The Australian government is considering phasing out the COVID-19 pandemic event (Subclass 408) visa, also known as the Temporary Activity visa.

No confirmed end date has been provided, but temporary visa holders considering the Subclass 408 visa (and who are not yet eligible to apply) may need to apply for a different type of visa in order to stay in Australia.

What is the Subclass 408 visa?

The COVID-19 pandemic event visa (Subclass 408) visa was introduced in response to the economic downturn and labour shortage caused by the pandemic. It allows applicants to stay in Australia if they are employed or have an offer of employment in a key sector.

Currently, temporary visa holders in Australia, including student visa holders, can apply for a Subclass 408 visa if their current visa expires in 90 days or less, or expired within 28 days at time of application. It allows applicants to remain in Australia for an additional 12 months (or two years for Temporary Graduate (Subclass 485) visa holders) with unrestricted work rights.

What’s changing?

Due to COVID-19 border closures no longer being an issue, the Department of Home Affairs said it is considering an end date for the Subclass 408 visa. This would mean thousands of temporary workers will need to find other avenues to remain in the country.

What’s next?

An exact end date for the Subclass 408 visa is still unknown.

There are a range of permanent or temporary visas that workers may be eligible to apply for to remain in Australia if they are impacted by the potential phasing out of the visa. However, while the Subclass 408 visa was free to apply for, other options will cost applicants.

We will update our readers as soon as more details emerge.