Subclass 151 or Resident Return Visa — Which One Applies to You in 2026?
If you already hold permanent residence and only your travel facility has run out, the Resident Return visa (RRV, subclasses 155/157) is the route the Australian Department of Home Affairs points to on its official Former Resident visa (subclass 151) page (as of August 2026): it lets you re-enter Australia as a permanent resident. Subclass 151 does something different — it is itself a permanent visa, and you become a permanent resident on the day it is granted. Under the Migration Regulations 1994, subclass 151 (Special Eligibility, Class CB) is limited to two defined groups: "long residence applicants" and "defence service applicants". Everything below is general information about published rules rather than advice on your own case; the latest official guidance should govern what you actually lodge.
What do subclass 151 and the RRV actually do?
| Former Resident visa (subclass 151) | Resident Return visa (155/157) | |
|---|---|---|
| What it gives you | Permanent residence. You become a permanent resident on the day of grant | Re-entry to Australia as a permanent resident, i.e. a new travel facility |
| Travel | Unlimited travel to and from Australia for 5 years from the date of grant, while the travel facility remains valid | Depends on the RRV residence requirement; where that requirement is not met, the maximum travel period is 12 months, and that period is set by law and cannot be extended |
| Main trigger | You fit one of the two applicant categories in the regulations and need permanent residence granted | Your 5-year travel facility has ended and you want to travel and return as a permanent resident |
The two are not really rivals over a lifetime. A person granted subclass 151 gets a fresh 5-year travel facility, and once that facility expires, the same official page sends them to the RRV as well. The real question is which one matches your status today.
If your 5-year travel facility is still valid, do you need either one?
No. While the travel facility is valid you can travel to and from Australia as many times as you want within the 5 years from the date of grant, and you do not need an RRV or a new subclass 151 application. The Home Affairs page also notes that if you are already in Australia as a permanent resident, you do not need an RRV if you do not wish to travel.
The practical task is confirming the end date rather than guessing. VEVO (Visa Entitlement Verification Online) is the tool the department names for checking when your travel period ends and what conditions are attached.
If the 5-year travel facility has expired, is the RRV enough?
For someone who is still a permanent resident, yes — the RRV is the instrument the official page names. Two consequences matter before you book a flight:
- If you leave Australia after your travel validity expires, or it expires while you are outside Australia, you will not be able to return as a permanent resident. You must apply for and be granted an RRV before you arrive.
- If you do not meet the RRV residence requirement, the travel period that can be granted is capped at 12 months, and that cap is fixed by law and cannot be extended.
Citizenship is the alternative that ends the cycle. If you become an Australian citizen you do not need a visa to enter Australia; you travel on an Australian passport instead.
If your permanent residence has lapsed, does subclass 151 fit?
This is where the two routes separate cleanly. The Home Affairs page describes the RRV as a way to re-enter Australia as a permanent resident — it does not describe it as a way to re-acquire permanent residence that has ceased. Where your status has gone, subclass 151 is the permanent visa covered here that re-establishes it, because you become a permanent resident on the day of grant.
That grant, however, is only available to the categories defined in the regulations. If you fit neither, the subclass 151 categories set out in the Migration Regulations 1994 do not cover you.
Who actually qualifies for subclass 151?
Per the Migration Regulations 1994, a main applicant must be one of the following.
Long residence applicant. You spent the greater part of your life before turning 18 in Australia's migration zone as a permanent resident, you never acquired Australian citizenship, you maintain business, cultural or personal ties to Australia, and you are under 45 at the time of application. The subclass 151 PAM3 guidance reads "greater part of life" as at least 9 years of actual residence as a permanent resident before turning 18, or at least half of life for an applicant who is still under 18, and it expects the ties to have existed before permanent residence stopped and to have continued up to the time of application.
Defence service applicant. You completed at least 3 months of continuous Australian defence service — PAM3 notes that the relevant service period is limited to service before 26 November 1964 or from then until 19 January 1981 — or you were discharged earlier for medical reasons caused by that service. PAM3 treats the service as needing to be continuous service in the permanent forces.
Two further points come from the regulations and the official page. Applications made on or after 1 November 2005 are the ones this subclass covers; it replaced the earlier Special Eligibility (Migrant) (Class AR) visa. And you may apply in or outside Australia, but not while in immigration clearance — if you apply in Australia you must be in Australia when the decision is made, and if you apply outside you must be outside at that point.
Family members can be included in the application when you apply, and added at any time before a decision is made. They must meet the health and character requirements, and the PAM3 guidance applies an all-or-nothing test: a family member who fails can sink the whole application. Health criteria differ by location — offshore long residence applicants are assessed against public interest criterion 4005, while onshore long residence applicants and defence service applicants are assessed against 4007, which allows for a waiver.
What changes after a subclass 151 grant?
You can stay indefinitely, work and study, enrol in Medicare, sponsor eligible relatives, travel for 5 years from the grant date, and apply for citizenship if eligible. For citizenship purposes, your permanent residency starts on the day the visa is granted if you were in Australia, or on the day you first enter Australia on the visa if you were outside when it was granted.
A few administrative points follow from the grant:
- Your visa is digitally linked to your passport; you do not get a label, and you need to tell the department if you get a new passport.
- Use VEVO to show your visa and conditions, and international movement records if you need proof of travel in and out of Australia.
- New Zealand passport holders processed by an immigration officer at the border should say they hold a subclass 151 visa and do not want a Special Category visa (subclass 444). A subclass 444 is not a permanent visa, and being granted one may affect eligibility for an RRV and for citizenship.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is subclass 151 the same as getting my permanent residence back?
Subclass 151 is a permanent visa, and you become a permanent resident on the day it is granted, so it does re-establish permanent residence. It is a new grant rather than a restoration of an old visa, which is why the citizenship clock starts on the grant date (or on first entry, if you were outside Australia at grant).
I am past my 5-year travel period but living in Australia. Do I need an RRV?
Not while you stay. The Home Affairs page states that a permanent resident already in Australia does not need an RRV if they do not wish to travel. The RRV becomes necessary the moment you want to leave and return.
My travel facility expired while I was overseas. Can I still come back?
According to the official 151 page, you will not be able to return to Australia as a permanent resident in that situation; you must apply for and be granted an RRV before arriving. If your permanent residence itself has ceased rather than just the travel facility, subclass 151 is the permanent route described here — but only if you are a long residence or defence service applicant.
How long a travel period does an RRV give if I have not lived in Australia recently?
Where an applicant does not meet the RRV residence requirement, the maximum travel period that can be granted is 12 months. That period is set by law and cannot be extended.
Who counts as a long residence applicant for subclass 151?
Someone who, before turning 18, spent the greater part of their life in the migration zone as an Australian permanent resident, never acquired Australian citizenship, has kept business, cultural or personal ties to Australia, and is under 45 when they apply. The PAM3 guidance treats "greater part of life" as at least 9 years of residence as a permanent resident before age 18, or at least half of life for an applicant who is still under 18.
Can I include my family in a subclass 151 application?
Yes. Members of the family unit can be included when you apply or added before a decision is made, and each must meet health and character requirements. Under the PAM3 guidance, one family member failing those requirements can cause the entire application to be refused.
What does subclass 151 cost, and how long does it take?
The Home Affairs page directs applicants to the Visa Pricing Estimator for the charge, notes a separate fee for each family member who applies with you, and says concessions apply in limited circumstances; health checks and police certificates may add costs. For timing, the department publishes a visa processing time guide based on recently decided applications, described as a guide only and not specific to any individual application.