The Australian Government has announced that a new Parent Visa Subclass will be put in place as of the 1st of July 2017.
The introduction of a new Parent visa subclass came as a result of a strong interest from the migrant community within Australia to be able to bring their parents to the country on longer temporary stay permits. The Australian Government is holding a number of public consultations on the topic with various community organisations and the full details of the new Visa are still to be announced.
What is known at the moment is that the Visa will be temporary for one, three or five years with possibility of renewal for further periods of up to five years at a time. The length of the visa will be determined by a number of factors, such as the need of parents to be in Australia, the support capacity of the applicant and sponsor, health, character and/or the applicants’ immigration history.
To be eligible for the new Parent visa the applicants would need to meet the balance of family test and be sponsored by an eligible child, who is Australian Citizen, permanent resident or eligible New Zealand Citizen. The sponsor would need to be settled in Australia for a number of years and be able to support their parents if required. This may involve assessment of income and assets as well as lodgement of assurance bond, which is similar to the Assurance of Support scheme applicable to standard Migration Parent visa application, such as Subclass 143 Contributory Parent visa.
The Parents would also need to maintain private health insurance for the duration of their stay in Australia which is designed to protect the Australian Health system from any extra costs.
Emigrate-to-Australia at Taylor Hampton Solicitors will provide further specifics about the new Parent Visa as soon as further details are released.
