This permanent visa lets a parent of a settled Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident of Australia or eligible New Zealand citizen move to Australia.

You must:

– Be outside Australia when the Home Affairs decide your application

– Have an eligible child who is a settled Australian citizen, Permanent resident or Eligible New Zealand citizen, unless you are applying for the Retirement Pathway

– Meet the balance-of-family test, unless you are applying for the Retirement Pathway or hold a Subclass 173 visa

– Have an Assurance of Support, unless you are applying for the Retirement Pathway

– Not have a Sponsored Parent (Temporary) (Subclass 870) visa when applying for this visa

Note: A concession to allow visas to be granted to applicants in Australia would be extended to eligible Parent visa applicants during the COVID-19 period.

With this visa you can 

– Stay in Australia indefinitely

– Work and study in Australia

– Enrol in Australia’s public health care scheme, Medicare

– Sponsor your family members to come to Australia

– Travel to and enter Australia for 5 years

– Apply for Australian citizenship, if eligible

Travel to and from Australia for 5 years

You can travel to and from Australia as many times as you want for 5 years from the date the Home Affairs grant this visa. This is as long as the travel facility on this visa remains valid.

If you want to travel after the initial 5-year travel facility:

– You will need to apply for and be granted a Resident Return (RRV) so that you can re-enter Australia as a permanent resident

– You might also want to consider Australian citizenship. If you become an Australian citizen, you don’t require a visa to enter Australia. You will need to apply for an Australian passport and use it to leave and re-enter Australia. See more about eligibility requirements and current processing times for Australian citizenship

If you hold a Contributory Parent (Temporary) (subclass 173) visa

You can apply for the subclass 143 visa as a two-step process by first applying for a Contributory Parent (Temporary) (subclass 173) visa. Applying for the subclass 173 visa and then the subclass 143 visa allows you to spread the cost of the visas over a number of years.

You have already met the balance of family test.

Apply for a Parent visa (subclass 143) as a retiree

If you apply for the subclass 103 visa as a retiree you don’t have to:

– Meet the balance of family test, or

– Have a sponsor or an assurance of support

How long you can stay

This is a permanent visa. It lets you stay in Australia indefinitely.

For citizenship purposes, your permanent residency starts on the day:

– The Home Affairs grant the visa if you are in Australia

– You enter Australia on this visa if you are outside Australia

Include family

You can include members of the family unit in your application when you apply.

You are required to include details of all your family members, whether they are migrating or not.

Family members who apply for the visa must meet the health and character requirements. Family members who are not coming to Australia might also have to meet the health and character requirements.

If you apply for this visa as a retiree, you:

– Can include your partner when you apply provided they are also a retiree

– Can’t include your children in your application

Cost

This visa costs from AUD47,755. There is also an additional charge for each family member who applies with you.

You pay for this visa in 2 parts, called instalments.

Pay the first instalment when you apply. Pay the second instalment when the Home Affairs ask you to. See more about visa fees and charges.

You might also have to pay other costs for health checks, police certificates and biometrics. 

To work out what your visa will cost use the Visa Pricing Estimator. The estimator does not take into account the other costs.

Apply from

You can be inside or outside Australia when you apply for the visa.

If you apply in Australia, any family members who apply with you must also be in Australia, but not in immigration clearance, when you apply. If you apply outside Australia, any family members who apply for the visa with you must also be outside Australia when you apply.

If you are applying as a retiree you must be in Australia, but not in immigration clearance, when you apply. You can be inside or outside Australia when the Home Affairs decide on your application

You must be outside Australia when the Home Affairs decide on your application, unless you hold or held a Contributory Parent (Temporary) visa (subclass 173) or substituted Visitor visa (subclass 600) before lodging your application.

Processing times

The Home Affairs don’t provide processing times for this visa. Applications for this visa are subject to capping and queueing.

Your application might take longer to process if:

– You do not fill it in correctly

– You do not include all the documents the Home Affairs need or need more information from you

– It takes us time to verify your information

The Home Affairs can’t process your application if you do not pay the correct visa application charge. The Home Affairs will notify you if this is the case and if necessary return your application.

Family migration visas are in high demand. It might take several years for this visa to be granted.

Assessment

The Home Affairs assess applications for this visa in 2 stages.

1. Check eligibility and either add the application to the queue or refuse it.

2. Continue assessing the application when a place becomes available and make a decision.

Don’t arrange to move to Australia until the Home Affairs grant the visa. The Home Affairs will let you know in writing if the Home Affairs grant you the visa.

Estimate how many applications are ahead of yours in the queue with the Parent Visa Queue Calculator.

Learn more about the Parent visa queue and processing priorities.

Your obligations

You and your family members must meet all visa conditions and obey all Australian laws.

Visa label

The Home Affairs will digitally link your visa to your passport. You will not get a label in your passport.

Apply as a retiree

You can apply for a Parent visa (subclass 143) as a retiree if:

– On 8 May 2018, you held or had previously held an Investor Retirement (subclass 405) visa or Retirement (subclass 410), and

– You have not held any other substantive visa between between 8 May 2018 and the date you applied for the Parent visa

If you apply for this visa as a retiree:

– You don’t need to meet the balance of family test

– You don’t need to have an assurance of support

– You don’t need a sponsor

Have a sponsor

You must be sponsored by an eligible sponsor for this visa.

Usually you would be sponsored by an eligible child. If your child is under 18, you can be sponsored by an eligible relative or community organisation.

The Home Affairs must approve the sponsorship.

If you apply for this visa as a retiree you don’t need a sponsor.

If your sponsor dies

If you hold a Temporary Contributory Parent (subclass 173) visa, you might still be eligible for this visa if your sponsor dies. To see if you are still eligible, email the Parent Visa Centre at parents@homeaffairs.gov.au

Meet the balance-of-family test

You must meet the balance-of-family test. You meet the balance of family test if:

– At least half of your children and step-children are eligible children, or

– There are more eligible children living in Australia than in any other single country

See examples of how the balance-of-family test is applied.

– If you apply for this visa as a retiree you don’t need to meet the balance of family test.

– If you hold a Contributory Parent (subclass 173) (Temporary) visa, you have already met the balance of family test.

Have assurance of support

You must be able to obtain an assurance of support.

An assurance of support assures us that you will not have to rely on government assistance after you enter Australia on this visa. The assurance is for you and any family members who come to Australia with you on this visa.

The Home Affairs will let you know when you need to provide the assurance of support.

You must be able to obtain an assurance of support, unless you apply for the visa as a retiree.

If you apply for the visa as a retiree, you do not need an assurance of support.

Meet the health requirement

You and any family members who apply for the visa with you must meet the health requirement.

The Home Affairs might also ask that other non-migrating family members meet the requirement.

Meet the character requirement

You and any family members who apply for the visa with you must meet the character requirement. 

The Home Affairs might also ask that other non-migrating family members meet the requirement.

Have paid back your debt to the Australian Government

If you or any family members owe the Australian Government money, you or they must have paid it back or have an approved arrangement in place to pay it back.

Not have had a visa cancelled or a previous application refused

You might not be eligible for this visa if you have had a visa cancelled or refused while you were in Australia. 

Check if visa cancellation affects your eligibility.

Sign the Australian values statement

If you are 18 years of age or older, you must:

– Have read, or had explained to you, the Life in Australia book

– Sign an Australian Values Statement that confirms you will respect the Australian way of life and obey Australian laws

Have health insurance

If you apply for this visa as a retiree, you must maintain adequate health insurance until you are granted a Parent visa. Your insurance should cover you for medically necessary treatment, including transport.

Reciprocal healthcare agreements

Some countries have a reciprocal healthcare agreement with Australia. Find out more from Services Australia about reciprocal healthcare agreements.

Best interests of the child

The Home Affairs will not grant this visa if it is not in the best interests of an applicant under 18.