Jump to content

Undertake business on holiday visa


can1983

Recommended Posts

A while back we advertised at work for an engineer and we got an application for a guy who said he was currently in Brisbane on a holiday visa working for his company back in Italy.

 

At the time everyone in the office concluded that what he was doing was completely illegal

 

But now I'm reading the website and a 600 group tourist visa can be issued for a year and allows somebody to conduct business activities so long as it isn't for an australian company and you aren't paid locally.

 

I'm amazed you can do this - has anyone experienced this before?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The actual quote is

 

"What this visa lets you do

This visa lets you travel to Australia to:

 

have a holiday or visit family and friends in Australia

study in Australia for up to three months

engage in business activities while in Australia, provided you:

do not work for or provide services to a business or organisation in Australia

do not sell goods or services to the public." http://www.immi.gov.au/visas/visitor/600/

 

It also says the visa might be suitable for negotiating or attending a conference. Taken together, I would read that as you can come over to make a sale, but not to do the work resulting from that sale.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The actual quote is

 

"What this visa lets you do

This visa lets you travel to Australia to:

 

have a holiday or visit family and friends in Australia

study in Australia for up to three months

engage in business activities while in Australia, provided you:

do not work for or provide services to a business or organisation in Australia

do not sell goods or services to the public." http://www.immi.gov.au/visas/visitor/600/

 

It also says the visa might be suitable for negotiating or attending a conference. Taken together, I would read that as you can come over to make a sale, but not to do the work resulting from that sale.

 

Yes, i was reading that but if the company is european, you are paid in euros, and transfer the euros out here to pay for living costs i think short term you are not breaking either of thse conditions

 

I dont agree with it being allowed but when the guy said what he was doing alarm bells rang 'illegal' and 'tax evasion' but there really is nothing there that says 'internet working' so to speak is in breach of the visa?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

There is a business visa that allows visitors to complete incidental work while here on holiday.

 

Incidental is the odd meeting or attending conferences etc.

 

We had someone who was on a world wide tour who extended their stay so they could attend some preliminary design meetings.

 

They had to be offshore while this was concluded (the visa). But it from memory was only a few hundred dollars.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest GeorgeD

The 600 is a relatively new visa which has replaced several other previously available visas. Try not to think of it as being the same as the old "Tourist Visa". Whilst it did replace the 676 tourist visa, it also replaces a few others too, so has some of their rights/conditions including limited work rights.

 

You aren't allowed to work for or provide services to an Australian Business while In Australia on this visa...but I believe if he is working for a European Company providing services in Europe, then that should be OK...for example...If he was on holiday but opened his work email, or accessed his work's network and did a quote for a customer in Europe then that wouldn't be a breach. Is actually carrying out work any different, for example, web development, writing reports, etc? I don't know He is allowed to enquire about employment too (it specifically says that), so all in, it's probably not illegal.

 

Are you sure its the 600 visa? Is it defintely not the Working Holiday Visa? He would be allowed to work in Oz if he wanted in that case...many people call that a holiday visa...

 

As for tax evasion, he's not an Australian Premanent Resident or Citizen so doesn't need to declare his income overseas, he probably isn't resident for tax purposes, and his income is all overseas and being taxed overseas. There is absolutely every chance that he isn't breaking any tax laws.

 

If you are worried about it, feel free to report him. If you have a genuine concern, then do that and don't worry about it. DIAC willd decide if he has broken any visa conditions

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The 600 is a relatively new visa which has replaced several other previously available visas. Try not to think of it as being the same as the old "Tourist Visa". Whilst it did replace the 676 tourist visa, it also replaces a few others too, so has some of their rights/conditions including limited work rights.

 

You aren't allowed to work for or provide services to an Australian Business while In Australia on this visa...but I believe if he is working for a European Company providing services in Europe, then that should be OK...for example...If he was on holiday but opened his work email, or accessed his work's network and did a quote for a customer in Europe then that wouldn't be a breach. Is actually carrying out work any different, for example, web development, writing reports, etc? I don't know He is allowed to enquire about employment too (it specifically says that), so all in, it's probably not illegal.

 

Are you sure its the 600 visa? Is it defintely not teh Workign Holiday Visa? He would be allowed to work in Oz if he wanted in that case...many people call that a holiday visa...

 

As for tax evasion, he's not an Australian Premanent Resident or Citizen so doesn't need to declare his income overseas, he probably isn't resident for tax purposes, and his inclome is all overseas and being taxed overseas. There is absolutely every chance that he isn't breaking any tax laws.

 

If you are worried about it, feel free to report him. If you have a genuine concern, then do that and don't worry about it. DIAC willd decide if he ahs broken any visa conditions

 

Certainly wouldn't report him it's none of my business TBH, but i've had the chance to do consulting work (report writing) remotely before from UK companies i used to work for and always turned it down because i'm here on a 457 and only one employer can employ me (so i thought)

 

Also of course uk pounds have been worth considerably less than they used to for the past few years and uk payrates are unattractive if you are in Oz!

 

He may not have been on a 600, not sure when it came in but he was 32 so couldn;t have been a WHV

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yep, there are a few people this has applied to.

 

Well I'm not sure about that, he was a few months from his 33rd birthday. You have to apply before you turn 31, then you might be able to wait 6 months before entering Oz meaning you are 31 1/2 and then spend one year here so 32 1/2

 

to my knowledge you can't apply 1 day before your 31st birthday and wait a year before coming over

Link to comment
Share on other sites

A while back we advertised at work for an engineer and we got an application for a guy who said he was currently in Brisbane on a holiday visa working for his company back in Italy.

 

At the time everyone in the office concluded that what he was doing was completely illegal

Who knows whether he had found a way to do what he wanted on his visa? But a holiday visa would not have let him forw for your company as an engineer. He would have had to apply for a new visa to do that.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...