Waiting on a RoS 851 Decision in 2026: Your Visa Status, Travel and Offshore Decisions

If you hold a Temporary Protection visa (TPV) or Safe Haven Enterprise visa (SHEV) and have a valid Resolution of Status (RoS) visa (subclass 851) application on foot, your current visa does not simply run out while you wait. The Department of Home Affairs extends the TPV or SHEV of holders who make a valid RoS application until it has decided that application, and holders who have made a valid application for another TPV, SHEV or RoS — including a converted RoS — keep holding their current visa indefinitely until a final decision is made. You can also keep travelling overseas in that period, with one hard limit: you must be in Australia for the grant, so if you are overseas when the RoS visa is ready to be granted you will be contacted and asked to return within 28 days, and not returning may lead to refusal.

That summary follows the Department of Home Affairs Resolution of Status (Subclass 851) official page as at August 2026. It is general information about how the settings work, not advice tailored to your circumstances — the outcome of any individual case turns on its own facts, so the official page's current wording and any guidance you rely on professionally should govern the decision you actually make.

What happens to your TPV or SHEV while the RoS application is waiting?

The waiting period is meant to be legally uneventful. The department extends a current holder's TPV or SHEV until it makes a decision on the RoS visa, and separately states that TPV and SHEV holders who have made a valid application for another TPV, SHEV or RoS — a converted RoS included — remain holding their current visa indefinitely until a final decision is made on the subsequent application.

That protection depends on timing. You must apply before your current TPV or SHEV ceases to remain lawful; if you do not, the official page says you become unlawful and may lose access to Government services. For people who were already unlawful because a TPV or SHEV expired before 14 February 2023, a RoS application also operates as an application for a bridging visa.

Two groups never needed to apply at all:

If you applied for an initial TPV or SHEV before 14 February 2023, you do not need to apply, and the department converts your application to a RoS application only if it finds that you meet the criteria for the TPV or SHEV; it will notify you if a RoS visa is granted.
If you hold a TPV or SHEV and applied for a subsequent TPV or SHEV before 14 February 2023, that application has been converted as well.

Current holders with nothing before the department must apply online through ImmiAccount, before the current visa ceases, unless the Department authorises a paper application because of a verified ImmiAccount system issue. There is no visa application charge.

Can you travel overseas while the decision is pending?

Yes, with the grant condition in mind. The official page states plainly that TPV and SHEV holders can continue travelling overseas, and points to its Requesting Permission to Travel material for how that works on the current visa. What you are travelling on is the TPV or SHEV you still hold — the RoS visa does not exist yet, and its five-year travel facility only starts on the day of grant.

The practical risk is not the departure; it is being outside Australia when the file is ready to be decided. The department will only grant a RoS visa to someone in Australia, so an offshore applicant is contacted and asked to come back within 28 days. A trip that runs long, or contact details that no longer work, is what turns a routine wait into a refusal risk. The official page lists the changes you are expected to notify after applying, including your name, phone number, email, address and passport details, along with pregnancy, the birth of a child, a death in the family where that person is also an applicant, and any decision to withdraw.

Do you have to be in Australia when the RoS visa is granted?

Yes, at both ends of the process. The official page says you must be in Australia when you apply, and that a RoS applicant must be in Australia for the grant. The Migration Regulations 1994 carry the same in-Australia requirement at clause 851.411, and clause 851.511 is the source of the five-year travel facility that runs from the date of grant.

If you are overseas when the visa is ready to be granted, the sequence described on the official page is short: you are contacted, asked to return to Australia within 28 days, and the application may be refused if you do not return. Note what the 28 days attach to — the request to return once the visa is ready — rather than to any general travel approval.

What if you cannot get back within 28 days?

The published consequence is the one stated above: the RoS application may be refused. The official page does not set out a general mechanism for extending the 28-day period, so treating it as a hard deadline is the safer reading.

What the page does give you while a decision is pending is the ability to put more information to the department in writing at any time before the decision is made, and a set date to respond by whenever further information is requested — after that date, a decision can be made on the material already held. The Department's PAM3 procedures guidance for subclass 851 provides that officers may wait for an advised return date, or until travel documents lapse, rather than refusing only because an applicant happens to be overseas; internal guidance of that kind is not a published entitlement, and the 28-day request is the step the official page describes.

What can you check while the application sits with the department?

Not much, by design, and that is worth knowing before you wait. The department states that it cannot give updates on the processing status of an application. What you can see in ImmiAccount is whether more information is needed from you; applicants who lodged on paper have to wait to be contacted.

Beyond that, the official page observes that some cases are more complex than others and that the department may need to request additional information, including about identity, so cooperating with those requests is what keeps an application moving. Reporting on the RoS caseload appears in the Unauthorised Maritime Arrival legacy caseload reports published under Humanitarian program statistics. There is no fee for the visa, and the department warns that it never charges to fast-track one — an offer of that kind is a scam.

What changes once the RoS visa is granted?

The status change is immediate and permanent. You become an Australian permanent resident on the day the visa is granted, you can stay indefinitely, and for citizenship purposes your permanent residence also starts on that day. The visa carries no travel restrictions for five years from the date of grant; after five years, re-entering Australia requires a Resident Return visa (subclass 155 or 157).

Permanent residence also opens access to services such as Medicare and Centrelink, the ability to sponsor eligible family members through the family visa stream of the Migration Program, a pathway to citizenship if you are eligible, and free English language classes under the Adult Migrant English Program for those who qualify. The visa is digitally linked to your travel document or ImmiCard rather than issued as a label. Health, character and security requirements still apply to every applicant, and anyone aged 18 or over at the relevant point must sign the Australian Values Statement.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does my TPV or SHEV stay valid while my RoS application is being processed?

Yes, provided you applied before your current visa ceased to remain lawful. The department extends a current holder's TPV or SHEV until it decides the RoS application, and holders with a valid application for another TPV, SHEV or RoS keep their current visa indefinitely until a final decision is made.

Can I leave Australia while my RoS 851 application is still undecided?

The official page says TPV and SHEV holders can continue travelling overseas, and refers to its Requesting Permission to Travel material for the mechanics. The constraint is timing: you must be in Australia for the grant, so an offshore applicant is asked to return within 28 days once the visa is ready.

What happens if I am overseas when my RoS visa is ready to be granted?

You will be contacted and asked to return to Australia within 28 days. If you do not return, the department states that your RoS visa application may be refused, and no general extension process for that period is published.

Do I need to apply if I applied for a TPV or SHEV before 14 February 2023?

No. If you applied for an initial TPV or SHEV before that date, you do not need to apply, and the department converts your application to a RoS application only if it finds that you meet the criteria for the TPV or SHEV; it notifies you if a RoS visa is granted. The same applies if you hold a TPV or SHEV and applied for a subsequent TPV or SHEV before 14 February 2023.

How long does a RoS 851 decision take, and can I check progress?

The department publishes no standard processing time and says it cannot give updates on the processing status of an application. You can check in ImmiAccount whether more information is required from you; paper applicants need to wait to be contacted.

Is there a fee, and can I pay to speed up a RoS application?

There is no cost for the RoS visa, and the department does not charge a fee to fast-track a visa. Any offer to expedite an application for payment is described on the official page as a scam.

Can I travel freely once the RoS visa is granted?

There are no travel restrictions on the visa, and it allows travel to and from Australia for five years from the date of grant. After those five years you need a Resident Return visa (subclass 155 or 157) to re-enter Australia.