- Digital nomad visa
- No
Overall3.5/10Harder visas than about 85% of cities
Good to know
Good to Know
- There's no walk-up 'visa-free' entry to Australia — even a quick electronic ETA or eVisitor is technically a real visa you must obtain before you fly, not something stamped on arrival.
- Only use the official 'Australian ETA' app (Apple/Google, published by the Department of Home Affairs) or the immi.homeaffairs.gov.au / ImmiAccount portal for eVisitor — third-party sites often charge large markups for what is a free (eVisitor) or AUD 20 (ETA) government process.
- If you think you'll want to stay in Perth longer than 3 months, the eVisitor/ETA won't stretch — you'd need to apply for a Subclass 600 (up to 12 months, AUD 190) or a different visa category before your electronic visa expires.
- None of these visitor pathways allow paid work of any kind, including remote work for an Australian entity — they're for tourism/business visits only; check separate rules if you plan to work while there.
- Most nomads in practice use a Visitor Visa (or eVisitor/ETA for eligible passports) and simply work remotely for overseas clients while visiting — but this isn't officially authorized work, so it carries some compliance risk if scrutinized at the border or during a stay.
- The Working Holiday visa (subclasses 417/462) is the only mainstream path that legally combines living, working, and remote work, but it's restricted to applicants aged roughly 18–30 (up to 35 for a few nationalities).
- Don't assume leaving Australia for more than half the year automatically ends your Australian tax residency — the domicile test can still catch Australian-domiciled nomads who haven't established a genuine long-term home base abroad.
- If you're building a remote-work stay around Perth specifically, note that visa and tax rules here are entirely federal (ATO/Department of Home Affairs) — there's no Western Australia state-level variation.
Visa Free Entry
- Summary
- Australia has no true visa-free entry and no visa-on-arrival for the vast majority of nationalities — every non-citizen needs a visa granted before or at the border, with New Zealand citizens being the main exception. In practice, most nomads from the US, Canada, UK, EU/EEA, Japan and similar countries get a fast, cheap electronic visa that functions like a visa-free/Schengen-style baseline.
- No Visa Free Exception
- New Zealand citizens are the only nationality that can travel to Australia and be granted a visa (a Special Category Visa) essentially at the border with no advance application.
- Official Government Source
- https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-finder/visit
Primary Pathways
eVisitor (subclass 651)
- Cost
- A$0.00
- Process
- Apply online (no app needed) through the Department of Home Affairs ImmiAccount portal before travel; cannot be applied for while already in Australia.
- Validity
- Multiple entries for 12 months
- Who Qualifies
- Most European passport holders (EU member states plus UK, Norway, Iceland, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Monaco and several other European countries/territories).
- Max Stay Per Entry
- Up to 3 months per visit
- Notes
- With this visa you can visit Australia as often as you wish in a 12-month period, staying up to 3 months each time.
Electronic Travel Authority / ETA (subclass 601)
- Cost
- A$20
- Process
- Must be applied for through the official 'Australian ETA' mobile app (Apple App Store / Google Play, published by the Department of Home Affairs) — scan passport NFC chip, take a selfie, pay the AUD 20 service charge. Cannot be lodged via ImmiAccount, a travel agent, or from within Australia.
- Validity
- Multiple entries for 12 months
- Who Qualifies
- Passport holders from a defined list of eligible countries/territories including the United States, Canada, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, Malaysia, Brunei, Hong Kong SAR, Taiwan and a number of European micro-states/countries.
- Max Stay Per Entry
- Up to 3 months per visit
- Notes
- There is no Visa Application Charge for an ETA, but there is a mandatory AUD 20 service fee to use the app.
Visitor visa (subclass 600) — fallback for everyone else
- Cost
- A$190
- Process
- Apply online via ImmiAccount with supporting documents (funds, itinerary, accommodation, genuine-visitor evidence); processing is slower than the electronic visas.
- Who Qualifies
- Any nationality not eligible for the ETA or eVisitor (e.g. most of Asia, Africa, Latin America, several EU-adjacent Eastern European states use eVisitor instead).
- Max Stay Per Entry
- 3, 6 or 12 months depending on the grant
- Notes
- This visa stream lets you visit Australia for up to 12 months as a tourist, to go on a cruise or to see family and friends.
Work And Extension Rules
- Neither the ETA nor the eVisitor can be extended — travelers must leave before the 3-month limit or apply for a different visa (typically Subclass 600) before it expires.
- None of the electronic visitor visas or the standard Visitor visa (600) permit paid work or long-term study in Australia.
- Frequent back-to-back short visits on a visitor visa can prompt immigration officers to question genuine visitor intent and may lead to refusal or cancellation.
Tax Notes
- System
- Australia does not have a special nomad tax regime. Tax residency is determined by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) using four separate tests — only one needs to be met to be classed a resident.
- Double Taxation
- Australia has double tax treaties with many countries which can offer a foreign income tax offset, but treaty coverage is inconsistent — notably absent or limited for some popular nomad destinations, raising real double-taxation risk without careful planning.
- Worldwide Income
- A determination of Australian tax residency requires declaring and paying tax on worldwide income, not just Australian-sourced income.
- Day Count Trigger
- 183 days in an income year is the headline threshold, but it is only one of four tests, and the ATO can deem someone a resident well before 183 days, or a non-resident despite exceeding it, depending on ties and intent.
- Exit Considerations
- Australians who genuinely cease tax residency can trigger a 'deemed disposal' capital gains tax event on shares/managed funds (though not Australian real estate) as of the date they become a foreign resident.
- Practical Note
- Immigration visa status and ATO tax residency are entirely separate legal questions — holding a short-stay visitor visa does not automatically make someone a tax non-resident, and vice versa.
Tests
- 183-day test: physical presence in Australia for 183 days or more within an income year (1 July–30 June) creates a presumption of tax residency, though this is rebuttable.
- Resides ('ordinary concepts') test: looks at physical presence, intention, and social/economic ties.
- Domicile test: an Australian-domiciled person remains a tax resident unless they establish a genuine 'permanent place of abode' overseas — typically requiring roots put down for two or more years, not a string of short-term rentals.
- Commonwealth Superannuation test: narrowly applies to Australian government employees/contributors to certain public-sector super schemes.
Application Paths
Most nomads use this as the default path.
- Visa
- Visitor Visa (subclass 600) / eVisitor (651, EU passport holders) / ETA (601, e.g. US, Canada, Japan, Singapore, South Korea)
- Stay Length
- Granted for 3, 6, or 12 months depending on stream and circumstances.
- Work Rights
- Not authorized for work with Australian businesses; remote work for an overseas employer/clients is a commonly used but legally unauthorized grey area since the visa is issued for tourism/business-visitor purposes, not employment.
- Renewal Path
- Cannot be extended from within the visa itself; the holder must exit and lodge a fresh application if they want further time.
- Application Fee
- A$190
- Income Requirement
- No published minimum income figure; official guidance only requires that you 'must have, or have access to, enough money to support yourself while you are in Australia.'
Documents Required
- Valid passport pages (photo, personal details, issue/expiry dates)
- Proof of sufficient funds
- Evidence of travel plans / itinerary
- Invitation letter from a friend or relative in Australia, if applicable
- Military service record or discharge papers, if applicable
- ImmiAccount registration to submit the online application
- Visa
- Working Holiday Visa (subclass 417) / Work and Holiday Visa (subclass 462)
- Stay Length
- Up to 12 months, with possible second/third-year extensions for eligible nationalities who complete specified regional work.
- Who Its For
- Eligible nationalities aged 18–30 (up to 35 for a handful of countries including Ireland, Canada, the UK and France).
- Work Rights
- Unlike visitor visas, this permits local Australian employment as well as remote work, subject to a rule limiting work with a single Australian employer to six months.
- Renewal Path
- Second and third Working Holiday visas are available to those who complete qualifying specified work (often regional/agricultural) during their first year.
- Application Fee
- A$635
Documents Required
- Passport meeting nationality/eligibility criteria
- Proof of funds
- Health and character (police clearance) requirements for longer stays
- For subclass 462: proof of functional English and, for some nationalities, tertiary education or a letter of government support
- Visa
- Employer-sponsored / Skills in Demand visa (subclass 482) and skilled migration
- Stay Length
- Multi-year, can lead toward permanent residency depending on stream.
- Who Its For
- Nomads wanting a genuine long-term legal work pathway rather than a tourist-style stay.
- Work Rights
- Full work rights, but tied to a sponsoring employer and nominated occupation.
- Renewal Path
- Renewable/extendable through the sponsoring employer; several streams provide a pathway to permanent residency.
Documents Required
- Employer sponsorship/nomination
- Skills assessment for the nominated occupation
- Health and character checks
Business Innovation and Investment-type visa
- Stay Length
- Longer-term, provisional visas that can lead to permanent residency.
- Who Its For
- Entrepreneurs/business owners rather than salaried remote workers.
- Work Rights
- Full rights to run a business in Australia.
- Renewal Path
- Provisional visa holders may apply for an associated permanent visa once conditions are met.
- Application Fee
- A$4,240
Documents Required
- Business/investment plan
- Proof of net assets and business turnover thresholds
Visa Ease Tier
low
Visa Ease Tier Rationale
There is no dedicated digital nomad visa, remote work on the easy-to-obtain Visitor/eVisitor/ETA visas falls into an unauthorized grey area, the only visa with genuine remote-work-friendly flexibility (Working Holiday, 417/462) is capped by age and nationality, and the ATO's four-test tax-residency regime (including the 183-day rule) makes any extended stay legally and fiscally complex to manage cleanly.
Dedicated Digital Nomad Visa
- Exists
- No
- Summary
- Australia has no dedicated digital nomad visa. Remote workers piece together a stay using existing visa subclasses not designed for this purpose.
AI-generated estimateData refreshed July 2026
Sources cited for this category
These are the sources cited in this visas research for this city. Individual figures may not each trace to one of them.
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Data last updated July 2026 · Verify anything important.