Permanent Aged Parent Class BP Subclass 804 or Retired Parent (Subclass 804) visa: Who can and When to apply
If you are an Australian citizen or permanent resident or an eligible NZ citizen, you can sponsor your parent for a retired Parent (Subclass 804) visa. However, your parent must be over 65 and most of your siblings are also Australian residents living in Australia.
Your parent is only eligible for the permanent retired Parent (Subclass 804) visa if they have reached pension or retirement age (click here to learn more about age pension).
Generally, your parent’s age must be:
- 65 years and 6 months – if born between 1 July 1952 and 31 December 1953
- 66 years – if born between 1 January 1954 and 30 June 1955
- 66 years and 6 months – if born between 1 July 1955 and 31 December 1956
- 67 years – if born on or after 1 January 1957
Your parent can only apply for retired Parent (Subclass 804) visa if they are in Australia (if outside of Australia, click here to learn more about Parent Class AX Subclass 103 visa), must attained the above age or old enough to be granted an age pension, and have not been refused a visa or had a visa cancelled under character ground.
Your parent must hold a substantive visa but not a Transit Subclass 771 visa (click here to learn more) or if your parent does not hold a valid visa, their last visa cannot be a Transit Subclass 771 visa.
If your parent does not hold a substantive visa, they must satisfy the Schedule 3 criterion 3002 requirement (click here to learn more).
Who can sponsor
As a sponsor you must be over 18 and a settled resident, that is, lawfully residing in Australia for a reasonable period or at least 2 years.
If you are under 18 and you have a settled Australian citizen or permanent resident or eligible NZ citizen partner (spouse or de facto partner) can also sponsor your parent on your behalf. Similarly, a community organisation can also sponsor your parent.
Balance of Family test
As a part of the visa criteria, your parent must satisfy the Balance of Family test or BoF test. In order to pass the BoF test, at least half of your siblings must be Australian citizen or permanent resident or eligible NZ citizen who are usually resident in Australia.
The BoF test include a child or step-child of the parent or the child of the current partner of the parent. If the child’s whereabouts are not known, the child is taken to be resident of the last known country of residence or citizenship.
A child is not included in the BoF test if the child has been removed by court order, by adoption or by operation of law from the exclusive custody of the parent or it is not possible for the child to be reunited because the child is being persecuted or human rights abused or is a registered refugee.
Including family members
Your parent can include dependent family members who are under 18 in a combined application for an aged / retired Parent (Subclass 804) visa.
You can change the sponsor after the retired Parent (Subclass 804) visa application has been lodged but before decision. However, the new sponsor must satisfy the sponsorship requirements.
The Department of Immigration (Department of Home Affairs) may require you to provide an Assurance of Support (or AoS). The AoS must have been accepted by the Secretary of Social Services (click here to learn more).
Bridging visa
The Department of Immigration may grant your parent a bridging visa to allow them to stay in Australia until their retired Parent (Subclass 804) visa is finalised.
You should be aware that there is an annual cap or limit on the retired Parent (Subclass 804) visa. The processing time may take years. There are other parent visas that take between 2 and 4 years to process (click here to learn about Subclass 173 visa and Subclass 143 visa).
If you are in Australia when you apply for this visa, you may be granted a bridging visa to allow you to stay in the country until your application is finalised (click here to learn more about bridging visa).
This is a permanent visa and is valid for 5 years from the visa grant (click here to learn more about Subclass 155 visa). You will be asked to pay a second visa application charge or fee before the visa is granted.
Australian migration law is complex and difficult to understand, contact our immigration lawyer for a consultation (fee applies) to help you apply for this visa or to decide if this is the best visa (click here to find out how an immigration lawyer or registered migration agent can help you). You may also refer to our FAQs for answers regarding visa application or visa cancellation by clicking here.
041 222 4020 or WeChat: AUDvisa
This article is not intended to be or taken as migration legal advice. The author of this article disclaims any liability for any action or omission on the information provided or not provided in this article. You should always consult an immigration lawyer or a registered migration agent to form an informed opinion on your immigration matter.
