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Resident return visa 155-157

Subclass 155 and 157

Resident Return Visa: Keep Your Right to Travel and Come Back as a PR.

Permanent residence doesn't lapse - but your right to leave and come back as a PR does. Once your travel facility runs out, you need a Resident Return Visa to re-enter as a permanent resident. Get it in place before you fly.

Protects your re-entry as a PR155 longer, 157 shorterFor current and former PR holders
Book a Status & Citizenship ReviewSpeak With a Registered Agent
What the RRV Does

It refreshes your travel facility - not your permanent residence.

When you became a permanent resident, your visa came with a travel facility - the right to leave Australia and return as a PR. That facility commonly lasts five years. The permanent residence itself doesn't expire, but the travel facility does.

Once it lapses, you can stay in Australia as a PR - but you can't leave and come back as one until you get a new travel facility through a Resident Return Visa. That's the whole job of the 155 and 157. They don't give you permanent residence. They refresh your right to travel out and come home.

The bit people get caught out by. Your PR is safe while you're in Australia - but the moment you fly out with an expired travel facility, getting back in as a permanent resident is not automatic. A holiday, a family emergency, a work trip - any of these without a valid RRV puts your residence at risk. Don't fly without confirming your facility is valid.

155 or 157 - Which One?

Two subclasses, same basic job - different situations.

Subclass 155 - Longer Facility

Commonly grants a facility of up to five years. Generally requires you to have spent enough time in Australia as a resident - broadly around two years in the last five. If you've been living here, the 155 is usually the goal.

Subclass 157 - Shorter Facility

Commonly around twelve months. For people who don't meet the residence requirement for the 155, but have compelling reasons or substantial ties to Australia. If you've spent most of the last few years overseas, we'll build the case around your ties and reasons.

How We Help

A valid facility in place before you fly.

We start by checking where your travel facility actually stands - whether it's still valid, when it expires, and how much time you've spent in Australia. From there we work out which subclass fits and what facility length is realistic. If your time in Australia is thin, we help you build the ties and reasons that support a grant. The aim is simple: leave Australia knowing you can come home as a permanent resident.

Quick eligibility check - Subclass 155

You may be a candidate for the Subclass 155 Resident Return Visa if, broadly:

  • □ You currently hold, or last held, permanent residence.
  • □ You have spent broadly two years lawfully in Australia as a resident in the last five.
  • □ You want to leave and re-enter as a permanent resident.

Quick eligibility check - Subclass 157

The Subclass 157 Resident Return Visa may suit you if, broadly:

  • □ You hold, or last held, permanent residence.
  • □ You do not meet the two-year residence requirement for the 155.
  • □ You have compelling reasons or substantial business, employment, cultural or family ties to Australia.

Timing and fees. Resident Return Visas commonly process in around four to twelve weeks, though urgent and well-documented cases can move faster - timeframes depend on your circumstances and the completeness of your application, and are never guaranteed. On fees, there is a government application charge, plus our professional fee. We don't publish a fixed price because every case differs - fees depend on your circumstances and we quote in writing before any work begins. See how we quote.

Common Questions

Resident return visa questions.

No - your permanent residence itself doesn't expire, and you won't lose it just because the travel facility runs out. What you lose is the ability to re-enter Australia as a permanent resident after travelling overseas. If you leave with an expired travel facility, you can face difficulties returning in that status. The RRV restores that right.
The 155 gives a longer travel facility - commonly up to five years - and generally requires you to have spent enough time in Australia as a resident (broadly two years in the last five). The 157 gives a shorter facility, commonly around twelve months, and is for people who don't meet that residence requirement but have compelling reasons or ties to Australia.
Possibly, through the 157 with compelling circumstances or substantial ties to Australia. The less time you've spent in Australia, the more we need to demonstrate those ties - employment, family, investments, community connections. If the 155 residence requirement isn't met, we build the case around what does exist.
Yes - in fact this is one of the situations where an RRV application becomes urgent. If you're overseas with an expired travel facility and want to return as a permanent resident, you'll need to apply for a Resident Return Visa first. We can manage the application while you're offshore and aim to get it in place before you need to travel back.
As a guide, Resident Return Visas commonly process in around four to twelve weeks, and that range generally covers both the 155 and the 157. Well-documented and genuinely urgent cases can sometimes be decided faster. These are typical timeframes only, not a guarantee - the actual time depends on your circumstances, how complete the application is, and current departmental workloads. Once lodged, you can track progress through your ImmiAccount. We always aim to have a valid facility in place before you need to fly.
Holding permanent residence - not time spent here - is the base requirement, so it is possible to be considered even with very little or no time in Australia. With zero years of residence you won't meet the two-year test for the 155, so the realistic route is usually the Subclass 157 Resident Return Visa, which is decided on compelling reasons and substantial ties rather than residence. The case then rests entirely on the strength of those ties - employment, business, family, financial or cultural connections to Australia - which is exactly where careful preparation matters. We assess this candidly before you lodge.
A travel facility's validity runs on its own clock, independent of whether you use it. If you stay in Australia and never leave, you don't need to use the facility, and your permanent residence continues regardless. But the facility still counts down and will eventually expire. If you later decide to travel and want to return as a permanent resident, you would need a fresh Resident Return Visa at that point. In short, not travelling doesn't preserve the facility - it simply means you didn't need it while it lasted.
Each permanent resident generally needs their own Resident Return Visa - a travel facility attaches to the individual, so one grant doesn't cover the whole family. The good news is we can prepare and lodge applications for everyone together, so the household is dealt with in one coordinated process rather than piecemeal. Where dependent children are involved, we check each person's own residence and travel history, because eligibility can differ between family members even when you travelled as a unit.
A Resident Return Visa is temporary travel protection: it refreshes your right to leave and re-enter as a permanent resident, and it has to be renewed each time the facility runs out. Citizenship is permanent. Once you become an Australian citizen you no longer rely on a travel facility at all, so the cycle of renewing RRVs ends. For many people who meet the requirements - generally four years' lawful residence including around twelve months as a permanent resident, good character and the pledge of commitment - citizenship by conferral is the long-term answer to repeated RRV renewals. We can map both options for you at a status and citizenship review.
Related Help

Where to from here.

CitizenshipCitizenship by ConferralPermanent protection - citizenship never expires.Citizenship hubCitizenship OverviewAll citizenship and RRV pathways.

Written and reviewed by Brian Chan, Registered Migration Agent (MARN 2217857)

Visa Store Australia, Perth · Last reviewed June 2026 · Verify on the MARA register · General information only, not personal migration advice.

Planning to travel soon?

Check your travel facility before you book. If it's expired or close to expiring, we can move quickly to get the RRV in place.

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