Australia

Australia has no digital nomad visa. Remote workers choose between visitor visas for shorter stays, working holiday visas if their age and passport qualify, and skilled or employer-sponsored visas for a longer move. The one investor route covered on this site, the Significant Investor visa, no longer takes new applicants.

Short stays

Visa-free entry: None: every visitor except New Zealand citizens needs a visa before travel. The ETA (subclass 601) and the free eVisitor (subclass 651) allow stays of up to 3 months per visit within 12 months.

• Electronic Travel Authority (subclass 601): for passport holders from a list of eligible countries and regions who live outside Australia. It can only be requested through the Australian ETA app, which takes a live facial image.
• eVisitor (subclass 651): free, for passport holders from a number of European countries. It cannot be extended.
• Visitor visa (subclass 600): open to all nationalities, for tourism or business visits, with an application fee. Tourism Australia says a stay of up to three months is generally granted and up to 12 months in certain circumstances. An ETA holder already in Australia can apply for one to stay longer.

Visitor visas are for tourism and business visits. Anyone planning to keep working for a foreign employer or clients during a long stay should read the conditions on the grant notice and check Home Affairs guidance first.

Longer stays

Working holiday visas (subclasses 417 and 462) let people aged under 30, or 35 in some cases, who hold a passport from a participating country travel and work in Australia. They are valid for one year, or up to three years if the holder meets certain conditions.

Investors: the subclass 188 Significant Investor stream stopped taking new applications on July 31, 2024. Its page now serves current holders moving toward the permanent subclass 888 visa. Skilled and employer-sponsored visas are listed by the Department of Home Affairs.

Rent drives the budget. These figures come from Numbeo's crowd-sourced data, updated in September 2026, and are converted at about $0.70 per Australian dollar (Sept. 30, 2026 rate). Treat them as rough guides.

• Sydney: a one-bedroom apartment runs about A$3,670 a month in the center and A$2,550 outside it, and a single person's other costs about A$1,790. A central setup comes to about A$5,460, or $3,820.
• Melbourne: about A$2,440 for a central one-bedroom and A$1,750 in other costs, roughly A$4,180 or $2,920 a month (Numbeo, September 2026).
• Brisbane: about A$2,820 for a central one-bedroom and A$1,460 in other costs, roughly A$4,280 or $2,990 (Numbeo, September 2026).
• Perth: about A$2,740 for a central one-bedroom and A$1,650 in other costs, roughly A$4,400 or $3,070 (Numbeo, September 2026).

Taking the midpoint between central and outer rents, a single remote worker in Sydney spends about A$4,900 a month, or $3,420. On the same basis Melbourne comes to about A$3,970 ($2,770), Brisbane about A$3,860 ($2,700) and Perth about A$4,180 ($2,920).

Sydney is the most expensive of the four by a wide margin, almost entirely because of rent. Living outside the center lowers rent in every city, and short furnished lets usually cost more than these long-term averages.

Most remote workers base themselves in one of the big state capitals, where coworking, transport and flights are easiest.

• Sydney: the largest city and main business hub, with harbor and beach neighborhoods. It has the highest rents of the big cities in Numbeo's data, so it suits people who want the biggest professional scene and can pay for it.
• Melbourne: known for its cafe, arts and food culture, with the lowest central rents of the four big cities in Numbeo's September 2026 data. The weather is cooler and more changeable than in the north.
• Brisbane: a subtropical river city within reach of the Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast beaches. Suits people who want warm weather with big-city services.
• Perth: the west coast capital, with long beaches and a time zone shared with much of Southeast Asia. It is far from the east coast cities, which suits people working with Asian clients more than Australian ones.
• Hobart: Tasmania's small capital, a quieter base close to mountains and wilderness for people who don't need a big city.

The Speedtest Global Index put Australia's median fixed broadband speed at 174 Mbps and its median mobile speed at 121 Mbps in August 2026. Mobile data is fast enough to serve as a backup connection in the cities.

Speeds depend on the connection type at each address, so it pays to ask a host what plan the apartment has before booking a long stay. Outside the state capitals and large regional towns, fixed-line options thin out and mobile coverage can drop away between towns.

Coworking is concentrated in the central business districts and inner suburbs of Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth, with smaller scenes in places such as Adelaide, Hobart and the Gold Coast. Day passes, hot desks and dedicated desks are the usual options, and prices vary by operator and city.

Australia has no special tax regime for remote workers or visitors. Tax residency is decided by the Australian Taxation Office's statutory tests, not by visa type.

The test that most often catches long stays is the day-count test: a person who spends more than half of the income year (July 1 to June 30) in Australia, roughly 183 days, is a resident unless their usual home is outside Australia and they do not intend to take up residence. The other three tests look at where a person ordinarily resides, their domicile and membership of certain Commonwealth superannuation funds.

Days alone do not settle it. The ATO's ruling TR 2023/1 says people on an extended holiday are not treated as residents merely because of the number of days they spend in Australia. The ruling looks at the whole pattern of a person's life in Australia.

Before a long stay, nomads should check:

• whether the stay will cross half of an Australian income year;
• how their home country taxes income earned while abroad;
• whether a tax treaty between Australia and their home country applies.

The ATO's residency guidance is the place to confirm a specific case, ideally with a qualified tax adviser.

• Arrival: every visitor except New Zealand citizens needs a visa before flying, and an approved visa is linked to the passport electronically rather than stamped in it. Apply well before the travel date, since incomplete applications slow processing.
• Health insurance: Tourism Australia says visitors must keep health insurance for the length of their stay. Australia has reciprocal health care agreements with 11 countries that cover medically necessary care for visitors from those countries; everyone else relies on private cover.
• SIM and eSIM: prepaid SIMs and eSIMs are easy to buy at airports and in city stores. Coverage outside the cities differs a lot between networks, so check the network's coverage map before a road trip.
• Banking: the large banks open accounts for new arrivals, usually with an in-person identity check. Many remote workers simply use a multi-currency account and card from home for the first months.
• Safety: Australia is generally safe for visitors. The main hazards are natural: strong sun, rip currents and bushfire seasons. Swim at patrolled beaches between the red and yellow flags. The emergency number is 000.
• Biosecurity: Australia checks incoming food, plant and animal products closely. Declare them on arrival.