The Australian Sponsored Parent (Temporary) visa (870 visa) allows parents of Australian citizen, Australian permanent residents, or eligible New Zealand citizens to visit Australia to be with their children. The visa is granted for 3 or 5 years.
There are up to 15,000 temporary Sponsored Parent visas which can be granted each year. Unlike the permanent Parent visas, there is no Balance of Family Test or Assurance of Support required for this visa.
The benefit of this visa it that it allows parents to remain in Australia for a longer period of time, up to five years at a time without departing. It provides an alternative option to Visitor visas which only allow shorter periods of stay.
This visa does not lead to permanent residency.
How does this visa work?
Step 1: My Australian citizen, permanent resident or eligible NZ citizen child must lodge an application to become an approved Parent Sponsor.
Step 2: I must lodge a temporary Sponsored Parent visa within 6 months of my child’s sponsorship being approved.
Am I eligible for to be approved as a Parent Sponsor?
- My parent wishes to visit Australia temporarily for 3 or 5 years
- I am an Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident, or eligible New Zealand Citizen
- My minimum taxable income is at least $83,454.80. If I cannot meet this income requirement myself, I can combine my income with my partner OR another Australia citizen or permanent resident, however, if combing incomes, my income is at least 50% of the minimum taxable income
- I am at least 18 years of age
- I have been residing in Australia for at least 4 years
- I agree to provide any financial support or accommodation to my parents if required
- I have no public health debts or debts to the Commonwealth
- I meet the character requirement.
Am I eligible for a Temporary Parent Visa?
- My child has been approved as a Parent Sponsor
- I intend to stay only temporarily in Australia
- I have access to funds to support my stay in Australia
- I meet the health and character requirements
- I have no public health debts or debts to the Commonwealth
- I will provide health insurance.
The visa allows parents to stay in Australia temporarily for a period of up to five years at a time. A parent must be outside Australia for at least 90 days before being eligible to apply for a further Sponsored Parent (Temporary) visa. A parent will be able to hold visas up to a total stay in Australia of 10 years, reflecting that the visa is a temporary visa and does not lead to permanent residence.
Parents who have held Sponsored Parent (Temporary) visas for the cumulative maximum 10-year period must either depart Australia or apply for another visa that will allow them to remain in Australia. They will not be eligible for the grant of a further Sponsored Parent (Temporary) visa.
What does this visa allow me to do?
- Reside in Australia for the length of my visa granted (either 3 or 5 years)
- Travel in and out of Australia during the life of my visa
- I am unable to work on this visa.
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.