This article introduces the concept of ‘visa journeys’ to explore the lived experiences of first-generation migrants in Australia as they navigate restrictive migration policies and precarious legal statuses. While scholarship on migration journeys has traditionally been framed around spatial mobility, this article shifts attention to transitions between visas and migration statuses, arguing that it constitutes a central aspect of contemporary migration trajectories. Drawing on ethnographic data, it examines how migrants strategise and cope with the uncertainties of navigating visa categories, highlighting the interaction between structural constraints and individual agency. Framing visa journeys within the concept of welfare state bordering, the article explores how legal status mediates access to essential services, and how ‘permanent temporariness’ is produced by restrictive policies. This article aims to contribute to wider debates on migration governance, migration temporalities, precarious status, and social inclusion. While grounded in the Australian context, the framing of visa journeys offers a perspective for understanding and comparing migration experiences globally.