Immigration News

• Points Test Update
• New Skilled Migration Points Test
• Snapshot - Partner Visa Eligibility Requirements
• New Skilled Migration Points Test
• Australian Immigration Update - 1 July 2010

Australian Parent Visas - Parent / Contributory Parent / Aged Parent 

Australian Parent Visa is designed for parents living outside Australia with a child who is an Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen.

There are essentially two categories in the Australian Parent Migration Program:

• Australian Parent Visa
• Australian Contributory Parent Visa
• Australian Aged Parent Visa

If you would like to emigrate permanently to Australia and you are the parent of an Australian citizen, permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen, you may apply for a visa in either of these categories.

The main difference between these Australian Parent Visas are:

• Program numbers and caps are higher for Contributory Parent visas
• Parent visas take up to 19 years to process, while Contributory Parent visas take between 2-3 years
• Australian Contributory Parent visas are considerably more expansive than Parent visas
• The visa applicant for an Australian Aged Parent Visa must be 65 years old or older

Generally, in order to apply for a Parent visa to Australia and qualify for Australian parent migration, you must meet the following requirements:

• must be a parent of a child who is an Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident or an eligible New Zealand citizen and is able to sponsor you
• your sponsor must be at least 18 years old
• your sponsor must be settled in Australia (in most cases, lawfully and permanently resident for at leas two years)
• must pass the Balance of Family test
• must have an approved Assurance of Support and have lodged an Assurance of Support bond
• must meet health and character criteria

The Balance of Family Test

You must generally meet the balance family test before an Australian Parent Visa will be granted. This test means that you must have:

• At least half of your children lawfully and permanently live in Australia OR
• more children live lawfully and permanently in Australia than in any other single country

Assurance of Support

Assurances of support are mandatory requirement on all permanent Australian Parent visas. The duration of the assurances varies from 2 to 10 years.

Do you qualify for an Australian Parent Visa? Complete our visa assessment to take advantage of our expert migration services.