New Five-year SPONSORED PARENT VISITOR VISA (temporary, subclass 870) starts from 17th April 2019

 

NEW FIVE-YEAR SPONSORED PARENT VISITOR VISA (TEMPORARY, SUBCLASS 870) STARTS FROM 17TH APRIL 2019

On 1st March 2019, the Australian Minister for Immigration has announced the commencement of the Sponsored Parent (Temporary) Visa – subclass 870. It is for parents and step-parents. It is a welcome addition to the group of Visitor Visas available – subclass 600 Tourist-visa, subclass 600 Family-sponsored Visitor visa, etc.

 

EasyMigrate is a leading Australian migration agent, based in Perth, Western Australia. EasyMigrate’s Migration Consultant Mr Cyrus Mistry (our principal immigration agent in Australia) has reviewed this announcement – see his comments below.

 

Summary:

1. Australian citizens, Permanent residents and “eligible NZ Citizens” will be able to apply for sponsorship from 17 April 2019 – for their parents or step-parents.
2. Parents and step-parents will be able to apply for the “Sponsored Parent (Temporary) Visa” from 1 July 2019.
3. The BALANCE OF FAMILY TEST rules do not apply – so it is no longer necessary that 50% or more of your children should be permanent residents of Australia
4. Cost – A$5000 per parent for a three-year visa, A$10,000 per parent for a 5-year visa.
5. Parents and step-parents will need to have adequate health insurance.
6. Parents and step-parents will not have work rights.
7. The sponsoring child will need to show “financial capacity” – minimum household income thresholds will apply.

 

 

Detail:

This is a much-anticipated visa announcement; it has been in the pipeline for a long time now. As the “balance of family test” has been removed, I think that this visa-stream will become extremely popular. Fees are high, but it opens up options for Australian families who do not satisfy the “balance of family” test, i.e. they have more children outside Australia than inside Australia.

 

The Department of Home Affairs announcement mentions the following –

“The visa provides parents with a new pathway to temporarily reunite with their children and grandchildren in Australia while ensuring that taxpayers are not required to cover additional costs. The visa responds to community concerns about the limited number of Parent places in the migration program and associated lengthy waiting periods. 

To be eligible for the visa, a parent must be the biological, adoptive, or step-parent of the sponsor, who must be an Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident, or eligible New Zealand citizen”. 

For the financial year July-2019 to June-2020, the quota for the year has been set at 15,000 visas.

 

Only two parents can be sponsored at a time, per household. The maximum period of stay in Australia will be ten years, after that the parents will need to apply for other types of visas.

 

You can contact us on +61-8-92214888 for an “initial consultancy”, and we can review your case (link for online booking etc.).