Parent Visa

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The Subclass 870 visa is a temporary visa that grants parents of Australian citizens, Australian permanent residents, or eligible New Zealand citizens the opportunity to visit Australia for periods of up to three (3) or five (5) years. This visa allows parents to extend their stay in Australia for up to five years consecutively without the need to depart, offering a longer duration compared to Visitor visas, which only allow shorter stays.

The 870 visa serves as an alternative for individuals who do not meet the balance of family requirement necessary for permanent parent visa options. Additional information can be accessed through the Temporary Sponsored Parent subclass 870 visa.

Parent Visa (Permanent): The Parent Visa facilitates the sponsorship of parents by their Australian citizen or permanent resident children for permanent residence in Australia. The Parent visa migration program is subject to a cap and queue system, with some visa types experiencing processing times of up to 30 years. Applications are processed in the order of submission.

Primary Requirements:

  1. Parent of an Australian citizen or permanent resident.
  2. The applicant must be the parent of an Australian citizen or permanent resident who has resided in Australia for at least two (2) years.
  3. Balance of Family Test: Applicants must pass the balance of family test, with at least half of the applicant’s children and step-children being citizens or permanent residents in Australia, or more of the main applicant’s children being settled permanent citizens or residents of Australia than any other single country.
  4. Applications lodged onshore for both non-contributory and contributory parent visas require the main applicant to be 67 years of age or older.

Assurance of Support (AoS): Applications for a permanent Parent category visa necessitate an AoS, which is a legal commitment from an individual or organization to provide financial support to the applicant, reducing reliance on social security payments.

Further Criteria for Contributory Aged Parent Visa:

  1. The main applicant must be 67 years of age or older, but if they have a partner aged younger, the partner can be included as a secondary applicant.
  2. Health and Character: Parents must meet health and character requirements and undergo a medical assessment, chest x-ray, and HIV test.

What is an Assurance of Support?

The AoS is a commitment to repay any income support provided to the visa holder during their initial stay in Australia. The support period varies for each visa type:

  1. 10 years for Contributory Parent Visas (143/864).
  2. 4 years for Parent Visas (103/804).

This period begins upon visa grant. The Assurer must be an adult (over 18 years old), usually resident in Australia, possess sufficient income to meet potential debts, and provide a notice of assessment from the Australian Taxation Commissioner for the last two financial years.

Parent Visa Categories: There are six classes of Parent visas falling into two major categories—non-contributory and contributory. They can also be classified based on age, temporary or permanent residence.

Major Difference Between Contributory and Non-Contributory Parent Visa: Permanent residency for parents has two pathways: ‘non-contributory’ and ‘contributory.’ The non-contributory visa has a longer processing time but a lower government application charge. The contributory parent visa has a shorter processing time but a higher application charge. An option exists to spread the costs for the contributory parent visa over two stages.