A new Temporary Parent Visa option is opening for eligible Australian citizens or permanent residents to bring their parents to Australia temporarily for up to ten years. The new visa will however be capped to only 15,000 people per year. Read on to discover more and find out if you could be eligible to sponsor your parents.
Australia’s new Temporary Parent Visa
Parents coming to Australia under the new Subclass 870 Visa option will be able to stay for five years without departing, which is a significantly longer period than if they were to arrive on a Visitor Visa. After this time, they can choose to re-apply for another five years, for a total maximum stay of ten years.
A few main features of the new Temporary Parent Visa include:
- Limitations preventing parents from working in Australia
- Requirements for evidence of access to funds
- Requirements for health insurance
- ‘Balance of Family Test’ (BoF) not required (A Balance of Family test assesses the proportion of your children living permanently in Australia and is an eligibility requirement for all other Parent Visas.)
The new Temporary Parent Visa will require two applications – a Sponsorship application and a Visa application. The visa application can only be lodged once the sponsorship application has been approved. Once the applications have been granted, a number of sponsorship obligations and visa conditions will apply.
How the new Temporary Parent Visa contrasts with Permanent Parent Visa options
While the new Temporary Parent Visa only allows for a temporary five or ten year stay, it could provide migrants a long-term visa alternative to Australia’s current permanent Parent visa options, which typically require either lengthy waiting times or very high Government costs.
To help you consider if the new option is one you’d like to explore, compare the new Temporary Parent Visa’s fees and expected waiting periods against Australia’s current permanent residence visa options.
Am I eligible to sponsor my parents?
There are a number of factors influencing both your ability to become an approved sponsor as well as your parents’ eligibility for Australia’s various Parent Visa options. Some of these factors include:
- The visa holders’ ability to meet health and character requirements
- The sponsor’s household income
- Evidence of access to funds for the duration of the visa
- Evidence of health insurance
- Whether there are any outstanding debts to the Australian Government and other eligibility factors
We expect the Department of Home Affairs will announce the supporting legislative regulations for the visa in coming months. As the new Temporary Parent Visa will be capped to 15,000 people, you may wish to consider applying without delay. The Department will begin accepting sponsorship applications for the new Temporary Parent Visa from 17 April 2019 and applications for the visa are intended to open from 1 July 2019.
To understand your eligibility, we encourage you to contact our team of Registered Migration Agents, who can advise of the Parent Visa options that may be available according to your individual circumstances. Simply contact [email protected] or 08 9221 3388.
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