Applying for a Bridging Visa C by Webform After Review: What to Know in 2026
How review or judicial review forces a Bridging visa C onto the webform, and what changes once you're on that pathway.
If you have applied for review of a decision about your substantive visa application, your Bridging visa C (BVC) (Subclass 030) application must be submitted by webform using Form 1005 — even if the substantive visa itself was lodged online through ImmiAccount. That is the position set out on the Department of Home Affairs' Bridging visa C (BVC) (Subclass 030) page, as at August 2026. The same page confirms there is no application fee, and that you and anyone included in your application must be in Australia both when the application is submitted and when the decision is made.
Why does review override the usual "same channel" rule?
Home Affairs applies two separate tests to work out how you lodge a BVC. The first is the mirror rule: you must apply in the same way you applied for the substantive visa. Lodged online, you apply through ImmiAccount; lodged on paper, you apply by webform.
The second test is independent of that history. The department's step-by-step guidance states that whether you have applied for review of a decision about your substantive visa application is itself one of the factors determining how you apply — and that where you have applied for review, the application must go in by webform. Because it is framed as a separate question, the review test applies regardless of which channel the original substantive application used.
The practical logic is straightforward enough: an ImmiAccount BVC request is tied to a substantive application that is still being processed by the department. Once a decision has been made and challenged, the matter is no longer sitting in that pre-decision stream, and the department handles the bridging request as a standalone application with its own intake channel.
What counts as "review" here?
The published guidance refers to review in two distinct senses, and both matter for a BVC.
Merits review is review of the refusal by a merits review tribunal — the page names the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) in its cease-date rules. Judicial review is the separate court-based process, and the department addresses it explicitly: if a merits review tribunal upholds the decision to refuse your substantive visa and you apply for judicial review, you will need to apply for a bridging visa to maintain your lawful status during the judicial review proceedings, and if you have applied for judicial review you can only apply for a bridging visa by webform.
The About section of the same page also names two situations in which a separate BVC application might be necessary:
- you are seeking a further BVC without work restrictions
- you have applied for judicial review
Before lodging anything, the department's first step is to check whether you already hold a BVC, using VEVO. Nearly all bridging visas are applied for automatically as part of applying for a substantive visa, so a separate application is the exception rather than the rule.
How long does your current BVC keep you lawful?
A BVC lets you stay lawfully in Australia until your substantive visa application is finally determined, or — where it is granted in association with judicial proceedings — until those proceedings are complete.
Two other rules shape the timeline. A BVC comes into effect when it is granted, when your current substantive visa ceases, or when another bridging visa more beneficial than your current one ceases. And a BVC ends immediately if you leave Australia while it is in effect, you are granted the substantive visa you applied for, you are granted another bridging visa in relation to the same substantive visa application, or the department cancels either the BVC or the substantive visa you held when it was granted.
The cease dates differ depending on when your BVC was granted:
| Event | BVC granted on or after 19 November 2016 | BVC granted before 19 November 2016 |
|---|---|---|
| Department refusal, or AAT decision, on the associated substantive visa application | Ceases 35 calendar days after | Ceases 28 days after notification |
| Determination that the substantive application or AAT review application is invalid | Ceases 35 calendar days after | Ceases 28 days after notification |
| You withdraw the substantive application or the AAT review application | Ceases 35 calendar days after | Ceases 28 days after |
| A merits review tribunal says it has no jurisdiction | — | Ceases 28 days after notification |
| A judicial review body upholds the refusal decision | Ceases 28 calendar days after | Ceases 28 days after |
| You withdraw a related judicial review application | Ceases 28 calendar days after | Ceases 28 days after |
Once you are notified of an outcome, VEVO shows exactly how long you can stay.
What happens to your work rights?
This is where the review pathway bites hardest. The published rules distinguish between Protection visa applicants and everyone else:
- If you are not a Protection visa applicant and you apply for a BVC for judicial review, you will only be granted a new BVC that does not allow you to work — even if your last BVC allowed you to work.
- If you are a Protection visa applicant applying for a BVC for judicial review, a new BVC that allows work can only be granted if the last BVC you held allowed you to work.
Separately, the general position is that the initial BVC granted when you applied for a substantive visa will not let you work unless the substantive visa applied for is one of a listed set — including subclasses 132, 186, 187, 188, 189, 190, 489, 491, 494 and 888. Where a BVC does not permit work or restricts it, you can apply for another BVC that allows work, but you will need to demonstrate financial hardship; if the department assesses that you do not meet the work requirements and you are still eligible for a BVC, you are granted a new BVC carrying the same work prevention or restriction condition as before.
These are the published rules in general terms; they are not advice about your individual circumstances, and the conditions that actually apply to you are the ones set out in your grant notification, read against the current Home Affairs guidance.
What has to be attached before you submit?
The webform pathway is a single-shot process. If you apply through ImmiAccount and did not attach everything, you can add documents afterwards as soon as possible. If you apply by webform, you must attach all documents before you submit — you cannot attach extra documents once the application has been submitted. The department may still ask for more information, and if it does, you should provide it in the way the request letter asks.
Identity documents are colour copies of the pages of your current passport showing your photo, personal details, and issue and expiry dates, plus a national identity card if you have one and proof of any change of name. If you are applying to change your visa conditions, you also need proof to support the hardship you are claiming.
Two related forms come up often in this situation: Form 956A to nominate someone to receive your correspondence, and Form 956 if someone is giving you immigration assistance. Only a registered migration agent, a legal practitioner, or an exempt person can lawfully give immigration assistance.
What else changes on the webform pathway?
A few consequences catch people out:
- No return travel. A BVC in effect ceases when you depart Australia, and you cannot be granted a Bridging visa B to travel and return while you hold a BVC. If you leave without another visa that permits return, you would need to apply for and be granted a substantive visa to come back, and there is no guarantee of that.
- No processing updates. The department does not give updates on application processing times; you wait to be contacted. Because you must remain lawful throughout, the guidance stresses lodging early.
- No extension. You cannot stay longer by extending a BVC. To stay longer you must apply for a new visa.
- Corrections go through Form 1023. If you made a mistake on the application, notify the department as soon as you can using Form 1023 Notification of incorrect answers.
- Family members. If you apply separately for a BVC, you can include members of the family unit who are included in your substantive visa application. Each person's application is assessed individually, and the department decides which bridging visa each can be granted. If the substantive application was a combined one, VEVO will show whether family members already hold a bridging visa.
A BVC also cannot be used while you wait for a citizenship application to be decided, and the visa is digitally linked to your passport rather than issued as a label.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I still use ImmiAccount if my substantive visa was lodged online?
No. Where you have applied for review of a decision about your substantive visa application, the department requires the BVC to be submitted by webform, and the review test applies independently of how the original application was lodged.
Do I need a new BVC if I already hold one?
Check VEVO first, because nearly all bridging visas are generated automatically with the substantive visa application. A separate application might be necessary where you are seeking a further BVC without work restrictions or you have applied for judicial review.
Can I add documents after submitting the webform?
No. Webform applicants must attach all documents before submitting, and cannot attach anything afterwards. ImmiAccount applicants can still add documents after lodging.
Will the new BVC let me work?
If you are not a Protection visa applicant, a BVC granted for judicial review will not allow work, even if your previous one did. Protection visa applicants can only get a work-permitting BVC if their last BVC allowed work. Otherwise, a work-permitting BVC requires you to demonstrate financial hardship.
Is there a fee for a Bridging visa C?
No. The department lists the cost as free.
How long do I have after the tribunal or court decision?
For a BVC granted on or after 19 November 2016, it ceases 35 calendar days after the refusal decision or AAT decision, and 28 calendar days after a judicial review body upholds the refusal or you withdraw a related judicial review application. VEVO shows your exact date once you are notified.