There are four visa subclasses included in the Refugee category of the Humanitarian Program.
They are:
- Refugee (subclass 200)
- In-Country Special Humanitarian (subclass 201)
- Global Special Humanitarian visa (subclass 202)
- Emergency Rescue (subclass 203)
- Woman at Risk (subclass 204)
All Refugee category visas (subclasses 200, 201, 203 and 204) are permanent visas
These are permanent residence visas. They allow you to:
- stay in Australia indefinitely
- work and study in Australia
- enrol in Medicare, Australia’s scheme for health-related care and expenses
- access certain social security payments
- apply for Australian citizenship (after you have lived in Australia for four years)
- propose family members for permanent residence
- attend English language classes.
Requirements
You might be able to get this visa if you:
- are outside Australia
- are subject to persecution in your home country.
To be considered for this visa, you would usually need to be referred by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to the Australian Government. Most applicants must be living outside their home country.
Processing Times:
You can expect the visa grant office to finalise humanitarian visa applications within 12–18 months.
