Sponsored Parent (Temporary) visa (subclass 870)
This visa lets a parent of an Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen, visit Australia for up to 3 or 5 years.
Sponsor
You must be sponsored by a child who is an Australian citizen, or a permanent resident who has been usually resident in Australia for at least 4 years. The Sponsor has to be at least 18 years old and meet the taxable income requirement of $83,454.80. It is posssible to meet the income requirement in combination of the spouse/ child of the sponsor. The Sponsor is also required to meet the conduct requirements and not have any outstanding debts to the Australian government.
Visa Application
A summary of the visa criteria is as follows:
- Be the biological, legal (including adoptive) parent, step-parent or parent-in-law of the Sponsor and be at least 18 years of age.
- Have sufficient access to funds to support yourself in Australia
- Have a genuine intention to stay in Australia temporarily
- Meet health and character criteria
Visa applications are required to be lodged within six months sponsorship approval.
The Department of Home Affairs has set a cap of 15,000 places for this program. The benefit of this visa is that parents can stay in Australia continuously for 3 or 5 years which is much longer stay period in comparison to the visitor visa. However, the costs are significantly higher than the visitor visa:
- Temporary parent visa up to 3 years - $5,000
- Temporary parent visa up to 5 years - $10,000
It is possible to apply for further temporary parent visas to visit up to a maximum period of 10 years.
Contact us
If you would like your parents to join you in Australia, we can help you understand the most cost effective pathway depending on the nature of the visit. Call us on 1300 98 70 71 to speak to a Registered Migration Agent.