Tracker site AustralianVisaTracker.com shows that median processing for the popular eVisitor-651 visa remained under 24 hours on 7 October, even as inbound travel demand surged for school-holiday season. Department of Home Affairs data released last week had placed the 90th-percentile at two days. The performance contrasts with the Visitor-600 stream, where backlog pressures mean 90 % of cases still take up to 19 days. Travel agents attribute the difference to full automation of 651 decisions for low-risk passport holders, whereas 600 applicants often require manual assessment. For businesses arranging last-minute meetings or conferences, the data suggest EU passport holders can still obtain travel authority overnight, while Asian delegates should allow three weeks. Mobility teams should therefore consider citizenship when scheduling project-kick-off dates. Home Affairs warns that incorrect travel-history declarations trigger manual review even in the 651 channel, so applicants should double-check Schengen overstay records. Travel managers can reduce risk by providing a template declaration and ensuring passports have at least six months’ validity. Airlines report that real-time VEVO checks at check-in desks have reduced instances of travellers boarding with invalid authorisations, but ask corporates to send confirmation PDFs to passengers’ mobile devices as a back-up.
Source: AustralianVisaTracker.com
