COVID-19 (Coronavirus): Travel Restrictions
From 9pm on 20 March 2020, only Australian citizens, residents and immediate family members can travel to Australia. Up to date information on Australia's response to COVID-19 and current travel restrictions, as well as exemptions, is available at https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/news-media/current-alerts/novel-coronavirus.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Australian Embassy Berlin currently has limited capacity to assist with questions relating to immigration and citizenship.
The best way to find out information about immigration and citizenship is by visiting the Department of Home Affairs website at www.homeaffairs.gov.au
If you can’t find the information you are looking for, you can contact the Department of Home Affairs Global Service Centre on +61 2 6196 0196 or via https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/help-and-support/contact-us. The Global Service Centre is available Monday-Friday from 9am-5pm (GMT +1, German time).
Key Topics
Australian Citizenship |
Explore Visa Options |
Visa processing times |
Providing Biometrics |
Update personal details |
Changing visas |
Health requirements |
Importing goods and medication |
Known issues with German passports |
Frequently Asked Questions |
Work and Holiday - Status of Country Cap |
Beware of visa scams
To avoid being scammed, you can check the Register of Migraiton Agents on the OMARA website at www.mara.gov.au, to receive the protections of an OMARA registered Migration Agent.
There are Australian registered Migration Agents working around the world in countries such as India, the United Kingdom, China and New Zealand, just to name a few . These agents are subject to the same Code of Conduct, professional development and regulations as Registered Migration Agents based in Australia. More information about Australia's efforts to ensure the integrity of the migration advice profession is available at www.mara.gov.au.
Locations for providing biometrics
There is no biometrics collection centre in Germany. If you are in Europe and have received a requirement to provide biometrics, the nearest biometrics collection centre may be in France or Greece. Further information is available at https://www.vfsglobal.com/australia/france and https://www.vfsglobal.com/australia/greece
Australia - Switzerland trainee program
For information on the Memorandum of Understanding on trainees between Australia and Switzerland, see https://germany.embassy.gov.au/beln/Swiss_trainee_exchange.html
Applying for a partner visa
Information about applying for a partner visa is available at https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-listing/partner-offshore. For answers to some Frequently Asked questions, see https://germany.embassy.gov.au/beln/Partner_FAQ_en.html
Applying for a student visa
Information about applying for a student visa is available at https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-listing/student-500. For further information, see https://germany.embassy.gov.au/beln/student_engl.html
What's New?
11 February 2020: Austria and Portugal Work and Holiday programs are nearing completion for 2019-20
Due to significant interest in Australia's Work and Holiday visa arrangements with Portugal and Austria, these programs are nearing completion for the 2019-20 program year! If you are a national of Portugal or Austria and would like to lodge a Work and Holiday visa application, you may wish to do so as soon as possible. No further applications can be lodged once the cap for this program year has been reached, until the new program starts on 1 July 2020. Applications must be lodged online via ImmiAccount. Please see https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-listing/work-holiday-462/first-work-holiday-462 for further information.
21 November 2019: Please help the Australian Government improve its new Digital Assistant online chat for Visa and citizenship enquiries
We are currently trialling a new Digital Assistant online chat that will make it easier and faster to find answers to Australian visa and citizenship questions.
The Digital Assistant trial will be available on the Australian Government’s Immigration and Citizenship website pages for approximately three months. You can open the Australian Visa and Citizenship Digital Assistant by clicking on the ‘Digital Assistant’ orange tab located at the bottom right hand side of the screen on our Immigration and Citizenship webpages. We are asking for your help to improve the Digital Assistant by using it as much as possible throughout the trial for your Australian visa and citizenship questions, and sending any feedback you have on the Digital Assistant. Feedback can be provided by clicking on the blue feedback tab at the bottom of the screen.