Form 1419: Visitor Visa — Tourist Stream Application

What Form 1419 is

Form 1419 is the paper application form for a Visitor visa (subclass 600) in the Tourist stream — the standard visitor visa category for people coming to Australia for tourism, to visit family or friends, or for short business activities like attending a conference. It sits alongside the visa's own eligibility criteria (sufficient funds, genuine temporary stay intention, health and character requirements) rather than replacing them.

The form itself is administrative — it collects the applicant's personal details, travel history, purpose of visit, and supporting information the Department needs to assess a subclass 600 Tourist stream application.

Do you actually need Form 1419, or can you apply online?

For most people, the answer is: you don't need this form at all. The subclass 600 Tourist stream is designed as an online application through ImmiAccount, and that's the default and most efficient pathway for the great majority of applicants regardless of nationality.

Form 1419 is used only where a Tourist stream application is made using a paper form in circumstances specifically prescribed by a legislative instrument — a narrower, exception-based pathway rather than an alternative most applicants should choose by preference. If you're not sure whether your situation falls into that narrower category, the safest starting point is to check ImmiAccount's available services for your circumstances before assuming you need to complete and post a paper form.

Form 1419 vs Form 1418

Both forms sit under the subclass 600 visitor visa, but they cover different streams with different underlying requirements. Form 1419 is for the Tourist stream — a self-funded visit with no formal sponsor involved. Form 1418 is for the Sponsored Family stream, which involves an eligible sponsor (typically an Australian citizen, permanent resident, or eligible New Zealand citizen relative) being approved to support the applicant's visit.

Picking the wrong stream matters because the underlying assessment criteria differ — a Tourist stream application assessed on the applicant's own funds and circumstances is a different exercise to a Sponsored Family stream application built around an approved sponsor. See our dedicated Form 1418 guide for the sponsored pathway.

How to lodge Form 1419

Form 1419 is free to download from the Department of Home Affairs form-listing page — the visa application charge is separate and applies regardless of whether you lodge online or on paper. Always use the current version of the form rather than an older saved copy.

Where a paper application genuinely applies to your circumstances, the completed form and supporting documents (passport, evidence of funds, travel itinerary, and any other requested evidence) are lodged by post or in person as directed on the form or by the relevant office. Keep copies of everything submitted.

What the online Tourist stream application asks for instead

For the online pathway that most applicants use, ImmiAccount steps through broadly the same categories of information Form 1419 would otherwise capture — personal and passport details, travel history, purpose and length of stay, and evidence of financial capacity to support the visit — but structured as an online questionnaire with document upload rather than a static PDF.

The practical advantage of the online pathway, where it's available to you, is faster lodgement confirmation and the ability to track the application's status directly in ImmiAccount, rather than relying on postal correspondence.

Common mistakes

The most common issue is applicants assuming a paper Form 1419 is compulsory when the online pathway was available and would have been faster — printing, completing, and posting a form that wasn't actually required for their circumstances. The reverse also happens: someone in one of the narrower paper-application circumstances trying to force an online application that isn't actually open to them.

Other recurring problems: using an outdated form version, incomplete evidence of funds or travel purpose, and not clearly stating whether the intended activity fits the Tourist stream at all — some business-related visits, for example, sit under a different visitor visa stream with its own requirements.

When a MARA agent is worth involving

A straightforward tourist visit with a clean travel history is something most applicants handle themselves, whether online or on paper. It's worth getting advice where your circumstances are more complicated — a prior visa refusal or overstay anywhere, an unclear purpose of visit that could be read as inconsistent with a genuine temporary stay, or uncertainty about which visitor visa stream actually fits what you're planning to do in Australia.

A MARA-registered agent can help make sure the application — online or on paper — is framed correctly and complete the first time. Migratio lets you describe your situation once and compare consultation fees from MARA-registered agents who handle your visa type (comparing is free; consults are typically $150–$300 and you pay only if you book).

What is Form 1419 for?

Form 1419 is the paper application form for a Visitor visa (subclass 600), Tourist stream — the standard visitor visa category for tourism, visiting family or friends, or short business activities.

Do I have to use Form 1419, or can I apply for a visitor visa online?

Most Tourist stream applicants apply online through ImmiAccount rather than using Form 1419. The paper form is used only in narrower circumstances prescribed by a legislative instrument, not as a general alternative to the online pathway.

What's the difference between Form 1419 and Form 1418?

Form 1419 covers the Tourist stream — a self-funded visit with no sponsor. Form 1418 covers the Sponsored Family stream, which involves an eligible sponsor in Australia being approved to support the applicant's visit.

Is Form 1419 free?

The form itself is free to download. The separate visa application charge for the subclass 600 visa still applies regardless of whether you apply online or on paper.

How do I know if I need to apply on paper instead of online?

Check ImmiAccount's available services for your circumstances first. Paper applications using Form 1419 apply only where specifically prescribed by a legislative instrument, not as a general choice.