All about Parent Visas

• You are currently outside Australia
• You have a child who currently lives in Australia
• You wish to become a permanent Australian resident
• a parent must have a sponsor
• a parent must be able to meet the balance of family test requirements
• a parent must must meet health and character requirements
• Could take up to 30 years for processing

• You are currently outside of Australia
• You have a child who is currently in Australia
• You want to reside in Australia as a temporary resident for up to 2 years
• You must be prepared to pay a higher visa application charge for quicker processing
• In order to apply for the Contributory Parent (Temporary) Visa (subclass 173), a parent must:
• Be able to meet the requirements for health and character
• Have a sponsor
• Can meet the balance of family test requirements

• This is a permanent visa.
• Processing times: 6-8 years
• stay in Australia indefinitely as a permanent resident and sponsor eligible relatives to come to Australia
• travel to and from Australia for 5 years before you need a Resident Return visa
• work and study in Australia

You must:

• be sponsored by an eligible Australian citizen, permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen
• meet the balance-of-family test plus our character and health requirement
• have an Assurance of Support

Sponsored Parent (Temporary) visa applicants must:

• be sponsored by a person who is an approved parent sponsor
• be at least 18 years of age
• be outside Australia (unless invited in writing to apply by the Department), for at least 90 days if the applicant holds or has previously held a Sponsored Parent (Temporary) visa
• be an Australian citizen/permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen who has been usually resident in Australia for four years
• provide evidence of health insurance
• not have an outstanding public health debt (unless appropriate arrangements have been made to repay the debt)
• satisfy health, character, and national security requirements.
• sponsors will need to have a taxable income of at least $83,454.80
• Unlike permanent Parent visas, there is no Balance of Family Test requirement for this visa, meaning a visa applicant is not required to have more than half of their children residing in Australia.

The visa application charge is:

• $5,090 for a visa of up to three years’ duration; or
• $10,180 for a visa of up to five years’ duration.

• Processing times: The department currently doesn't provide processing times, but it may be over 20 years with current estimations
• Must meet the age requirement at the time of application
• You must be in Australia at the time of applying for this visa
• If you are inside Australia you must have no restrictions to apply for this visa
• This visa can only be granted if you are inside Australia at the time of the decision (they are concessions due to covid, please seek professional advice)
• Health and character requirements for all applicants are required as requested
• An assurance of support is required
• A Bridging visa is available to remain in Australia.

• You are currently in Australia
• You have a child currently residing in Australia
• You wish to live in Australia in Australia as a temporary resident for up to 2 years
• You meet the age requirements
• You are prepared to pay a higher amount for visa application charges so you can have quicker processing
• In order to apply a parent must:
• Currently, meet the age requirements
• Can meet the balance of family test
• Has an approved sponsor (child)

• You are currently in Australia
• You have a child currently residing in Australia
• You wish to become an Australian permanent resident
• You currently meet the age requirements
• You are prepared to pay a larger sum for your visa application charges
• In order to apply for the Contributory Aged Parent Visa (subclass 864), a parent must:
• Have a sponsor (their child most likely)
• Meet the requirement for age
• Can meet the balance of family test
• Is able to prove health and character requirements
• Can obtain an assurance of support

An assurance of support will be required for any applicants applying for a permanent Parent category visa. This assurance is a legal commitment from an individual or organisation stating that they will give you financial support so you do not have to solely rely on social security payments. This assurance will include you and anyone else included in your visa application (such as, family members).

This can be your sponsor (person or organisation) or someone else currently an Australian citizen, permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen. A joint assurance of support can be given, with up to three people included to assist you in your family migration to Australia.

The age requirement was mentioned in some of the Parent category visas above, so let’s look at what the age requirement will be.

This requirement to be an “Aged Parent” is only needed for the main applicant for an onshore parent category visa. An “Aged Parent” is one who is old enough to qualify for an Australian age pension. To apply for a parent visa which includes the word “Aged” in the title, only one parent has to meet the age requirement.

PLEASE NOTE: This does not mean you will be granted the age pension in Australia if you are an aged parent. There will be a waiting period of 10 years before you can receive the pension (unless there is a reciprocal agreement with another country which will pay you the pension). This period of 10 years will continue even if you become an Australian citizen.