Substantive visa holders
Student, visitor, 485, 482, partner, skilled, working holiday. Any substantive visa in effect at lodgement.
Subclass 010 · The Default Bridging Visa
You lodged a visa while holding a substantive visa. You get a BVA.
A partner visa, a 485, a skilled visa, or a protection claim lodged onshore. A BVA grant notice lands in your inbox. Can you keep working? Can you travel? What happens the day your current visa expires? This page translates the fine print.
Who gets a BVA
Granted automatically. You do not apply separately.
The Department grants a Bridging Visa A automatically when you lodge a valid onshore substantive visa application while holding a substantive visa. The grant notice arrives within days of lodgement via email or ImmiAccount.
Dormant until activation
Your BVA exists from the grant date but stays dormant while your substantive visa is still valid.
Activates on substantive expiry
If your student visa expires on 15 September, your BVA comes in effect on 16 September. Only then do its conditions apply.
No separate application
BVA attaches to the underlying application. No separate form, no separate fee.
Work rights
Work rights inherit from your previous visa.
This is the single most important rule of BVAs. Your BVA does not grant its own work rights. It mirrors what you already had.
Unlimited if previous was unlimitedIf you held a visa with no work condition (partner, 482, 485 in some cases), your BVA allows unlimited work.
48-hour cap flows throughIf you held a student visa with condition 8105, that cap flows through to your BVA until the new visa is decided.
When your BVA improves your positionIf your new visa application is for a subclass with unlimited work rights, you may be able to apply to relax your BVA's conditions once the application enters late-stage processing.
When your BVA downgrades your positionGoing from a 482 to a student visa application means your BVA inherits the new visa's work limits rather than the old visa's unlimited rights. Model this before lodging.
When your substantive visa is decided
Three possible outcomes.
The BVA responds to the substantive decision. Each outcome has different timelines.
Granted
The moment your new substantive visa is granted, the BVA ceases automatically. You move on to the new visa's conditions and benefits.
Refused with ART rights
BVA continues for 28 or 35 days. Lodge ART appeal within that window and the BVA continues through tribunal review.
Refused without ART rights
BVA ends typically 28 days after refusal. Options: depart, ministerial intervention, or judicial review.
Around 1 in 9 visa rescue cases we handle involve a client who left Australia on a BVA without switching to a BVB first.
Some situations are salvageable through ministerial intervention or fresh offshore applications. Many are not. Never book flights until your BVB is in your inbox.
Common questions
The questions we hear most.
For BVA interpretation, book with Sourabh Aggarwal.
How quickly is a BVA granted after I lodge my main application?
Usually within 24 to 72 hours of lodgement. For complex applications (ART appeals, ministerial intervention), it can take longer.
Can I change jobs on a BVA?
Yes, unless your underlying substantive visa was employer-specific (482) and your new application is still tied to that employer, in which case changing employers could invalidate the application.
My BVA grant notice says Class WA Subclass 010. Is that different?
No, all BVAs are Class WA Subclass 010. The grant notice always uses the full class and subclass code.
Does my BVA cover my family?
Only family members included as secondary applicants on the underlying substantive visa application receive their own BVAs.
Some information on this page has been sourced from the Department of Home Affairs and has been interpreted and approved by Principal Migration Agent Sourabh Aggarwal (MARN 1462159). Last reviewed: May 2026.