Home/Australia/Parent Visa Subclass 143 864 Contributory Guide

Contributory Parent Visas

Australia Contributory Parent Visa 2026 | Subclass 143 & 864 Guide

Comprehensive Statutory Overview

The Contributory Parent program provides permanent residence pathways for eligible parents of settled Australian citizens, Australian permanent residents or eligible New Zealand citizens. Subclass 143 is the permanent Contributory Parent visa, while subclass 864 is the permanent Contributory Aged Parent visa for eligible aged parents applying in Australia. Both visas are subject to the Balance of Family Test, sponsorship requirements, health and character criteria and an Assurance of Support. Unlike many skilled and partner visas, Parent visas are subject to annual capping and a queue. The contributory visas generally receive more migration places and therefore can progress through the queue faster than non-contributory parent visas, but they can still involve lengthy waits.

Visa Comparison

Contributory Parent visa

Type: Permanent

Location: Can be applied for in or outside Australia subject to the visa criteria and grant-location rules.

Age: No Australian pension-age requirement applies merely because the applicant is applying for subclass 143.

Pathway: A parent may apply directly for subclass 143 or transition from the temporary subclass 173 where the applicable conditions are met.

Important: A person holding subclass 173 can apply for subclass 143 within the permitted temporary-to-permanent pathway.

Contributory Aged Parent visa

Type: Permanent

Location: Onshore permanent visa category.

Age: Applicant must satisfy the aged-parent requirement in force for the visa. The relevant threshold is linked to Australian pension-age rules.

Pathway: A qualifying parent can apply directly for subclass 864 in Australia or transition from subclass 884 under the temporary-to-permanent pathway where applicable.

Important: The applicant needs to satisfy the onshore visa requirements at the time of application and grant.

Temporary Pathways

Subclass173: Contributory Parent (Temporary) visa that can lead to subclass 143 permanent residence.

Subclass884: Contributory Aged Parent (Temporary) visa that can lead to subclass 864 permanent residence.

TRAnsition Window: Temporary-to-permanent applicants have specific statutory application periods and concessions. The Department's current Form 47PT should be followed for the exact timing.

Balance Of Family Test

Passes If:

At least half of the parent's children and stepchildren are eligible children living in Australia.
There are more eligible children living in Australia than children living in any other single country.

Eligible Child:An eligible child is generally an Australian citizen, an Australian permanent resident usually resident in Australia, or an eligible New Zealand citizen usually resident in Australia.

Children Counted:The Department counts the applicant's and partner's children, including stepchildren and adopted children, subject to the statutory exclusions.

Temporary Visa Children:A child living in Australia on a temporary visa is not counted as usually resident in Australia for the Balance of Family Test.

Cannot Waive:The Department expressly states that the Balance of Family Test cannot be waived, even in compelling or exceptional circumstances.

Examples:

Children: 2 children

Australia: 1

Other Countries: 1

Result: Pass

Children: 3 children

Australia: 1

Country A: 2

Result: Fail

Children: 4 children

Australia: 2

Country A: 2

Result: Pass

Children: 5 children

Australia: 2

Country A: 1

Country B: 1

Country C: 1

Result: Pass

Sponsorship And Assurance

Sponsor

Who Can Sponsor: The sponsor must generally be an eligible settled Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen who is usually resident in Australia.

Settled: The Department assesses whether the sponsor is settled based on the circumstances. A simple universal two-year rule should not be substituted for this assessment.

Relationship: The sponsor can be the applicant's child or another eligible relative in the circumstances permitted by the parent-visa rules.

Sponsorship Application: The sponsor generally lodges the required sponsorship application and provides evidence of identity, Australian status and settlement/residence.

Assurance Of Support

Mandatory: An Assurance of Support is a mandatory requirement for permanent Contributory Parent and Contributory Aged Parent visas.

Period: For permanent Contributory Parent or Contributory Aged Parent visas, the Assurance of Support period runs for 10 years.

Commencement Offshore: Where the visa applicant applied from outside Australia, the 10-year AoS period generally starts from the date the visa holder arrives in Australia.

Commencement Onshore: Where the applicant applied from inside Australia, the 10-year AoS period generally starts from the date the permanent visa is granted.

Bond: The assurer generally must lodge a refundable bond with the Commonwealth Bank through Services Australia.

Liability: The assurer may be required to repay recoverable social-security payments made to the assuree during the AoS period.

Requirements

General:

Meet the Balance of Family Test.
Have an eligible sponsor.
Meet the health requirement.
Meet the character requirement.
Meet the applicable visa-specific family and relationship requirements.
Provide the required Assurance of Support before grant.
Pay the applicable visa application charges and any second instalment required before grant.

Subclass143:

Meet the Contributory Parent visa criteria.
Satisfy the location requirements for application and grant applicable to the particular circumstances.
If transitioning from subclass 173, lodge within the statutory temporary-to-permanent timeframe where required.

Subclass864:

Be in Australia when applying and satisfy the onshore criteria.
Meet the aged-parent requirement applicable to subclass 864.
Hold a substantive or bridging visa that allows the application to be made in Australia.
Meet the requirements applying to the permanent Contributory Aged Parent category.

Health:Parent applicants must satisfy Australia's health requirements. Further health examinations can sometimes be requested even when health examinations were previously completed for the temporary-to-permanent stage.

Character:Applicants and relevant family members must satisfy Australia's character requirements and may need police certificates or other character evidence.

Documents

Core:

Passports and identity documents.
Birth certificates or other evidence establishing parent-child relationships.
Evidence of the sponsor's Australian citizenship, permanent residence or eligible New Zealand citizenship.
Evidence that the sponsor is settled and usually resident in Australia.
Evidence supporting the Balance of Family Test.
Police certificates and character documents where required.
Health examination evidence where requested.
Evidence of payment of applicable visa charges.

Balance Of Family:

Birth certificates for all children and stepchildren.
Evidence of the citizenship or residence status of eligible children.
Evidence of where children are normally resident when required.
Marriage, adoption, custody or other family documents where relevant.

Assurance Of Support:

Assurer identity and Australian residence evidence.
Income and financial information requested by Services Australia.
AoS application information and the sponsor/assurer details requested by the Department.
Evidence of bond payment when the AoS is finalized.

Costs And PRocessing

Visa Charge:Contributory Parent visas have a substantially higher second visa application charge than non-contributory Parent visas. The exact current amount should be taken from Home Affairs' current Visa Pricing Table at the time of payment rather than using an old fixed figure.

Second Installment:The second instalment is generally payable before the permanent visa can be granted and is a substantial component of the total Contributory Parent cost.

Assurance Bond:The AoS bond is separate from the visa application charge. It is generally refundable after the 10-year AoS period, subject to deductions for eligible recoverable Centrelink payments.

Other Costs:

Medical examinations.
Police certificates.
Document translation or legalization where required.
Professional migration advice if obtained.
Travel and other settlement costs.

PRocessing Model

Queue: All Parent visas are subject to capping and queueing.

Order: Applications that satisfy the core criteria are placed in a queue according to their queue date and are generally released in queue-date order when places become available.

May2026: As at 31 May 2026, Home Affairs had released Contributory Parent applications with queue dates up to November 2018 for final processing.

Warning: The queue release date is not the same as a guaranteed individual processing time. Future releases depend on annual planning levels, available places and departmental processing.

Permanent Residence And Rights

Status:Both subclass 143 and subclass 864 are permanent visas.

Work:A permanent parent visa holder can generally live and work in Australia without the work limitations attached to a temporary visa.

Study:Permanent residents can generally study in Australia subject to the applicable education-provider rules.

Medicare:Permanent-resident Medicare eligibility is separate from the visa application process and is determined by Services Australia.

Citizenship:A Contributory Parent visa does not automatically confer Australian citizenship. Citizenship has separate residence and other legal requirements.

Family:The visa provides a permanent residence outcome to the applicant and eligible family members included in the visa where the secondary criteria are satisfied.

Temporary To Permanent

173 To143

Temporary Visa: Subclass 173 is the temporary Contributory Parent visa that can lead to subclass 143 permanent residence.

Application: The permanent application uses the rules and timeframe applicable to a temporary Contributory Parent visa holder.

884 To864

Temporary Visa: Subclass 884 is the temporary Contributory Aged Parent visa that can lead to subclass 864 permanent residence.

Application: The permanent application uses the rules and timeframe applicable to a temporary Contributory Aged Parent visa holder.

Important:Home Affairs' current Form 47PT states that the temporary-to-permanent applications have a limited application period and specific concessions. Applicants should use the current form and Department instructions rather than relying on a generic two-year statement.

Important Rules

Balance Family:The Balance of Family Test is mandatory and cannot be waived.

Temporary Children:Children holding temporary Australian visas are not treated as usually resident in Australia for the Balance of Family Test.

Sponsor Settlement:The sponsor's settlement status is assessed based on circumstances and should not be reduced to an absolute two-year rule.

Queue:A Contributory Parent application is not processed immediately merely because the applicant has paid the high contributory charge. The application enters the capped and queued parent-visa system.

Medicare:Lodging an offshore subclass 143 application does not itself create Medicare eligibility. Medicare depends on separate Services Australia eligibility rules.

Age143864:Subclass 143 and subclass 864 have different visa structures. Subclass 864 is specifically the aged-parent category; subclass 143 is not simply an offshore-only aged-parent visa.

Aos:The Assurance of Support is separate from the sponsorship requirement. The sponsor and the assurer can have different legal roles, and an assurer may be required to meet separate financial and residency criteria.

Second Charge:Do not publish an old second visa application charge as a current 2026 fixed price without checking Home Affairs' live pricing table.

Key Eligibility Requirements & Statutory Criteria

Balance of Family Test

Family Connection Requirement

You must have at least half of your children and stepchildren in Australia as eligible children, or more eligible children in Australia than in any other single country.

Eligible Sponsor

Settled Family Sponsor

The parent generally needs an eligible sponsor who is a settled Australian citizen, permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen and is usually resident in Australia.

Assurance of Support

10-Year Financial Assurance

An Assurance of Support is mandatory for the permanent contributory parent categories. The assurer undertakes financial responsibilities and a refundable bond is lodged with the Commonwealth Bank through Services Australia.

Age for 864

Aged Parent Requirement

Subclass 864 is specifically for applicants who satisfy the aged-parent requirement for the visa. It is not simply an onshore version of subclass 143.

Step-by-Step Application Roadmap

Check Parent Visa Eligibility

Confirm the relationship to the Australian sponsor, Balance of Family Test, health and character requirements and, for subclass 864, the aged-parent criteria.

Confirm Sponsor

Prepare the sponsorship application and establish that the sponsor is an eligible settled Australian citizen, permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen.

Prepare the Parent Application

Collect civil-status, identity, child-residence, sponsorship and other documents and prepare the applicable parent-visa application.

Lodge the Visa

Submit the subclass 143 or 864 application in the location permitted for the visa and applicant's circumstances.

Meet Health and Character Requirements

Complete requested medical examinations, police checks and any other departmental checks.

Complete the Assurance of Support

When requested, the assurer completes the Services Australia AoS assessment and lodges the required refundable bond.

Wait Through the Parent Visa Queue

The Department assesses parent applications through a capped and queued system. A valid application can receive a queue date after the core criteria are assessed.

Frequently Asked Questions (Home Affairs FAQs)

Subclass 143 is the permanent Contributory Parent visa, while subclass 864 is the permanent Contributory Aged Parent visa for qualifying aged parents applying in Australia. They have different location and age-related requirements and should not be treated simply as offshore and onshore versions of the same visa.

Yes. The Balance of Family Test applies to both subclass 143 and subclass 864. You generally pass if at least half your children and stepchildren are eligible children in Australia, or if more eligible children live in Australia than in any other single country. Home Affairs states that this test cannot be waived.

There is no reliable fixed processing time because Parent visas are capped and queued. As at 31 May 2026, Home Affairs had released Contributory Parent applications with queue dates up to November 2018 for final processing. The relevant queue date is therefore much more informative than a generic number of months or years.

For permanent Contributory Parent and Contributory Aged Parent visas, the Assurance of Support period is 10 years. The assurer may need to lodge a refundable bond, and Centrelink can use the bond to recover eligible recoverable payments made during the AoS period.

Do not rely on that historical figure as a current 2026 price. Contributory Parent visas have a substantial second visa application charge, but Home Affairs' current pricing table should be checked at the time the amount is payable because visa charges can change.

Yes. Both subclass 143 and subclass 864 are permanent visas. Once granted, the holder has permanent resident status and can generally live and work in Australia without the temporary-work restrictions that applied before permanent residence.

Official Statutory References

Cross-referenced directly with official Australian government sources:

Australian Department of Home Affairs - About Parent visas

immi.homeaffairs.gov.au

Australian Department of Home Affairs - Balance of Family Test

immi.homeaffairs.gov.au

Australian Department of Home Affairs - Parent visa queue release dates and processing

immi.homeaffairs.gov.au

STATUTORY BENCHMARK METRICS

Subclass 143

Permanent Contributory Parent visa

Subclass 864