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I am struggling to find a firm answer to my question. Here's my situation:

I am looking to travel to Australia in December for a few weeks to visit my brother, who moved there a few years ago. I am a British national, but 10 years ago (when I was 18) I made a mistake and landed myself a criminal conviction for a very minor cannabis possession charge, which resulted in a £600 fine. I haven't been in trouble since and it is a huge embarrassment.

Obviously this meets the ETA visa requirement of not having a conviction that resulted in a sentence of more than 12 months. But I don't want to accidentally fall foul of the rules and be seen to have misrepresented myself.

Any guidance would be appreciated.

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  • Does the application form ask any open questions where you could mention this?
    – user16259
    Apr 14, 2018 at 13:13
  • It seems we have boatloads of questions on this site about people with a criminal record coming to Australia.
    – Golden Cuy
    Feb 6, 2019 at 10:58

1 Answer 1

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On the Australian Dept of Home Affairs - eVisitor subclass 651 page => eVisitor Applicants tab, => Who could get this visa, it states:

Criminal Convictions

If you have had one or more criminal convictions (in any country) for which the sentence or sentences (whether served or not) total 12 months or more you will not be permitted entry to Australia whilst holding an eVisitor. If you have had any criminal conviction in any country, a more appropriate visa for you to apply for may be a Visitor visa (subclass 600), rather than an eVisitor.

The Visitor Visa application form requires the applicant to disclose any convictions in any country (part F, Character details. https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/forms/documents/1419.pdf

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    This corresponds with what I was told as well. I wanted to apply for an ETA, but I was arrested when I was 14 for a misdemeanor with a $15 fine. I called the Aussie visa folks, and they told me that "because of my criminal history" I had to apply for a visitor visa. Sounds like OP would probably be told the same.
    – la femme cosmique
    Apr 14, 2018 at 14:26

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