PARENTS VISA

Australian permanent resident or citizen children can act as a sponsor for the Parent Visa.

Balance of Family test:

To meet the ‘Balance of Family test’ it is necessary to have at least half of your children living in Australia as permanent residents OR more children in Australia on permanent resident visas than live in any other single country in the world.

Settled criteria:

One of the children will need act as a sponsor for the visa, and it is a requirement that the child be ‘settled’. Excluding a few exceptions, children are generally required to have lived in Australia for at least 2 years to be considered settled.

Assurance of Support (AOS):

In order for the application to be approved, an Australian permanent resident or citizen will need to lodge a bond with the Australian government office of Centrelink, which is known as an Assurance of Support (AOS). The amount of the bond and the earnings requirements for the Australian will depend on the visa being applied for and the family composition of both the sponsor and the applicant. In most instances the sponsoring child acts as the assurer, but it is possible for this to be another party, or several individuals applying jointly.

Health and Character:

Applicants and all dependent family members are also expected to meet the health and character requirements.

Costs:

The Contributory Parent visa has a significant fee, which the Department of Border Protection indicates is so that the applicants can make a higher contribution to their health and welfare costs in Australia. The fee will depend on the visa being applied for and the family composition of the applicant.