Pathway

Australia Resident Return Visa

Australia Residency

Last updated August 20, 2026

Pathway overview

At a glance

Australia's Resident Return visa lets current or former Australian permanent residents, and some former Australian citizens, regain or renew the travel facility needed to return to Australia.

Type: Return resident travel facility
Good fit for: Current or former Australian permanent residents
Core requirements: Permanent-resident or former-citizen status, plus the required residence or ties and character
What to know: Australian citizens do not need this visa
What it gives: A Resident Return visa lets a permanent resident leave and return to Australia during the new travel period.
Main limit: A Resident Return visa is not needed just to remain in Australia if the person does not plan to leave.

Summary

Australian permanent residence can continue indefinitely while a person remains in Australia, but the visa's permission to travel and re-enter usually expires. Resident Return visas—Subclass 155 and 157—provide a new travel facility to a current or qualifying former permanent resident, or to a former Australian citizen who lost or renounced citizenship.

An applicant is assessed against both subclasses. The length of the new travel facility depends on Australian residence, substantial ties, family circumstances and reasons for long absence.

Eligibility

The clearest Subclass 155 route is the residence test: at least 730 cumulative days in Australia during the 5 years immediately before application while holding a permanent visa or as an Australian citizen. Meeting it normally gives a 5-year travel facility.

Someone who does not meet 730 days may still obtain up to 12 months by proving substantial ties to Australia that are of benefit to Australia. Ties can be:

business, such as an active role and authority in an Australian enterprise;
cultural, such as sustained contribution to Australian arts or cultural life;
employment, such as a credible Australian job or ongoing work; or
personal, such as long residence, Australian citizen family and a genuine home in Australia.

Owning a dormant company, property or bank account is not automatically a substantial beneficial tie. Evidence must explain its depth, recency and benefit. Applicants with absences of 5 continuous years or other long absence patterns may also need compelling reasons.

Subclass 157 can provide a maximum 3-month facility where the applicant does not meet the 155 options but has compelling and compassionate reasons for leaving Australia and meets the strict recent-absence rule.

The applicant must also satisfy character requirements. A former permanent resident's last permanent visa must not have been canceled. A current Australian citizen cannot receive an RRV; citizens should travel on an Australian passport.

What This Route Allows

An RRV permits the holder to leave and return to Australia as a permanent resident during the new travel-facility period. A 155 can carry 5 years or up to 12 months depending on the criterion; a 157 carries up to 3 months.

The new grant replaces rather than adds to an existing travel facility. Unused time from an older facility is not carried over, and Home Affairs cannot postpone a ready RRV grant merely to preserve the old time.

What This Route Is Not

An RRV is not needed simply to remain in Australia when a permanent travel facility has expired and the person does not plan to leave. The problem arises on re-entry after overseas travel.

Permanent residence is not Australian citizenship. A permanent resident without a valid travel facility can be unable to board or return as a permanent resident. Returning on a visitor visa may affect permanent-resident entitlements and later RRV or citizenship calculations.

Family, property or earlier residence does not guarantee a new travel facility. Applicants below 730 days need a documented statutory route, and long unexplained absence can lead to refusal or only a short facility.

Next Steps

Check VEVO for the exact expiry of the current permanent travel facility before booking travel.
Count physical presence during the previous 5 years using movement records; 2 years means 730 cumulative days.
If below 730 days, identify the strongest business, cultural, employment or personal ties and explain how they benefit Australia.
Document compelling reasons for any absence period for which Home Affairs requires them.
Apply for a new RRV before travel and allow time for a non-automatic ties assessment.
If already overseas, do not attempt to return as a permanent resident without a current facility.
Consider citizenship separately if eligible; Australian citizens should use an Australian passport.