United Arab Emirates

Visa Information and Lodgement

Lodging a visa application

At an Australian Visa Application Counter (AVAC)

The department has an agreement with VFS to provide Australian visa lodgement services in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) through the AVACs. The AVACs accept applications for Australian visas.

Exceptions: Humanitarian, Skilled Migration and Australian Citizenship applications.

Clients can lodge their applications in person or by courier at any of the AVACs in the UAE or through selected Aramex offices throughout the GCC and Yemen. A fee will be charged for this service in addition to the scheduled fee charged by the Australian Consulate-General for all visa applications.

Further information on the VFS and services they provide are available from their website.
See: Australian Visa

By mail or courier to the Australian High Commission

Please ensure you have enclosed the appropriate visa charges as a single bank demand draft drawn on a UAE bank made payable to the “Australian Consulate-General, Austrade official public account” in UAE Dirhams.
See: Dubai Contacts

At the Australian High Commission in person

To lodge in person at the Australian Consulate-General you will need to make an appointment, however you can lodge your application at a VFS AVAC during their business hours without an appointment. To make an appointment with the Australian Consulate-General.
See: Dubai Contacts > Client Counter Hours

Permanent Entry visas

Permanent entry visa applications (except general skilled, business skills, parent subclasses and humanitarian applications) from Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE (the Gulf States) and Yemen are lodged, processed and decided in Dubai.

From 4 January 2009 all partner migration applications from Afghani nationals resident in Afghanistan or Pakistan will be processed and decided in Dubai.
See: Changes to processing location for family migration applications from Afghanistan (74KB PDF file)

General skilled migration applications are lodged and processed at the Adelaide Skilled Processing Centre.

Business Skills applications are lodged and processed at the Perth Business Skills Processing Centre.

Contributory parent and parent migration applications are lodged and processed at the Perth Offshore Parents Centre.
See:
Adelaide Skilled Processing Centre
Perth Business Skills Processing Centre
Perth Offshore Parents Centre

Refugee and Humanitarian visas

Clients from Afghanistan, Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Turkey, United Arab Emirates and Yemen whose application for a Refugee and Humanitarian (Class XB) visa is accompanied by a proposal form (form 681) must lodge their application at the department’s Melbourne CBD office. This applies to people who are lodging a visa for consideration under the Global Special Humanitarian Program (SHP) or as an immediate family member.
See: Lodging Certain Humanitarian Applications in Australia from applicants in the Middle East and parts of South West Asia (29KB PDF file)
Countries: Afghanistan, Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Turkey, United Arab Emirates and Yemen.

All other humanitarian applications are lodged and processed at the Australian Embassy, Amman.
See: Australian Embassy, Amman, Jordan

Temporary Entry visas

Temporary entry visa applications from United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Yemen are lodged, processed and decided in Dubai.

Passport holders from United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman and Qatar are eligible to apply online for a short stay visitor visa (e676).
See: Online services - Visiting Australia

416 Special Program applications are lodged and processed at the Hobart Special Program Processing Centre.

420 Entertainment sponsorship and visa applications are lodged and processed at the Sydney Entertainment Processing Centre.
See:
Hobart Special Program Processing Centre
Sydney Entertainment Processing Centre

Sponsored Family Visitor visa (subclass 679) applications must be lodged by the sponsor at a State or Territory office within Australia.

If you are sponsored by an Australian employer, you must lodge your visa application at the same office in Australia where your employer lodged papers to support your application. Please ask your employer at which office they lodged these papers.
See: Contact details in Australia

Citizenship applications

All Australian citizenship applications and applications to register children by descent can be lodged at the Consulate-General in Dubai. An appointment is required. To make an appointment with the Australian Consulate-General.
See: Dubai Contacts

Clients can also lodge their citizenship by descent applications in person or by courier at any of the AVACs in the UAE or through selected Aramex offices throughout the GCC and Yemen. A fee will be charged for this service in addition to the scheduled fee charged by the Australian Consulate-General for all visa applications.

Further information on VFS and services they provide is available on their website. For more information about Australian citizenship. 
See: www.citizenship.gov.au