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Contributory Parent (Temporary)

visa (subclass 173)
http://www.immi.gov.au/Visas/
Pages/173.aspx
Features
This visa lets parents live in Australia for up to two years if they are the parents of an Australian citizen,
permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen who is settled in Australia.
You can apply separately for a permanent Contributory Parent visa (subclass 143) to stay in Australia
permanently.
Requirements
You might be able to get this visa if you:
are sponsored
meet the balance-of-family test
are prepared to pay much higher visa application charges for faster
processing.
Apply Now
About this visa
The Contributory Parent (Temporary) visa (subclass 173) lets parents who are outside Australia live in
Australia for up to two years if they are the parents of an Australian citizen, permanent resident or eligible New
Zealand citizen who is settled in Australia.
This visa is temporary and cannot be extended or renewed. After arriving in Australia, you have two years to
apply for a Contributory Parent visa (subclass 143). In this way, you can spread the costs of the Contributory
Parent migration over a number of years.
Most applicants must be sponsored by their child. Your sponsor needs to have lived lawfully in Australia for the
two years before the application is lodged.
You can apply for this visa only if you are outside Australia. If you are in Australia, you can only apply if your
temporary visa allows you to apply for another visa while you are in Australia. You must be outside Australia
when the visa is decided.
More information
More information is available from the Parent Migration booklet.
What this visa lets you do
This is a temporary visa that lets you and your family:
live in Australia for two years
work and study in Australia
enrol in Medicare Australia's scheme for health-related care and
expenses.
If you are granted this visa, you will have two years to apply for a permanent Contributory Parent visa
(subclass 143).
Before you apply
Contributory Parent visas are more expensive than most other visas. This is because many families wanted a
faster visa process, and they were prepared to pay more towards their family members health and welfare
costs in Australia. Visa charges cannot be waived or reduced.
You have other options, including:
the Contributory Parent visa (subclass 143), which provides a direct
pathway to permanent residence but involves paying all the Contributory
Parent costs in one application.
the Parent visa (subclass 103), which offers lower charges but has limited
places available and a wait time up to 13 years.
Tourist visa
If you have been granted a Tourist visa (subclass 676) or Visitor visa (subclass 600) through ministerial
intervention you should contact one of our offices - attention the Parent Visa Centre - to discuss your
circumstances.
Your passport
If you plan to get a new passport, you should do so before applying for your visa. Your visa is linked to the
passport number you use in your application. If you get a new passport after you have lodged your application,
you must give the details of your new passport to the Parent Visa Centre.
No further stay condition
You cannot apply for this visa if you already hold another visa that has a No further stay condition.
Contact us if you are not sure whether your current visa conditions prevent you from applying for a further visa
while you are in Australia.
Cost
The visa application charges are listed in Fees and charges.
The application charge for this visa is paid in two instalments:
Pay the first instalment when you lodge the application.
The second instalment charge is for each person included in your
application. We will tell you when to pay this second instalment. You
must pay it for us to grant the visa.
Other costs
You might have to pay other costs, such as the costs of health assessments and police certificates, or any
other certificates or tests. You are responsible for making the necessary arrangements.
Visa applicants
This information tells you what you need to do to get a Contributory Parent (Temporary) visa (subclass 173).
You can lodge an application for this visa only if you are outside Australia. If you are in Australia, you can only
apply if your temporary visa allows you to apply for another visa while you are in Australia. You must be
outside Australia when the visa is decided.
Who could get this visa
You might be able to get a Contributory Parent (Temporary) visa (subclass 173) if you:
have a child who is:
o an Australian citizen, an Australian permanent resident or an
eligible New Zealand citizen
o lawfully resident in Australia for at least two years (a shorter
period can be considered for Australian citizens if there are
compelling and compassionate circumstances)
have a sponsor
meet the balance-of-family test
meet health and character requirements.
Your sponsor
You must be sponsored by an Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen.
The sponsor needs to have been living lawfully in Australia for at least two years before you apply for this visa.
For most applicants, your child or your child's spouse or de facto partner will need to sponsor you.
If your child is younger than 18 years of age you can be sponsored by:
your child's spouse, if the spouse has turned 18 and is a settled
Australian citizen, permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen
a relative or guardian of your child
a relative or guardian of your child's spouse, if the spouse has turned 18
and is a settled Australian citizen, permanent resident or eligible New
Zealand citizen
a community organisation.
More information about sponsoring is available in the 'Sponsors tab.
Health requirements
You must meet certain health requirements. The results are usually valid for 12 months. Do not arrange a
health examination until we ask you to.
This also applies to all dependent family members included in your application, whether they are migrating or
not.
Character requirements
You must meet certain character requirements. You must be prepared to provide a police certificate from each
country you have lived in for 12 months or more during the past 10 years after you turned 16 years of age. Do
not arrange for police certificates until we ask you to.
This also applies to all dependent family members in the application who are 16 years of age or older.
Debts to the Australian Government
You must have no outstanding debts to the Australian Government or have arranged to repay any outstanding
debts to the Australian Government before this visa can be granted.
Provide biometrics
You might be asked to provide biometrics (a scientific form of identification) as part of the application.
Countries and visa subclasses included in the biometrics program has more information.
Balance-of-family test
The balance-of-family test measures your ties to Australia. You meet this requirement if either:
at least half of your children live permanently in Australia
more of your children live permanently in Australia than in any other
country.
You must meet this requirement to be granted this visa. It cannot be waived, even in compelling or exceptional
circumstances.
The table below gives some examples of families with different numbers of children and whether they would
pass the balance-of-family test.
Total number
of children
Number of children
usually living in
Australia
Number of children usually living in
countries other than Australia Meets balance
of family test
Country A Country B Country C Country D
1 1 - - - - Yes
2 1 1 - - - Yes
3 1 2 - - - No
3 1 1 1 - - No
4 2 2 - - - Yes
4 1 1 1 1 - No
4 1 2 1 - - No
5 1 1 1 1 1 No
5 2 1 1 1 - Yes
5 3 2 - - - Yes
6 2 2 2 - - No
We do not assess the nature of your relationship with your children.
If you do not know where your children are, we consider that they are in the country in which they were last
known to live.
To be counted as usually living in Australia, your children must be one of the following:
Australian citizens
Australian permanent residents who usually live in Australia
eligible New Zealand citizens who usually live in Australia.
If your children are in Australia on a temporary visa (such as a Student visa), they are counted as usually
living outside Australia.
Your and your partner's children, including stepchildren and adopted children, are counted in the balance-of-
family test, unless they:
are deceased
are removed from their parents' legal custody by adoption or court order
are registered by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
(UNHCR) as refugees and live in a camp operated by the UNHCR
live in a country where they suffer persecution or human rights abuse
and cannot be reunited with their parents in another country.
A stepchild is either:
your current partners child, or
younger than 18 years of age and the legal responsibility of you or your
partner and:
o the child of your former partner, or
o the child of a former partner of your current partner.
Stepchildren born from polygamous or concurrent relationships are not recognised in Australia and so they
cannot be counted in the balance-of-family test.
Including family in your application
You can include the following people in your visa application:
your partner (married or de facto)
your or your partners dependent children
other dependent relatives.
These family members must meet the requirements for including family members in your application. The
application must include documentary evidence of their relationship to you.
Your family members must be able to show that they meet health and character requirements.
How to apply
This information explains what you need to do to apply for a Contributory Parent (Temporary) visa (subclass
173).
You can apply for this visa outside Australia. If you are in Australia, you can only apply if your temporary visa
allows you to apply for another visa while you are in Australia. You must be outside Australia when the visa is
decided.
Prepare your documents
You need to provide documents to prove the claims you make in the application. The documents are listed in
the Document checklist.
Some documents could take some time to obtain. You should have them ready when you lodge the application
to reduce any delays in processing.
Lodge your application
You must complete an application form:
Form 47PA Application for migration to Australia by a parent (525 kB
PDF).
Your sponsor must also complete:
Form 40 Sponsorship for migration to Australia (251 kB PDF).
For each dependent relative aged 18 years or older, (whether they are migrating or not) you must also
complete:
Form 47A Details of child or other dependent family member aged 18
years or over (238 kB PDF).
The forms must be completed in English. You must provide all relevant documents and pay the first visa
application charge when you apply. You can pay by credit card, bank cheque or money order made payable to
the Department of Immigration and Border Protection.
Lodge your application by post or courier to the Perth office in Western Australia - attention Parent Visa Centre.
Email enquiry form
Parent Visa Centre Enquiry Form
Have you already applied for another type of Parent visa?
If you have an unfinalised application for any other type of parent visa (for example, Parent visa (subclass
103)) and want to switch to this visa, you must withdraw the other visa application at the same time or before
you apply for the subclass 173 visa. Further information is available on Form 47PA Application for migration
to Australia by a parent (525 kB PDF).
More information
There is more information to help you prepare your application, such as certifying and translating documents
into English, communicating with us, using a migration agent, authorising another person to receive
information from us, and receiving assistance with your application.
After you have applied
After you have lodged the application and documents, we will let you know that we have received your
information.
When the visa is ready to be granted, you will be asked to pay the second visa application charge.
Wait for a decision
We process applications for this visa in the order in which they are lodged, subject to service standards.
Applications for this visa are currently not subject to capping. Based on current planning levels, the processing
time is 12 to 24 months depending on your circumstances. Currently, there are enough places to cater for
demand for these visas.
Once a case officer has been assigned, we assess your application to check whether you qualify for this visa
(including health and character requirements).
If you qualify for the visa, we will ask for the second instalment of the visa application charge. We then make a
final decision about your visa application.
Provide more information
You can provide more information to us, at any time until a decision is made on the application. If you want to
correct information you provided, use:
Form 1023 Notification of incorrect answer(s) (99 kB PDF).
We could also ask you for more information. You will have to respond by a set date. After that date, we can
make a decision about your application using the information that we have.
If you applied online, you can use your ImmiAccount to submit any additional information to us, including Form
1023.
If another person gives us information that could result in you being refused a visa, we will usually give you
the opportunity to comment on the information.
You might also be interviewed. If you are asked to attend an interview in person, bring your passport or other
identification and any requested documents to the interview.
Report changes in your circumstances
Tell us if your circumstances change. This includes a new residential address, a new passport, or a pregnancy,
birth, divorce, separation, marriage, de facto relationship or death in your family.
You can use the following forms:
Form 929 Change of address and/or passport details (86 kB PDF) if
you move to a new address or change your passport
Form 1022 Notification of changes in circumstances (77 kB PDF) if
there are other changes in your circumstances.
If you applied online, you can use your ImmiAccount to submit these forms.
If you do not provide us with the details of any new passport issued to you, you could experience significant
delays at the airport and may be denied permission to board your plane.
You can send these forms electronically to your case officer via parents@immi.gov.au.
Withdrawing your application
You can withdraw the application at any time before we make a decision. To do this, send us a letter or email
to ask for the withdrawal. Your request must include your full name and date of birth. If you know it, you
should also include the number we gave you when you applied this could be a file reference number, client
ID, or a Transaction Reference Number.
Applicants who are 18 years of age or older must sign the letter of withdrawal or send a separate email or
letter.
You can send your signed letter of withdrawal to your case officer at parents@immi.gov.au.
Visa decision
If the visa is granted, we will let you know:
when you can use the visa
the visa grant number
any conditions attached to the visa.
You will not have a visa label placed in your passport.
If the visa is not granted, we will let you know:
why the visa was refused
your review rights (if any). Where applicable, your sponsor can apply for
the decision to be reviewed
the time limit for lodging an appeal.
Document checklist
You need to provide documents to support your application for this visa. We can make a decision using the
information you provide when you lodge your application. It is in your interest to provide as much information
as possible with your application.
Provide certified copies of original documents. Do not include original documents unless we specifically ask for
them. Police certificates should be original documents. Documents not in English must be accompanied by
accredited English translations.
If you applied online, certified copies of original documents can be scanned and attached to your visa
application through your ImmiAccount.
Use this checklist to make sure your application is complete.
Forms
Form 47PA Application for a parent to migrate to Australia (525 kB
PDF).
Your sponsor must also complete:
Form 40 Sponsorship for migration to Australia (251 kB PDF).
For each dependent relative aged 18 years or older, must complete:
Form 47A Details of child or other dependent family member aged 18
years or over (238 kB PDF).
Charges
Pay the first visa application charge.
Receiving assistance
If someone gives you advice or lodges your application for you, that
person completes:
o Form 956 Advice by a migration agent/exempt person of
providing immigration assistance (135 kB PDF) (the agent or
exempt person completes the form and you must sign it).
If you would like someone to receive correspondence from us on your
behalf, that person completes:
o Form 956a Appointment or withdrawal of an authorised
recipient (120 kB PDF) (the recipient completes the form and
you must sign it).

Your identity
Certified copies of the biographical pages of the current passports or
travel documents that you, your partner and your dependents used to
enter Australia, and of any passports held since then.
If your name has changed or the name of anyone included in your
application has changed: a certified copy of evidence of the name
change.
Your relationships
Certified copies of marriage certificates or relationship registrations for
you and anyone else included in your application, even if they are not
joining you in Australia.
If you are living in a de facto relationship: independent evidence that
your relationship is genuine and continuing (for example, joint bank
account statements, billing accounts in joint names or joint ownership of
major assets).
If you or anyone included in the application has been widowed, divorced
or permanently separated: a certified copy of the death certificate,
divorce documents, or statutory declaration separation documents.
Evidence of financial dependency for all dependants aged 18 or older:
o a certified copy of their birth certificate and proof of their
relationship to you
o if your relative is not your partner: proof the relative lives in
your household
o proof that your relative has been financially dependent on you
for at least the 12 months immediately before you lodge your
application.
Your children
Certified copies of birth certificates or the family book showing the names
of both parents for all your children, even if they are not joining you in
Australia.
If any child is adopted: certified copies of the adoption papers.
If you want to bring a child younger than 18 years of age with you to
Australia, and that childs other parent is not included in the application:
documentary evidence that you have the legal right to bring that child to
Australia, such as:
o certified copies of official legal documents, such as a court-
issued parental responsibility (custody), access or guardianship
order
o statutory declaration giving their permission (80 kB PDF)
o Form 1229 Consent form to grant an Australian visa to a child
under the age of 18 years (125 kB PDF).
If you use Form 1229 or a statutory declaration, you will have to
attach a certified copy of the other parents government-issued
identification document (such as a passport or driver's licence)
with their photograph and signature.
Your sponsor
You must be sponsored by an Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen.
The sponsor needs to have been living lawfully in Australia for at least two years before you apply for this visa.
For most applicants, your child or your child's spouse or de facto partner will need to sponsor you.
If your child is younger than 18 years of age you can be sponsored by:
your child's spouse, if the spouse has turned 18 and is a settled
Australian citizen, permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen
a relative or guardian of your child
a relative or guardian of your child's spouse, if the spouse has turned 18
and is a settled Australian citizen, permanent resident or eligible New
Zealand citizen
a community organisation.
More information about sponsoring is available in the 'Sponsors tab.
Evidence of your relationship to your sponsor, such as certified copies of:
birth certificates
a family book showing family relationships
other acceptable evidence of your relationship.
If your sponsor is a relative, partner or guardian of your child, evidence of this relationship, such as certified
copies of:
birth certificates
a family book showing family relationships
marriage certificates
evidence of guardianship
other acceptable evidence of the relationship between your child and the
sponsor.
If your sponsor is a community organisation:
their certificate of registration
evidence that the organisations representative has authority to act on
behalf of the organisation (for example, the board or management
committees authority)
evidence of their financial capacity to support you after you arrive in
Australia.
Visa holders
This information is for people who have already been granted a Contributory Parent (Temporary) visa (subclass
173). It explains your rights and obligations.
You can use Visa Entitlement Verification Online (VEVO) for free to check your visa details and entitlements.
How long your visa lasts
This visa lets you live in Australia for two years from the date it is granted. It cannot be extended or renewed.
Applying for a permanent visa
Once you have been granted a Contributory Parent (temporary) visa (subclass 173), you can then apply for a
Contributory Parent visa (subclass 143) for a lesser first visa application charge. You must apply before your
temporary visa expires.
What this visa lets you do
This is a temporary visa that lets you and your family:
live in Australia for two years
work and study in Australia
enrol in Medicare Australia's scheme for health-related care and
expenses.
This visa cannot be extended or renewed.
If you are granted this visa, you will have two years to apply for a permanent Contributory Parent visa
(subclass 143).
Your obligations
You and your family must comply with all visa conditions and Australian laws.
Sponsors
This information is for someone who wants to sponsor a parent for a Contributory Parent (Temporary) visa
(subclass 173). You can sponsor more than one parent for this visa.
Who can be a sponsor
You can sponsor your parent for this visa if you are:
18 years of age or older
living lawfully in Australia for at least two years before the visa
application is lodged
one of the following:
o an Australian citizen
o an Australian permanent resident
o an eligible New Zealand citizen.
If you are younger than 18 years of age:
your spouse who is 18 years of age or older, your relative or guardian, or
a relative or guardian of your spouse, can sponsor your parent(s). The
sponsor must be an Australian citizen, an Australian permanent resident
or an eligible New Zealand citizen.
a community organisation can sponsor your parent(s) if:
o they show there is a relationship between their organisation and
you
o a senior representative agrees for their organisation to support
your parent(s) after their arrival in Australia.
Sponsor obligations
As a sponsor you must give a written undertaking to provide support for your parent for their first two years of
residency in Australia. This also applies to any accompanying dependent family members.
During this period, you must provide:
support
accommodation
financial assistance.
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