• Sponsored family stream Visitor visa (subclass 600)

Sponsored family stream Visitor visa (subclass 600)

The SC600 Family Sponsored visa stream lets people who are sponsored, usually by a family member, come to Australia to visit their family members.

The purpose of this visa is to allow people to travel to Australia for tourism or business purposes, or to visit family, on a temporary basis. The minimum requirements for the Sponsored Family stream of this visa are set out below:

SPONSORED FAMILY STREAM

For people travelling to Australia to visit family. Applicants for this visa must be sponsored by an eligible relative who lives in Australia.

Applicant Requirements

As the visa applicant, you must:

  • be sponsored by an eligible relative in Australia (see below)
  • genuinely intend to visit family in Australia
  • have access to sufficient funds to cover your costs whilst you are in Australia
  • meet the relevant health and character criteria (this could include a requirement to obtain health insurance for the period of your stay in Australia)

Sponsor Requirements

The person sponsoring your visit to Australia must:

  • be an Australian citizen or permanent resident
  • be at least 18 years old
  • have been settled in Australia for a reasonable length of time (usually at least 2 years)
  • be a close family member i.e. a spouse/de facto partner, or a parent, child, sibling, grandparent, grandchild, aunt, uncle, niece or nephew (or any of the ‘step’ or adopted equivalents of those relations)

NOTE: In certain cases, an application for this visa MAY instead be sponsored by a Member of Parliament, or an authorised person representing a government department or instrumentality, or a local government mayor.

  • NOT be the sponsor of another visitor whose visa is still valid (unless that person is a member of your family, and you have the same reason for travelling to Australia), and NOT have within the last 5 years sponsored a visitor who breached his/her visa conditions

Related: Other streams of Visitor visa (subclass 600)

Permissible activities on Visitor visas Visitor visa assessment
Invitation letter for tourist visa
Security Bond:

IF REQUIRED, your sponsor must also pay a security bond (usually between A$5000 and A$15,000). This will be refunded to your sponsor provided you comply with your visa conditions and leave Australia before your visa expires.

The visa may be granted for up to 12 months

Costs (Visa Application Charge):

AUD190.00. DHA might ask your sponsor to pay a security bond.

With this visa you can
  • visit family or friends
  • cruise or have a holiday
  • study or train for up to 3 months

You should check if a Visitor (subclass 600) visa in the Tourist stream might better suit you. The Visitor visa (subclass 600) Tourist stream visa also lets you visit Australia to see family and friends and does not require a sponsor.

You must
  • have a sponsor
  • intend to come to Australia as a visitor only

Related: