Relative visa options

  • When might you need a relative visa?

    You will need a relative visa if you want to move to Australia and live here permanently because:

    • you are aged and financially dependent on a relative who lives here, or
    • your and your partner’s only remaining relatives live here and you want to be near them.

    If you only want to visit Australia for a short or temporary period of time, you will need  a different kind of visa.

  • Eligibility for relative visa options

    You may be eligible to apply for a relative visa if:

    • You are related to:
      • An Australian citizen, or
      • An Australian permanent resident, or
      • An eligible New Zealand citizen
    • The person you are related to is 18 years of age or older

    You should be aware that not many people are eligible for relative visas. Please read the scenarios below for more information.

  • Sponsors

    You will need to have a sponsor to apply for a relative visa to live in Australia as a permanent resident.

    A sponsor must be one of the following or their partner:

    • An Australian citizen, or
    • An Australian permanent resident, or
    • An eligible New Zealand citizen

    And:

    • Be 18 years of age or over
    • Be related to the visa applicant
    • Be lawfully resident in Australia for a reasonable period of time

    Your sponsor will have further eligibility requirements depending on your visa option. You can read more about the relative visa options below.

  • Aged Dependent Relative Visa (subclass 114)

    Applying outside Australia

    Scenario 1

    • You are applying outside Australia
    • You depend on a relative who lives in Australia for financial support
    • You want to travel to and live permanently in Australian
    • You are the Australian pension age

    To be eligible for an Aged Dependent Relative Visa (subclass 114), you must:

    • Be sponsored by a relative or their partner who lives in Australia
    • Not be married or in a de facto relationship
    • Meet dependency requirements
    • Meet age requirements
    • Have an assurance of support
    • Meet health and character requirement

    Family members of an applicant for an Aged Dependent Relative Visa (subclass 114) may also be eligible for the visa because of their family relationship with the visa applicant.

  • Remaining Relative Visa (subclass 115)

    Scenario 2

    • You are applying outside Australia
    • You want to live in Australia to be with your near relatives
    • You do not have any other near relatives living anywhere else in the world
    • You want to become an Australian permanent resident

    Visa option: Remaining Relative Visa (subclass 115)

    To be eligible for a Remaining Relative Visa (subclass 115), you must:

    • Have your only near relatives living in Australia
    • Be sponsored by an eligible near relative or their partner who lives in Australia
    • Have an assurance of support
    • Meet health and character requirements

    Family members of an applicant for a Remaining Relative Visa (subclass 115) may also be eligible for the visa because of their family relationship with the visa applicant.

    See > Remaining Relative Visa (subclass 115)

  • Aged Dependent Relative Visa (subclass 838)

    Applying in Australia

    Scenario 3

    • You are applying in Australia
    • You depend on a relative who lives in Australia
    • You want to become an Australian permanent resident
    • You are the Australian pension age

    Visa option: Aged Dependent Relative Visa (subclass 838)

    To be eligible for an Aged Dependent Relative Visa (subclass 838), you must:

    • Be sponsored by a relative or their partner who lives in Australia
    • Not be married or in a de facto relationship
    • Meet dependency requirements
    • Meet age requirements
    • Have an assurance of support
    • Meet health and character requirements

    Family members of an applicant for an Aged Dependent Relative Visa (subclass 838) may also be eligible for the visa because of their family relationship with the visa applicant.

    See > Aged Dependent Relative Visa (subclass 838)

  • Remaining Relative Visa (subclass 835)

    Scenario 4

    • You are applying in Australia
    • You want to live in Australia to be with your near relatives
    • You do not have any other near relatives living anywhere else in the world
    • You want to become an Australian permanent resident

    Visa option: Remaining Relative Visa (subclass 835)

    To be eligible for a Remaining Relative Visa (subclass 835), you must:

    • Have your only near relatives living in Australia
    • Be sponsored by an eligible near relative or their partner who lives in Australia
    • Have an assurance of support
    • Meet health and character requirements

    Family members of an applicant for a Remaining Relative Visa (subclass 835) may also be eligible for the visa because of their family relationship with the visa applicant.

  • Capping and queuing

    The Minister for Immigration and Border Protection may limit how many people can get a certain type of visa each year. The limiting of visa places is called capping.

    If you are applying for a visa that has reached the capping limit, you must wait in a queue until more visa places become available. For relative visas, this is likely to be for many years and you must continue to meet visa requirements.

    Processing time

    Current estimated processing time for Remaining Relative and Aged Dependent Relative visa applications that meet the criteria to be queued is approximately 50 years.

According to The Australian Bureau of Statistics over 50% of Australians have at least one parent who is born overseas. If you are one of these Australian families and would like to bring your parents to Australia contact us to discuss parent visa pathways.

Family Visa Team at VisaEnvoy provides ethical, culturally sensitive, person and goal centred service to both parents from overseas and their sponsors from Australia. With the ever increasing child care prices, we understand the importance of having your parents around to assist you with raising your children, but also the cultural expectation of taking care of your elderly parents.

Relative visa options:

Book a meeting today for a commitment free briefing with our Registered Migration Agents in Melbourne to find more about your visa options.