It can be applied, if the child is:

• Sponsored by their parent or their parent’s partner
• Single
• Younger than 18 years of age, or
• A full-time student between 18 and 25 years of age, or
• 18 or older and unable to work due to a disability and dependent on the sponsoring parent

The child can include their own dependent children in this application.

Who Can Sponsor The Child?

• A parent who must be an Australian citizen
• The holder of an Australian permanent resident visa or an eligible New Zealand citizen
• The spouse or de facto partner of the child’s parent can also sponsor the child

You can also sponsor a child if you are:

• A step-parent who is no longer the partner of the child’s parent but has a legal responsibility to care for the child and the child is younger than 18 years of age
• An adoptive parent who adopted the child before you became an Australian citizen, the holder of an Australian permanent resident visa, or eligible New Zealand citizen

You do not need to be in Australia at the time of application. You can still be a sponsoring parent if you:

• Entered Australia in the past but are outside Australia when you lodge the application
• Have been granted your Australian permanent resident visa but have not yet entered Australia

In case of an adoption of a child after you became an Australian citizen, the holder of an Australian permanent resident visa or eligible New Zealand citizen, application for an Adoption visa (subclass 102) can be submitted.

Parental responsibility

This visa can be granted only if you can show one of the following for a child younger than 18 years of age:

• You have the written consent of each person who can legally decide where the child lives
• The laws of the child’s home country permit the removal of the child
• It is consistent with any Australian child order

It is important that while you are applying for this visa, you refer the document checklist thoroughly as it provides you with the information of all the documents that you must provide to substantiate your visa claims.

Other basic requirements

Australian immigration system has created what is called measures for protection of the child. It documents things that are assessed to grant this visa as this visa will not usually be granted if it is against the best interests of a child younger than 18 years of age.

Other requirements are:

• Authorities may ask for an assurance of support for the child so that welfare costs for some migrants are not borne by the Australian community. This however needs to be provided only if and when asked for
• The child must meet certain health requirements. The results are usually valid for 12 months. This also applies to any dependent family members included in your application, whether they are migrating or not
• A child older than 16 years of age must meet certain character requirements. They must be prepared to provide a police certificate from each country they have lived in for 12 months or more during the past 10 years after they turned 16 years of age. Police certificate needs to be provided only when asked for
• The child must have no outstanding debts to the Australian Government or have arranged to repay any outstanding debts to the Australian Government
• The child might be asked to provide biometrics as part of the application

What this visa lets you do

This is a permanent residence visa. It allows the child to:

• Travel to and stay in Australia indefinitely
• Work and study in Australia
• Enroll in Medicare, Australia’s scheme for health-related care and expenses
• Apply for Australian citizenship (if they are eligible)
• Sponsor eligible relatives for permanent residence
• Travel to and from Australia for five years from the date the visa is granted – after that time they will need another visa to enter Australia.