If Australia is included in your cruise, then you will need a visitor visa for Australia. If the cruise happens to be a round trip cruise, then the time spent on the cruise will be counted as your stay in Australia. Before you embark on the cruise, check with the cruise operator to know if your cruise will be considered a round trip cruise by the Australian authorities.
As Visitor visa 600 is a temporary visa, you can stay for the dates specified on the visa. There are some factors which are considered during the time the visa is granted. They are the duration for which you want to stay and the reason for your stay. You must be prepared for not getting the length of stay as long as you have specified. The visa might specify single or multiple entries. Multi entry visa means you can leave and enter Australia many times until the validity of the visa. This visa prohibits you to stay in Australia for more than 12 months in 18 months. You will need to show that there are certain special circumstances due to which you will be required to stay longer. The condition will apply to Visitor visa, Working Holiday visa, Work and Holiday visa or bridging visa holders.
There is no provision of extending the Tourist stream Visa. You will have to apply for another visa if you require staying longer.
You can’t include family members in the application for a tourist visa. You will have to submit a separate application for each member of the family who wishes to travel with you.
Usually, the visa processing takes 18-24 days. The application processing time might get delayed if you haven’t filled the information correctly or forgot to include all the documents with the application. The verification of the information also takes some time.
It is highly recommended that you get yourself medically insured so that you will not have to bear unexpected expenses in case of any medical emergency in Australia. The visitors to Australia are responsible for bearing the healthcare costs. If you get yourself insured, you will not have to worry about health care expenses.
If you have been granted a visa with multiple entries, you will be allowed to travel outside Australia and re-enter several times. In case you have been granted a single entry visa, you will have to apply for another visa if you leave Australia
