Minister Bowen announced on 29 November 2011 that a new visa fee system would be introduced “to ensure taxpayers are no longer subsidising visa applications”, and “the significant changes include the introduction of a fee for dependants of visa applicants from July 2013”.
The details of the new fees for dependants are expected shortly, but Member Agents are advised to consider making any pre-1 July 2013 applications as soon as possible to avoid a repeat of the huge influx of applications experienced just before the 1 July 2012 changes.