fees.

Obtaining an Electronic Travel Authority Visa from San Francisco

Australia has a number of visas, including tourist, business, student, working holiday, transit, and training visas. Simple online applications that can be completed in minutes are available to many travelers from more than 40 countries. You can apply online while you are still outside of Australia, avoiding the need to visit a consulate or embassy in person. Electronic visas typically have a 24-hour turnover, which makes them ideal for last-minute travel. However, don’t wait too long: you should leave extra time in case there are processing delays.

The main considerations for deciding which type of visa you need are how long you plan to stay and the country where you are a citizen.

Electronic Travel Authority (ETA, subclass 601). The multi-entry ETA allows you to visit as often as you wish over a 12-month period, and lets you stay up to three months each time. It is available to citizens of the United States and certain other countries. The ETA fee is AUD 20 (about $22).
eVisitor (subclass 651). This free visa also covers 12 months, with each visit lasting up to three months. However, it is only available to citizens of certain European countries and cannot be extended.
Visitor visa (subclass 600). This fee-based visa allows people to visit for tourist or business purposes for up to three months (but can sometimes be extended to 12 months).

The most popular type of Australia visa for U.S. tourists coming from San Francisco is the ETA. Unlike a traditional paper visa, the ETA is linked to your U.S. passport electronically. Most U.S. citizens can apply for the ETA rather than the normal visitor visa. However, if you do have a criminal record, you need to apply for the traditional visitor visa (subclass 600). Step-by-step instructions for applying are available at https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-listing/electronic-travel-authority-601#HowTo.

To obtain the electronic visa, download the Australian ETA app for your mobile device from the Apple Store or Google Play store. Fill out the form, attached the necessary paperwork, and submit. You will typically receive notification from the government within 24 hours. The Department of Home Affairs notes that your application may take longer to process if:

You do not fill out the form correctly
The government decides it needs more information from you
It takes longer than usual to verify your information

We Can Help if You Need Assistance

If you live in San Francisco or anywhere in Northern California and have difficulty applying for an Australia visa or require assistance with any part of the visa process, please give our office a call at 404-682-5445 or schedule an appointment with our company. We are a private agency in Atlanta providing Australia visa services for Americans and other U.S.-based residents. Our number one goal is to ensure your application documents for a visa are submitted accurately to the Australian government. Our services eliminate delays and give you the peace of mind to focus on your travel plans.

We provide the following Australia visa services for our customers in San Francisco:

Australia Tourist E-Visa (ETA)
Australia Tourist Visa
Australia Business Visa
Australia Work Visa
Australia Working Holiday Visa
Australia Hotel Accommodations