Processing times (Family visas)

Partner & Parent Visa application processing times

If you are planning to apply for a Partner visa we recommend booking an appointment to discuss and understand your options.

Related: Partner visa processing times

Visa Type	Stream (if available)	50% of applications processed in	90% of applications processed in
Family and partner visas
100 Partner*		9 months	21 months
101 Child		24 months	33 months
102 Adoption		8 months	19 months
117 Orphan Relative		75 months	97 months
300 Prospective Marriage		14 months	26 months
309 Partner (Provisional)		21 months	32 months
445 Dependent Child		25 months	32 months
461 New Zealand Citizen Family Relationship (Temporary)		5 months	6 months
801 Partner*		8 months	19 months
802 Child		21 months	31 months
820 Partner		22 months	30 months
870 Sponsored Parent (Temporary) Visa		7 months	9 months
870 Sponsored Parent (Temporary) Visa	Sponsorship	89 days	4 months
*Processing time for subclass 801 Partner (permanent) visa and 100 Partner (permanent) visa is from date of eligibility (2 years after the 820/801 or 309/100 application is lodged) to finalisation.

Source: Home Affairs processing times, updated 29 September 2026.

Parent and other family visas (capped and queued)

Parent, carer, remaining relative and aged dependent relative visas are capped and queued, so Home Affairs does not publish standard processing times for them. As at 31 August 2026:

Visa	Queue released up to	Estimate for new applications
143 and 173 Contributory Parent	November 2018	About 18 years
864 and 884 Contributory Aged Parent	November 2020	About 18 years
173 to 143 and 884 to 864 (temporary to permanent)	Lodged up to May 2026 being assessed	A few months
103 Parent	March 2014	About 42 years
804 Aged Parent	October 2014	About 42 years
116 and 836 Carer	31 December 2023	No estimate published
115 and 835 Remaining Relative, 114 and 838 Aged Dependent Relative	30 June 2013	No estimate published

Processing priority

Since 25 July 2026, family visas are processed in this order: Ministerial intervention cases, then partner and child visas, then orphan relative, then contributory parent, then carer, and finally non-contributory parent, remaining relative and aged dependent relative visas.

Circumstances that affect processing times

We assess applications on a case-by-case basis, and actual processing times can vary due to individual circumstances including:

whether you have lodged a complete application, including all necessary supporting documents
how promptly you respond to any requests for additional information
how long it takes to perform required checks on the supporting information provided
how long it takes to receive additional information from external agencies, particularly in relation to health, character, and national security requirements
for permanent migration visa applications, how many places are available in the migration programme
for citizenship applications, the time taken to attend a Citizenship Ceremony or receive a Citizenship Certificate.