Professional Advice for Parent Visa Applications in Australia

Parent Visas for Australia – The Basics

To qualify for a permanent parent visa, the following criteria must be met:

01.

50% of their children must be Australian citizens or Permanent Residents.

02.

One or more of the children must sponsor them.

03.

Meet health and character tests – i.e. no major health issues and no criminal record of significance.

04.

Be prepared to pay higher visa application charges for faster processing—one person, approximately $50,000, two people approximately $100,000.

05.

No social welfare support for 10 years; see below about the Centrelink Assurance of Support. This is covered by an applicant’s Assurer. Medicare is available.

Parent Visas for Australia – The Process.

yourvisa4australia can help you bring your parents to Australia to live if they qualify. It needs very careful assessment and planning, but we have the experience. It is expensive if you want them here in a reasonable time. There are parent visa options for Australia that we can advise on. We can assess your situation, and if they qualify for the Australian parent visas, it may be possible to have your parents here in a fairly short time. In our recent experience, and depending on the country, we have seen approvals for those already in Australia and who qualify for Permanent Residency in as little as 4 months although more recently they are taking much longer. We can advise further. Parent visas for Australia are not a simple process, but a qualified expert will take all the stress away. These parent visas are available both onshore and offshore.

Centrelink Assurance of Support – All Parent Visas

A sponsor or any other person who agrees (the Assurer) must provide an Assurance of Support (AoS) for parents to get a Parent Visa in Australia.

The Assurer completes an application at Centrelink, and they assess the ability of the Assurer to cover any social welfare costs that the applicants may have in the next 10 years. These visas do NOT allow the parents to access social welfare payments, and if they must do so, the Assurer must cover these costs. A bond of $10,400 (single) and $14,000 couple is paid by the assurer before the parent visa can be granted.

Parents on a parent visa can access Medicare. The Assurer does NOT have to be a family member.

Five-year Subclass 870 Sponsored Parent (Temporary) Visa

  • Number of visas available

    • Up to 15,000 Sponsored Parent (Temporary) visas may be granted each program year (from 1 July to 30 June).
    • A well-prepared application has the best chance of success. This visa will be hugely popular.

  • Sponsorship

    • Only two parents per household can be sponsored for this visa at a time. The limit allows more households to sponsor a parent and reflects the potential costs a sponsor will be required to meet.

  • Sponsorship Eligibility

    • A parent must be the biological, adoptive, or stepparent of the sponsor and a step-parent can only apply if they are still in a married/de facto relationship with a biological parent of the sponsor)
    • at least 18 years of age
    • be an Australian citizen/permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen who has been usually resident in Australia for four years
    • have a minimum household income threshold (based on the income of the sponsor, or the combined income of the sponsor and their spouse/partner and/or another child of the parent)
    • Additional Criteria may apply to individual applicants.

  • Sponsorship obligations

    A parent sponsor will be required to meet obligations, including:


    • providing financial support and accommodation for their parent in Australia
    • keeping records and providing them to the Department if asked. For example, evidence of income. This obligation ends two years after the day the person ceases to be a sponsor
    • advising the Department when certain events occur. For example, if they are charged with a crime. This obligation ends the day after the person ceases to be a sponsor
    • paying outstanding public health debts incurred by their parent in Australia. If an obligation is breached, the Department can consider:
    • If the parent incurs public health debts in Australia and these are not paid, the party owed the debt will be able to pursue the sponsor, through the Courts if necessary, to have the debt repaid.
    • Additional Criteria may apply to individual applicants.

  • Sponsorship cost

    • The sponsorship application fee is under $500 (2022).
    • Our fee to be advised
    • A well-prepared application has the best chance of success. This visa will be hugely popular. Get an expert.

  • Applicant eligibility

    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
    • not have engaged in payment for visas conduct
    • provide evidence of access to funds
    • 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.

  • How long you can stay

    • The visa allows parents to stay in Australia temporarily for up to five years at a time.

  • Visa cost

    The visa application charge is:


    • About $5,000 (2022) for a visa of up to three years’ duration; or
    • $10,000 (2022) for a visa of up to five years’ duration.
    • The visa application charge is payable in two instalments, with one payment at the time of application and the remainder paid before visa grant.
    • Our fee to be advised

  • Work rights

    • Visa holders will generally be subject to a “no work” condition.

Have questions about your parent visa application? Call 0409 059 084 or send us an enquiry.