The Adoption visa is for applicants who have been adopted from outside Australia by an Australian citizen, permanent resident, or eligible New Zealand citizen. There are very specific requirements as to the type of adoptions which are accepted by the Department of Home Affairs.
Am I eligible for an Adoption visa?
- I am under the age of 18 years of age when the application is lodged AND I will be under the age of 18 years of age when the application is decided
- I am living outside Australia
- I am already adopted OR in the process of being adopted by my Australian citizen or Australian permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen parent
- If I was adopted whilst my parents were living in Australia, then the relevant Australian state and territory adoption authority was involved in the adoption processes with the country I resided in. Australian adoption authorities usually arrange adoptions through countries that have signed the Hague Adoption Convention OR have signed a bilateral agreement with Australia
- If I was adopted whilst my parents were living outside Australia then at least one of my adoptive parents lived outside Australia for more than 12 months before the date of visa application, they have full and permanent parental rights and there are no remaining legal ties between myself and my birth parents. My adoptive parent/s did not solely reside overseas to avoid Australia’s adoption laws and they complied with the adoption laws in my home country
- I meet the health and character requirements.
What does this visa allow me to do?
- Reside in Australia indefinitely with my family who were included in the application
- Travel in and out of Australia for the five years from the date the visa is granted. Thereafter I would need to apply for a Resident Return Visa
- Work, operate a business, study in Australia – if I choose to
- Buy property with the same terms and conditions as Australian citizens
- Enrol in Medicare, Australia’s scheme for health-related care and expenses
- Apply for Australian citizenship (once I am eligible) by completing the residence requirements in Australia
- Sponsor eligible relatives who are eligible to meet a family visa (for example, partner) or certain skilled regional visas (subclass 491).
We chose Immigration Downunder for our spouse visa application as Joe had already had a great experience with them before with a work visa. From the beginning to the end of our visa application Ben and Kelly demonstrated their expertise in this area and they made us feel confident in our application. We also felt they went above and beyond our expectations, by helping us to lodge our initial application in a short time frame to assist us in starting the process on-shore before Joe needed to travel again for work. We are pleased to say we were successful with our application and wouldn’t hesitate to recommend Immigration Downunder to others.