Subclass 988 cease events: the 5-day and 30-day rules after signing off in 2026

Under the Department of Home Affairs' Maritime Crew visa (Subclass 988) official page, as at the August 2026 version, signing off your ship in Australia starts a five-day clock: within that period you must leave Australia, hold another visa, or sign on to another Maritime Crew visa (MCV) eligible ship. If you do none of those things, the visa ceases. The same page notes that a small extension can be given in limited circumstances, and that the period can be one specified by the Department of Home Affairs; the Migration Regulations 1994, as compiled on the Federal Register of Legislation, set out the cease events in clause 988.512, and the departmental policy guidance on that clause describes an authorised officer extending the sign-off period up to 30 days. One boundary matters throughout: you cannot apply for a new Subclass 988 while you are in Australia.

This article describes published rules for general reference only and is not advice about any individual's situation, so check the current official page and legislation, or get help from a registered migration agent, legal practitioner or exempt person, before relying on it.

What does signing off actually trigger?

Signing off is itself allowed. The official visa page lists, as a thing you can do with the visa, signing off your ship in Australia either to leave Australia or to join another MCV eligible ship. What the visa does not allow is staying on after sign-off without one of those outcomes.

So the practical question after sign-off is not "am I still on a valid visa" in the abstract — the visa can be valid for three years — but "which of the three exit routes am I inside of, and can I prove it." The clock runs from the day you sign off, and the default period is five days.

Which events make a Subclass 988 visa cease early?

A Maritime Crew visa lasts three years unless it is ceased. The official page lists the cease reasons, which cover far more than sign-off.

Cease event (official visa page)	What stops the clock
Working in Australia, or trying to enter, on a ship that is not MCV eligible	Being on an eligible ship only
Doing work in Australia that is not part of the ship's normal operational duties	Crew duties on your own ship only
Arriving by air and not signing on within five days of arrival, or before any other visa you hold ceases, whichever is longer	Signing on in time
Signing off and not leaving, not holding another visa, and not signing on to another eligible ship within five days (or a period specified by the Department)	Departure, another visa, or a new sign-on
Ship imported or brought into Australia for sale and not registered on the Australian International Shipping Register, or registered but registration ceased — and no departure, other suitable visa, or new sign-on within five days (or a period specified by the Department of Home Affairs)	Registration status of the ship plus one of the three outcomes
Leaving a vessel after arriving in Australia without being immigration-cleared	Being immigration-cleared
Holding another visa that is cancelled for a reason other than character grounds	The other visa staying in force
The Department determines it is undesirable for you to continue to hold a Maritime Crew visa	No action available to the holder

The policy guidance adds a separate mechanism: under subsection 38B(3) of the Migration Act 1958, an authorised officer may declare in writing that it is undesirable for a person to enter or remain, which terminates the visa.

How long do you get after signing off, and can it be extended?

The default is five days. The official visa page repeats the five-day figure twice and pairs it each time with the words "or a period specified by the Department of Home Affairs," which is the hook for a longer period.

On the length of that longer period, the two sources describe different levels of detail. The official page says only that if you cannot leave Australia within five days of signing off, "a small extension can be given in limited circumstances," and that it is important to contact the department while your Maritime Crew visa is still valid. The Migration Regulations 1994 clause 988.512, as set out in the departmental policy guidance, is more specific: an authorised officer may extend the period beyond five days up to a maximum of 30 days, on grounds such as health, safety, or being unable to obtain a ticket. Because the 30-day maximum does not appear on the official visa page, treat it as a provision to confirm against the current text of the regulations and the department's current published guidance rather than as a published service standard.

The procedural point is the one the official page makes explicitly: the request has to be made while the visa is still valid. An extension asked for after the visa has already ceased is being asked from outside the visa, not inside it.

What evidence should you hold after you sign off?

Assume a crew member signs off in an Australian port intending to join a different ship three weeks later. The risk is not the plan; it is being unable to show, on a given day, which of the three routes is live. Useful records in that situation are the ones the department itself asks for at application stage, applied to the post-sign-off period:

your sign-off record or discharge documentation, showing the date the five days started running;
a statement from the vessel's local shipping or handling agent for the next ship, showing your name, the employing company, the ship you will join, the port and date you expect to join it, and your date of arrival in Australia;
your employment contract or engagement letter for the next ship, showing the role is as crew;
an onward travel booking if the plan is departure rather than sign-on;
the grant details of any other Australian visa you hold, since holding another visa is itself one of the three routes;
your own VEVO record, which the department names as the way to show visa expiry, conditions and work entitlements.

A seafarer's identity document is not acceptable for travel; the official page says a seafarer's identity document is not acceptable, except that Chinese, Russian and Vietnamese seafarer passports are acceptable, and that if you hold both a seafarer's passport and a national passport you should use the national passport.

What if five days is not going to be enough?

Do these in order, and do all of them before the last day:

Check your visa status and conditions in VEVO.
Confirm the date you signed off, and count five days from it.
The extension request has to be made while the Maritime Crew visa is still valid, and only if the delay fits the limited circumstances described, since the official page states the request must be made while the visa is still valid.
Apply for another visa before the current visa ceases, if you intend to stay.
Sign on to another MCV eligible ship within the period, if that is the plan.
Leave Australia within the period if neither of the other two routes is in place.

Step 4 has a hard constraint attached. You cannot apply for a new Maritime Crew visa while you are in Australia; you must apply for another visa, and you need to do it before your current visa ceases. The official page's wording is that you must hold a valid visa for the whole time you are in Australia, and that if a change of plans means you cannot leave until after your current visa expires, you should apply for another visa before it expires.

What happens once the visa has ceased?

Once the visa ceases, the Maritime Crew visa is no longer available to you as a way back into lawful status onshore, because a fresh Subclass 988 cannot be applied for from inside Australia. You would need a different visa, and the official page's guidance on the preceding step still applies in reverse: the application has to be made before the old visa ceases, not after.

Holding another visa is also not automatically protective. The official page lists, as a cease event, holding another visa that is cancelled for a reason other than character grounds — so the status of any second visa you hold is part of the picture, not a separate one.

Separately, an authorised officer's declaration under subsection 38B(3) can bring the visa to an end regardless of the five-day arithmetic, and the policy guidance notes this power can be exercised onshore by Australian Border Force officers or offshore by the Maritime Global Processing Centre.

Does your family's visa cease at the same time?

Family members can hold Maritime Crew visas if they travel on the same ship with the master's permission, and each must lodge a separate application. Their visas cease if yours ceases, if they enter Australia on a ship without you and hold no valid visa other than the Maritime Crew visa, or if they stop travelling with you and do not leave Australia or get another visa. Family members are not permitted to work in Australia on this visa.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many days do I have after signing off my ship in Australia?

Five days by default, counted from signing off, within which you must leave Australia, hold another visa, or sign on to another MCV eligible ship. The period can also be one specified by the Department of Home Affairs, and the official page says a small extension can be given in limited circumstances.

Can the five days be extended to 30 days?

The Migration Regulations 1994 clause 988.512, as set out in departmental policy guidance, allows an authorised officer to extend the period up to a maximum of 30 days for reasons such as health, safety or inability to obtain a ticket. The official visa page does not publish the 30-day figure; it refers only to a small extension in limited circumstances, so confirm the current provision in the legislation and current guidance.

When do I have to ask for the extension?

While your Maritime Crew visa is still valid. The official page states it is important to contact the department while the visa is still valid to ask for an extension, which means the request cannot wait until after the cease date has passed.

Can I apply for a new Subclass 988 after signing off, from inside Australia?

No. The official page states you cannot apply for a Maritime Crew visa while you are in Australia, and that you must apply for another visa, before your current visa ceases.

Does arriving by air start the same five-day clock?

A related one, but not identical: the visa ceases if you arrive in Australia by air and do not sign on to your ship within five days of arrival or before any other visa you hold ceases, whichever is longer. You also cannot fly into Australia holding only a Maritime Crew visa.

What happens to my family if my visa ceases?

Their Maritime Crew visa ceases as well if yours ceases. Their visa also ceases if they stop travelling with you and do not leave Australia or obtain another visa, and they cannot work in Australia on this visa.

Does it cost anything to hold or replace this visa?

The official page lists the cost of the Maritime Crew visa as free. That relates to the visa application charge; it does not change the requirement to hold a valid visa at all times or the restriction on applying for a new one onshore.