Commonwealth Consolidated Acts Commonwealth Consolidated Acts(1) Subject to this section, a person who, on or after the commencement of this subsection:
(a) enters Australia; or
(b) becomes the holder of a permanent visa; or
(e) becomes the holder of a visa that is in a class of visas determined by the Minister, by legislative instrument, for the purposes of this paragraph;
is subject to a newly arrived resident's waiting period.
(2) Subject to this section, if, immediately before the commencement of this subsection, a person was the holder of a visa that is in a class of visas determined by the Minister for the purposes of this subsection, the person is subject to a newly arrived resident's waiting period.
(3) If:
(a) a person is subject to a newly arrived resident's waiting period; and
(b) before, on or after the commencement of this subsection, the person applies for a visa that is in a class of visas determined by the Minister, by legislative instrument, for the purposes of this paragraph;
the waiting period:
(c) starts on the day on which the person applied for that visa; and
(d) ends when the person has been in Australia for a period of, or periods totalling, 208 weeks after that day.
(4) If:
(a) a person is subject to a newly arrived resident's waiting period; and
(b) before, on or after the commencement of this subsection, the person was the holder of a visa that is in a class of visas determined by the Minister, by legislative instrument, for the purposes of this paragraph;
the period:
(c) starts on the day on which the person applied for that visa; and
(d) ends when the person has been in Australia for a period of, or periods totalling, 208 weeks after that day.
(5) If:
(a) a person is subject to a newly arrived resident's waiting period; and
(b) neither subsection (3) nor (4) apply to the person;
the waiting period starts on the day on which the person:
(c) first entered Australia; or
(d) becomes the holder of a permanent visa;
whichever occurs last, and ends on the day after the person has been in Australia for a period of, or periods totalling, 208 weeks after that day.
(6) Neither subsection (1) nor (2) applies to a person if the person holds, or was the former holder of, a visa in a class of visas determined by the Minister, by legislative instrument, for the purposes of this subsection.
(7) Neither subsection (1) nor (2) apply to a person if the person, in the Secretary's opinion, has suffered a substantial change in circumstances beyond the person's control after the person first entered Australia.
Note: For permanent visa see subsection 7(1).
(8) Neither subsection (1) nor (2) applies to a person if:
(a) the person is a refugee, or a former refugee, at the time the person made the claim for a special benefit; or
(b) the following apply:
(i) before the person made the claim for a special benefit, the person was a family member of another person at the time the other person became a refugee;
(ii) the person is a family member of that other person at the time the person made the claim for a special benefit or, if that other person has died, the person was a family member of that other person immediately before that other person died; or
(c) the person is an Australian citizen at the time the person made the claim for a special benefit.
(9) For the purposes of subsection (8):
(a) family member has the meaning given by subsection 7(6D); and
(b) former refugee has the meaning given by subsection 7(1); and
(c) refugee has the meaning given by subsection 7(6B).