Sponsored Parent (Subclass 870) | Good for Parents?

Sponsored Parent (Subclass 870) or Sponsored Parent Class GH Subclass 870: All you need to know about this visa

Sponsored Parent (Subclass 870) visa is for over 18 Australian citizen or permanent resident or eligible NZ citizen children to sponsor their parents to live with them on a temporary basis.

The purpose of a Sponsored Parent (Subclass 870) visa is to allow parents to live in Australia with their children and/or grandchildren for up to 5 years at a time. Your parent does not need to leave Australia during the validity of their visa. This is an alternative visa to Visitor visa (short stay) or other Parent visa options (long processing time or expensive contributions).

This visa is a temporary visa and does not provide a PR pathway or permanent residence.

You can sponsor your biological parent or adopted parent or step-parent for this visa.

In order to be a sponsor, you must be your parents’ biological or adopted or step-child. If you are their step-child, your biological parent must still be in a married or de facto relationship with your step-parent.

You must be at least 18 and you must be an Australian citizen or permanent resident or an eligible NZ citizen and has been usually resident in Australia for at least 4 years.

You must have a combined household annual taxable income of at least $83,454.80 (click here to learn more) for the most recent income year.

Taxable income has the meaning given by the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997. The way taxable income is worked out:
Step 1. Add up all your assessable income for the income year

Step 2. Add up your deductions for the income year

Step 3. Less your deductions from your assessable income

The result of step 3 is your taxable income. If your taxable income is less than $83,454.80 then you do not pass the income test. If you do not pass the income test, you will not be able to sponsor your parent.

You must lodge a sponsorship application and the Department of Immigration (Department of Home Affairs) must approve the sponsorship before your parent(s) can lodge their application for a Sponsored Parent (Subclass 870) visa. Your parent must lodge their visa application within 6 months of your sponsorship been approved.

As a sponsor, you must provide financial assistance and accommodation for your parent. You are required to inform the Department of Immigration when certain events that affect your parent’s welfare and wellbeing (click here to learn more). You must also pay outstanding public health debts if incurred by your parent.

Your sponsorship obligations will end 2 years after you ceased to be a sponsor. Your sponsorship will cease in any of the below situations:

1. your permanent resident visa is cancelled; or
2. you die; or
3. you withdraw your sponsorship; or
4. your parent did not apply for their Sponsored Parent visa within 6 months of your sponsorship being approved; or
5. your parent’s Sponsored Parent visa has expired.

However, if the Department of Immigration cancelled your sponsorship, your parent will be required to find another sponsor or leave the country. You may also be prevented from sponsoring your parent for a period of time.

You can only sponsor 2 parents at a time.

The Department of Immigration has placed an annual cap or restriction of up to 15,000 Sponsored Parent (Subclass 870) visas for each financial year, that is, from 1 July to 30 June. Once all the visas have been granted, no new visa will be granted until the next financial year.

Even though the Sponsored Parent (Subclass 870) visa is a temporary visa, your parent can apply for another visas, including permanent visa (click here to learn more about permanent parent visa subclass 143).

The Sponsored Parent (Subclass 870) visa can be extended or renewed or re-applied for a second time. However, your parent must depart Australia for at least 90 days before they are permitted to apply for their second Sponsored Parent visa.

Your parent must have genuine access to funds to support themselves while they are in Australia.

Your parent must also have private health insurance.

The maximum number of years your parent can live in Australia on the Sponsored Parent (Subclass 870) visa is 10 years.

Your parent can apply for either the 3 years or 5 years Sponsored Parent (Subclass 870) visa.

There is a sponsorship application fee and visa application fee. The visa application fee is:

1. $5,000 for 3 years (subject to annual increase); or
2. $10,000 for 5 years (subject to annual increase).

The visa application fee is paid in instalments, the first instalment ($1,000) is payable when your parent lodged the application for the Sponsored Parent (Subclass 870) visa. The second and final instalment is payable just before the Department of Immigration grant the visa.

You should be aware that the Sponsored Parent (Subclass 870) visa does not permit your parent to work (condition 8103 – no work).

Unless the Department gives your parent permission to apply for this visa in Australia (60 days to apply after receiving permission), they must lodge their visa application outside Australia. They can be in or outside Australia when the Department grant the visa. Unless the Department gives permission to apply in Australia, no bridging visa will be granted for you parent to remain in Australia until a decision is made on the Subclass 870 visa application.

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).

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 for you (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.

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.