WORK
Diplomatic Visa – Subclass 995
What is Subclass 995 Visa?
This visa is for all foreign officials posted to Australia (i.e. members of the diplomatic and consular corps and the staff of some international organisations) and their dependents. For instance:
diplomats
consular officials
certain international representatives
consular employees or employees of accredited international representatives (administrative/technical staff) such as security guards
service staff (for example, drivers, cooks and cleaners) employed by the diplomatic or consular mission or the office of the international representative and
executive heads of the specialised agencies of the United Nations.
The visa is generally granted for an initial term of up to four years. Diplomatic visas cease to be valid when an official's placement is completed, regardless of the date shown on the visa grant notice
What is the Application Process?
Eligibility for this visa depends on the applicant being recommended by the Department of Foreign Affairs or Trade (DFAT) for accreditation. The accreditation is in accordance with the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations as diplomatic, administrative and technical, or service staff.
Firstly, for diplomatic and consular officials, visas must be formally requested by the sending state's foreign ministry; for staff of international organisations, visa requests must be made by the organisation's headquarters.
Secondly, the Australian diplomatic mission or consulate with responsibility for the sending country or organisation then advise what details are required for the visa request to be considered.
For service staff, they must be employed by the sending government to get an accreditation as service staff. The documents needed to establish their status are for instance:
CV and detailed job description;
proof of their employment such as a notice of engagement;
diplomatic, official or service passport.
Requests for new visas after the initial visa's validity expires are considered on a case-by-case basis up to a maximum of ten years.
Client Testimonials
….we call it Support Network
As navigating through the immigration law process may be difficult, our former clients have agreed to share their experiences through telephone chats, emails and meeting in person.
These are their stories…
What Questions Do Migration Agents Ask Our Accredited Specialists
Under what business structure, can a job placement company, apply to be a sponsor with the sole purpose of charging a fee to visa applicants? And is there a method which would allow the sponsor to place the visa applicant with another unrelated business?
How can employers charge a payment to the visa applicants in exchange to sponsor, without being caught under the immigration offence ‘cash for visa’?
How many types of visas (including streams), can a Temporary Activities Sponsor benefit from, in sponsoring more candidates? And are there any difference in the sponsorship obligation?
Can a visa applicant pay for costs related to the visa applicant? or must the Sponsor pay for all costs? How do I explain & educate my client, a large company who does not wish to pay for any costs for the sponsorship because the Director feels that the visa applicant has more to benefit than the company.
In what circumstances will a visa applicant lose their right to appeal a refusal?
What are the Legal Personas to Choose From?
Our lawyers are considered “book-smart”, while others are more inclined towards being labelled “street-smart”. The younger lawyers tend to be very fast & responsive, but a handful are slow (although they beg to differ, that slow & steady wins the race). The older lawyers are usually more attentive and have a reputation of customer relations. But if money is no object, you can engage a bunch of them, or all of them.
Why are there different prices for the same service?
We have a variety of legal professionals, allowing you the freedom to choose according to lawyer’s fees, speed, experience and most importantly a personality that matches yours. This way, our clients get the best of shopping around different law firms while eliminating the need to re-tell the story again and transferring of supporting documents. Naturally, junior lawyers charge lower fees and the more years of experience our lawyers gain, the higher their fees. However, it is not all always about profiting, some of our lawyers are open to pro-bono cases (free legal advice).