How to apply for an Australian ETA 601

What the listing says, and what it costs

The Department of Home Affairs is the Australian government department that publishes immigration and citizenship information, including its visa listings, on its website. [2] The ETA entry is titled Electronic Travel Authority 601 in that listing. [1]

Length of stay. The Department's ETA page describes the stay as "up to 3 months at a time". [1]

Cost. A service charge of AUD20 applies to use of the Australian ETA app, and the Department states that no other charge is payable for an ETA. [1]

Currency of the information. The ETA page itself carries a last-updated date of 12 October 2026, so the charge and stay figures above describe what the Department published on that date, as checked here on 18 October 2026. [1]

Applying and getting a result

The Department's ETA page refers applicants to an Australian ETA app, for which the AUD20 service charge applies. [1]

How quickly you hear back. The Department says that in most cases it will tell you the result of your ETA application immediately. [1] The same page notes that an application may take longer if the application process is not completed correctly or if the Department requires further information. [1] An immediate answer is therefore the common outcome rather than a guarantee, and a delayed answer is a described possibility rather than a sign that something has gone wrong. [1]

What the result means. The Department frames the outcome as a decision to grant the ETA, and it advises applicants not to make travel arrangements until the ETA is granted. [1] For how travel authorisations compare with visas and visa-free travel in other countries, see travel authorisation systems compared and the glossary entry on entry permission types.

After a grant: stay and booking timing

Once an ETA is granted, the stay the Department publishes for it is up to 3 months at a time. [1]

The one timing rule the Department does state is a suggestion rather than a guarantee: do not make travel arrangements until the ETA is granted. [1] Read alongside the note that some applications take longer than the usual immediate answer, that suggestion means bookings made before a grant carry the risk of a delay you cannot plan around. [1]

Passports. General questions about passport validity and entry checks are covered separately in passport validity and entry check.

Limits and questions the sources leave open

• Eligibility.
• Family and group applications.
• When another visa is needed.
• Scope of this page. This guide covers the ETA listing only [1]; other Australian visa categories are outside its scope and are not described here.
• Change over time. Charges and stay conditions are published by the Department and can be revised; the figures here reflect the ETA page as checked on 18 October 2026, with the page's own last-updated date of 12 October 2026. [1]

Related pages

Travel authorisation systems compared, entry permission types, passport validity and entry check, and the full glossary.

Sources

Sources accessed on 18 October 2026. Other Australian visa categories are not covered here, and neither are the travel authorisation schemes of any other country.

1. Department of Home Affairs — Electronic Travel Authority 601 visa listing, checked 18 October 2026
2. Department of Home Affairs — department home page, checked 18 October 2026