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Contributory Parent - Subclass 143 Visa

The purpose of the 143 - Contributory Parent visa is to allow the parents of Australian citizens, permanent residents and eligible New Zealand citizens to migrate permanently to Australia. Subclass 43 - Contributory Parent visa applicants pay an additional charge to the Australian Government, in exchange for faster visa processing.

CONTRIBUTORY PARENT VISA REQUIREMENTS

Applicant

As the visa applicant, you must:

  • have a child who is an eligible Australian citizen, permanent resident, or New Zealand citizen (see below)

  • meet the ‘balance of family’ test. This requires that at least half of your children reside in Australia, or that more of your children reside in Australia than in any other single country

Note: You are not required to meet this test if you hold an eligible subclass 173 Contributory Parent (Temporary) visa.

  • pay an additional (‘contributory’) charge to the Australian Government immediately prior to the grant of your visa

Australian Child

Your Australian child must:

  • be an Australian citizen, permanent resident, or eligible New Zealand citizen

  • be settled in Australia (generally this means that your child must have resided in Australia for at least two years)

  • be at least 18 years old, and willing to sponsor your application

Note: You may instead be sponsored by your child’s spouse or de facto partner, provided that this person meets the above requirements. Alternatively, if your child is under 18, you may in some circumstances be sponsored by a relative or guardian of your child, or by a community organisation.

  • undertake to provide you with any necessary financial and accommodation support for the first two years after your arrival in Australia

APPLICATION PROCESS >

Your Contributory Parent visa application is lodged with the Department of Home Affairs (the DOHA) on your behalf. The main criterion is that you and your Australian child meet the requirements referred to above, including the balance of family test (if relevant). In addition, you must meet the standard health and character checks.

When the DOHA is ready to approve your application and grant your visa, you will be asked to pay your second ‘contributory’ charge. If you do not hold a subclass 173 Contributory Parent (Temporary) visa when your application is lodged, you must be outside Australia at the time your visa is granted.

Assurance of Support

Prior to the grant of your visa, your Australian child (or another eligible party) must provide an Assurance of Support (AoS). This is a legal commitment to repay any recoverable social security payments that you receive from the Australian Government during the first ten years that you live in Australia.

To be eligible to provide an AoS, your assurer must meet certain requirements, which include an income test for individual assurers (as opposed to organisations).

In addition, your assurer must pay a bond for each adult included in your visa application. This bond will be refunded ten years after your visa is granted (less any social security payments received).

Currently, the required bond is $10,000 for the main visa applicant, and $4,000 for each additional applicant aged 18 or older. These amounts may be higher if your assurer is an organisation.

The AoS scheme is managed by the Department of Human Services (the DHS), which is responsible for providing AoS application forms, assessing your assurer’s eligibility, and providing advice about bond lodgement and release. Please refer to the DHS website for further details: https://www.humanservices.gov.au/individuals/services/centrelink/assurance-support.

PLEASE NOTE: We estimate that it may take several weeks to prepare and lodge your application, with the time taken largely dependent on how promptly you (and your sponsor, if applicable) provide us with the necessary supporting information and documents.

The time that it takes the DOHA to process your application is dependent upon its processing time service standards, and may also vary due to a number of other factors, including the complexity of your case, perceived risk factors and processing priorities. Please contact us for current information regarding likely processing timeframes for this type of application.

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