Do Skilled and Employer-Sponsored Applicants Get Work Rights on Bridging Visa A (010)? (2026)
How work rights on a Bridging visa A (subclass 010) usually apply to 189, 190, 491, 186 and 482 applicants, and what to check.
For most people waiting on a skilled or employer-sponsored outcome — subclass 189, 190, 491, 494, 186 or 187 — a Bridging visa A (subclass 010) granted in association with that application is granted without a work-prevention condition, so work is permitted from the moment the BVA is in effect. The subclass-level position comes from the Department of Home Affairs' PAM3 procedural guidance on subclass 010 and the Migration Regulations 1994; the Department's "Bridging visa A (BVA) (Subclass 010)" page, as at the August 2026 official page, is explicit that whether you may work depends on the conditions attached to your BVA and that your grant letter sets those conditions out. One exception matters for temporary skilled holders: where the last held visa was a 482 or 457, condition 8107 (work limitation) or condition 8501 (health insurance) is attached to the BVA only if it was attached to that last held visa. This article is general information about published rules rather than personalised advice — your grant letter, your VEVO record and the current official pages are what bind you, and anything turning on your own circumstances should be checked against those, or with a registered migration agent or legal practitioner.
Which skilled and employer-sponsored subclasses are treated as "no condition" cases?
The Department's subclass 010 guidance records that applicants for the following substantive visas are granted a BVA with no conditions attached. "No conditions" is the visa-condition sense of the term: nothing on the BVA stops you from working.
| Substantive visa applied for | Position recorded for the associated BVA |
|---|---|
| Skilled Independent (subclass 189) | No condition |
| Skilled Nominated (subclass 190) | No condition |
| Skilled Regional (Provisional) (subclass 489) | No condition |
| Skilled Regional (subclass 887) | No condition |
| Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) (subclass 491) | No condition |
| Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (Provisional) (subclass 494) | No condition |
| Employer Nomination Scheme (subclass 186) | No condition |
| Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme (subclass 187) | No condition |
| Temporary Skill Shortage (subclass 482) | No condition, except that 8107 or 8501 is attached if it was on the last held visa |
| Temporary Work (Skilled) (subclass 457) | As for 482 |
The same guidance lists business and family subclasses in the same condition-free group, which sit outside the scope of this article. Because this is procedural guidance rather than the public visa page, treat it as the general expectation for these subclasses and as subject to the current official publication — the letter you are issued still governs.
Why do the grant letter and VEVO decide your actual answer?
Conditions are attached to a BVA, not to a subclass in the abstract. The Department's page states that you might be allowed to work depending on the visa conditions that apply to your BVA, that your grant letter tells you about those conditions, and that VEVO shows whether you have work restrictions.
Two timing points follow from that. If you still hold a substantive visa when the BVA is granted, you must keep complying with that substantive visa's conditions; the BVA's conditions only apply once the substantive visa ceases. And a BVA does not support return travel: if you leave Australia while it is in effect, the BVA ceases on departure.
If you held a 482 or 457, does 8107 or 8501 carry over?
Yes. The subclass 010 guidance states that where the last held visa carried condition 8107 (a work limitation) or condition 8501 (health insurance), the BVA must carry the same condition. That is why a 482 or 457 holder should not read the "no condition" listing as a clean slate.
Assume an applicant whose 482 ceases when the sponsoring business closes, and who then holds a BVA while a subclass 186 nomination is decided. The BVA keeps lawful status, and the carried 8107 still frames what work is permissible; whether a new employer is permissible, and on what terms, is determined by the condition itself as recorded in VEVO and explained in the Department's published guidance.
Can a no-work condition still appear on a skilled applicant's BVA?
It can, through a different route. Clause 010.611(4) of the Migration Regulations 1994 provides that, in cases not covered by the specific limbs, the BVA carries the conditions attached to the applicant's previous Bridging visa A or Bridging visa B. The conditions listed in that context include 8101, 8102, 8103, 8104, 8105, 8107, 8108, 8111, 8112, 8114, 8115, 8539, 8547, 8549, 8607 and 8608.
Assume an applicant who earlier held a BVA with 8101 (no work) while a different application was decided, and later lodges a skilled application. Unless their circumstances fall within the subclass-based limb or another limb of clause 010.611, the later BVA can inherit that earlier restriction. Reading VEVO before you start or stop work is what separates this from a condition breach.
What if a BVA does restrict work — how is the restriction lifted?
The Department's page sets out one mechanism. A person whose BVA does not allow work, or allows it only with restrictions, can apply for another BVA that lets them work; to be considered, they will usually have to demonstrate financial hardship. The Department assesses the circumstances behind the claim.
Two limits apply. If the requirements for work are not met but the person is still eligible for a BVA, a new BVA is granted with the same work-prevention or work-restriction condition as before. And no new work-permitting BVA can be granted where the current BVA restricts work and either that BVA was granted because the applicant applied for judicial review of the substantive visa decision, or the applicant has applied for a protection visa.
At the regulation level, clause 010.211(4) covers a person who made, in Australia, a valid application for a substantive visa while holding a substantive visa, holds a BVA or BVB granted in relation to that application carrying conditions such as 8101 or 8102, has not applied for a protection visa, and satisfies the Minister that there is a compelling need to work; clause 010.611(1) then provides for no conditions. Procedurally, a BVA is applied for in the same way as the substantive visa — through ImmiAccount where the substantive application was lodged online, and by webform (Form 1005) where it was lodged on paper or where review has been applied for — and the applicant must be in Australia when the application is lodged and when it is decided. The visa is free.
What else changes while the BVA is in effect?
A BVA runs until the substantive visa application is finally determined, or, where it is associated with judicial proceedings, until those proceedings are complete. For BVAs granted on or after 19 November 2016, the visa ceases 35 calendar days after a refusal decision or a related Administrative Appeals Tribunal decision, or after a determination that the application or review application is invalid, or after withdrawal of the substantive or review application. It ceases 28 calendar days after a judicial review body upholds the refusal, or after the related judicial review application is withdrawn. For BVAs granted before that date, the general cease period recorded is 28 days after the relevant notification. VEVO shows the exact date once an outcome is notified.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do subclass 189 and 190 applicants need to apply separately for work rights on a BVA?
No separate application is needed where the BVA is granted without work-restrictive conditions, which is the position recorded for those subclasses in the Department's subclass 010 guidance. The grant letter and VEVO confirm the conditions actually imposed, and every holder must comply with the conditions on the visa.
I am on a 482 and my job has ended — can I work for a new employer on the BVA?
Where the last held visa carried 8107, that condition is attached to the BVA as well. Whether work for a different employer is permitted depends on the terms of the condition as recorded in VEVO and on the Department's published explanation of it, not on the subclass alone.
Does 8501 on a BVA mean I must keep health cover?
Condition 8501 is a health-insurance condition and is carried onto the BVA where it was on the last held visa. The condition itself sets out what cover must be maintained, and VEVO records whether it has been imposed on your visa.
My BVA shows 8101 — how can the restriction be removed?
The Department's page describes applying for another BVA that permits work, which usually requires demonstrating financial hardship. If the hardship claim is not accepted, the new BVA is issued with the same work-prevention condition; and the route is unavailable where the current BVA was granted for judicial review purposes or the applicant has applied for a protection visa.
Is there a fee for a BVA or for a further BVA with work rights?
The visa is recorded as free on the Department's subclass 010 page. No charge is listed there for a further BVA sought on hardship grounds.
How long can I keep working after a refusal decision?
For a BVA granted on or after 19 November 2016, the visa ceases 35 calendar days after the refusal or the related AAT decision, and 28 calendar days after a judicial review body upholds the refusal. VEVO gives the exact cease date once the outcome is notified.
Can I travel overseas and return on the BVA?
No. A BVA does not support return travel, and a BVA that is in effect ceases on departure from Australia. Maintaining the ability to travel and return while the substantive application is processed requires being granted a Bridging visa B before leaving.