Do I need a lawyer or a migration agent?

Many visa applications are lodged directly. A registered migration agent or immigration lawyer helps with complex or refused matters.

What is a Section 48 bar?

It limits the visas you can apply for while unlawfully in Australia after a refusal or cancellation. A professional can map your options.

Can I appeal a refused visa?

Often yes — the Administrative Appeals Tribunal reviews many decisions, but strict time limits apply.

How Do I Stay Lawful During AAT Review and Judicial Review on a Bridging Visa A in 2026?

What a Bridging visa A does after the AAT upholds a refusal, and why a fresh application by webform is needed for judicial review.

Your Bridging visa A (BVA, subclass 010) does not carry you automatically from a tribunal loss into judicial review. According to the Australian Department of Home Affairs' Bridging visa A (BVA) (Subclass 010) page, as at August 2026: if a merits review tribunal upholds the decision to refuse your substantive visa and you apply for judicial review, you need to apply for a bridging visa to maintain your lawful status during the judicial review proceedings — and once you have applied for judicial review, the only way to apply is by webform.

The rest of this article follows the chain in the order it actually happens. It is general information only and is not advice on your individual circumstances; your visa conditions, grant date and review history all affect the outcome, so read your own record in VEVO and check current requirements against the Department's latest published guidance.

What actually happens to my BVA when the AAT upholds the refusal?

Your BVA does not end on the day of the tribunal decision — it runs on a fixed countdown. For a BVA granted on or after 19 November 2016, the visa ceases 35 calendar days after a decision by the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) in relation to your associated substantive visa application. The same 35-day period applies after the Department's own refusal decision, after a determination that the substantive application or AAT review application is invalid, and after you withdraw the substantive application or the AAT review application.

If your BVA was granted before 19 November 2016, the period is 28 days after the tribunal notifies you that it has upheld the refusal, with the same 28-day period applying to the other listed events. Once you have been notified of an outcome, VEVO shows exactly how long you can stay.

Why is a fresh bridging visa application the turning point?

A BVA is tied to the stage of the process it was granted for. While the AAT review is running, the visa keeps you lawful until that review is decided. Once the tribunal upholds the refusal, the chain moves to a different stage — judicial review — and the Department treats that as a situation where a separate BVA application may be necessary. In other words, the turning point is not the refusal itself, and not the tribunal hearing; it is the moment you move from merits review into judicial review.

The Migration Regulations 1994 set out this path in clause 010.211(3), which covers a person who made, in Australia, a valid application for a substantive visa of a kind that can be granted while the applicant is in Australia, held a substantive visa when that application was made, had the application refused, applied for judicial review within the statutory time limit while holding a BVA or Bridging visa B (BVB), and whose judicial review proceedings are not yet complete. Holding a BVA or BVB when the judicial review is filed is part of that requirement, which is why letting your current bridging visa lapse before filing can undermine the next application.

How much time do I have once judicial review is under way?

Timing works differently depending on which decision ends the proceedings. If a judicial review body upholds the decision to refuse your substantive visa, a BVA granted on or after 19 November 2016 ceases 28 calendar days later. The same 28 days applies if you withdraw a related judicial review application.

That 28-day period is shorter than the 35 days that follows an AAT decision, so the consequences of missing a step are tighter at the judicial review end. Check the exact date in VEVO rather than counting from memory, because the countdown starts from the notification of the outcome.

How do I apply, and why is the webform the only channel?

How you apply depends on how your substantive visa was applied for and whether a review is involved. If you applied for the substantive visa through ImmiAccount and there is no review, you apply for the BVA through ImmiAccount. If you applied for review of a decision about your substantive visa application, you must complete and submit Form 1005 by webform — the Department's online Bridging A, B and C visa application form. The same webform is required if the substantive visa was applied for on paper.

Practical points that follow from that:

You, and anyone included in the application, must be in Australia both when you lodge and when the decision is made.
You must attach all documents before submitting; extra documents cannot be added after submission if you apply by webform.
The Department does not provide updates on application processing times, and it advises applying early so there is enough time to process the bridging visa while you remain lawful.
There is no fee: the BVA is listed as free.

You cannot extend a BVA to stay longer. If you want to remain in Australia beyond it, you must apply for a new visa.

Can I get work rights on a BVA granted for judicial review?

Usually not, and the restriction is specific. You cannot be granted a new BVA that lets you work if your current BVA prevents or restricts you from working and either your current BVA was granted because you applied for judicial review of the decision on your substantive visa application, or you have applied for a protection visa. In those cases the Department will grant a new BVA with the same work prevention or restriction condition if you are otherwise eligible.

Outside those situations, work rights depend on the conditions attached to your visa. If your BVA does not let you work, you can apply for another BVA that does, but you will usually have to demonstrate financial hardship, and the Department assesses your circumstances against that claim. Your grant letter and VEVO tell you which conditions apply.

What about my partner and children?

If you and your family applied together for the substantive visa in Australia, you may already hold BVAs together — check each person in VEVO. If you apply separately for a BVA, you can include members of the family unit in your application if they are included in your substantive visa application. Each family member's application is assessed individually, and the Department decides which bridging visa each person can be granted.

Does travel affect my BVA during review?

Yes, and the effect is immediate. A BVA does not support return travel. If you leave Australia while your BVA is in effect, the visa ceases on departure and you cannot return on it. To travel and come back while your substantive visa or review is still under consideration, you need to have been granted a Bridging visa B (BVB) before you leave.

What else ends a BVA straight away?

Besides departing Australia, a BVA ends immediately if you are granted the substantive visa you applied for, if you are granted another bridging visa (such as a BVB) in relation to the same substantive visa application, or if the Department cancels either your BVA or the substantive visa you held when the BVA was granted.

Your obligations continue throughout: comply with all Australian laws, comply with the conditions of your current visa, and comply with the conditions of your BVA once it comes into effect. If you hold a substantive visa when the BVA is granted, you keep following the substantive visa's conditions until it ceases. You must also tell the Department about changes such as a new address, email, phone number or passport, the birth of a child, or if you want to withdraw an application.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does my BVA continue automatically if I apply for judicial review?

No. The Department states that if a merits review tribunal upholds the refusal and you apply for judicial review, you need to apply for a bridging visa to maintain lawful status during the proceedings. The application does not happen by itself.

How long does my BVA last after the AAT upholds the refusal?

For a BVA granted on or after 19 November 2016, it ceases 35 calendar days after the AAT decision on the associated substantive visa application. For BVAs granted before that date, the period is 28 days. VEVO shows your exact date.

What happens to my BVA if the court upholds the refusal?

A BVA granted on or after 19 November 2016 ceases 28 calendar days after a judicial review body upholds the decision to refuse your substantive visa. The same 28 days applies if you withdraw the related judicial review application.

Can I apply for the new BVA through ImmiAccount?

Not if a review is involved. Where you have applied for review of a decision about your substantive visa application, you must complete and submit Form 1005 by webform. ImmiAccount is the channel where the substantive visa was applied for online and no review is involved.

Is there a fee for a BVA?

No. The Department lists the Bridging visa A (subclass 010) as free. You and anyone included in the application must be in Australia when the application is submitted and when it is decided.

Can I work while on a BVA granted for judicial review?

If that BVA prevents or restricts work, you cannot be granted a new BVA that lets you work. The same restriction applies if you have applied for a protection visa. Otherwise, work rights depend on the conditions on your visa, and a change usually requires demonstrating financial hardship.

Can I travel overseas and come back on my BVA?

No. A BVA does not support return travel and ceases on departure if it is in effect. You need a BVB granted before you leave if you intend to return while your substantive visa or review is still being considered.