Family Migration

Bringing a partner or family?

You might want to bring your partner or family over to join you temporarily or permanently in Australia.
How you do this will depend on whether you are a visa holder or not, and if you are visa holder, which visa you have

Australian citizens or permanent residents inviting family:

Identify if it is going to be temporarily or permanently
Explore visa options for joining your partner or family through
https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-finder/join-family

Visa holders inviting family:

Identify if it is going to be temporarily or permanently
Check if your visa allows subsequent entrant and that you have previously declared the members of your family. See the list of all visas
If your visa does not allow subsequent entrants, they will need to apply for a visa based on their intention. Explore visa options for joining your partner or family through
https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-finder/join-family

Returning Australian bringing overseas-born family:

For your children to get an Australian passport you will need to apply for Australian citizenship by descent on their behalf. You can apply for an Australian passport on their behalf after their citizenship application is approved. Otherwise, they will need a visa to come to Australia
Your partner or other families11 will need a visa
Explore your visa options:

https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-finder/join-family

New Zealand citizens bringing family:

Find out your options in New Zealand citizens

https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/entering-and-leaving-australia/new-zealand-citizens

Sponsored Parent (Temporary) visa (subclass 870):

Applications to sponsor a parent for a Sponsored Parent (Temporary) visa opened on 17 April 2019.
Once a sponsorship application is approved, a sponsored parent is able to apply for a Sponsored Parent (Temporary) visa. Applications for the visa opened on 1 July 2019.
The visa provides parents with a new pathway to temporarily reunite with their children in Australia while ensuring that taxpayers are not required to cover additional costs. The visa responds to community concerns about the limited number of Parent places in the migration program and associated lengthy waiting periods.
To be eligible for the visa, a parent must be the biological parent, legal parent (including an adoptive parent), step-parent or parent-in-law of the sponsor, who must be an Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident, or eligible New Zealand citizen.
With this visa you can visit Australia for up to 3 or 5 years per visa, can apply for further visas to visit up to a maximum period in Australia of 10 years, cannot work in Australia
You must:
- have an approved Parent Sponsor before you can lodge an application for this visa
- apply online for this visa
- lodge your visa application within 6 months of the sponsorship approval, or 60 days if you are given Permission to Apply in Australia
You can Stay longer:
- You can stay for a cumulative maximum of 10 year period.
- You cannot stay in Australia longer by extending this visa. You must apply for another visa.
- You must be outside Australia for at least 90 days before being eligible to be granted another Sponsored Parent (Temporary) visa unless you have Permission to Apply in Australia.
- If you have held Sponsored Parent (Temporary) visas for the cumulative maximum 10 year period, you must either depart Australia or apply for another kind of visa that will allow you to remain in Australia. You will not be eligible for grant of a further Sponsored Parent (Temporary) visa.