Other Family Visas

Child visa (subclass 101)

This visa allows a child who is outside Australia to come to Australia to live with their parents

Eligibility

The child must be single.

Special age requirements apply.

Length of stay

Permanently

To get this visa, the child must be:

• 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.

The sponsoring parent

The child’s sponsoring parent 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.

The child’s relationship with the sponsor

The child must be:

• the biological child or adopted child of the sponsoring parent
• a step child who has not turned 18 of a step-parent who is no longer the partner of the child’s parent but has a legal responsibility to care for the child.

An adopted child must have been adopted before their parent became an Australian citizen or the holder of an Australian permanent resident visa or an eligible New Zealand citizen.

Best interests of the child

This visa will not usually be granted if it is against the best interests of a child younger than 18 years of age.

Age

The child must be under 25 years of age, but if 18 years of age or over must be a full-time student and dependent on their sponsoring parent. The only exception to the age limit and full-time student requirement is where the child has a disability that stops them from working.

Health

The child must meet certain health requirements. The results are usually valid for 12 months. This also applies to any member of your family unit included in your application, whether they are migrating or not.

Character

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. Do not arrange for police certificates until we ask you to.

This applies to you and all members of your family unit listed in your application, whether they are migrating or not.

Debts to the Australian Government

The child must have no outstanding debts to the Australian Government or have arranged to repay any outstanding debts to the Australian Government.

Location

The child must be outside Australia when the application is lodged and when the application is decided.

Family members

You might be able to include your child in the visa application.

Any children included in the visa application must meet the requirements for including family members in your application.

The application must include documentary evidence of their relationship to you.

Children who are included as members of your family unit must be able to show that they meet health and character requirements.

Your siblings will need to lodge their own application.

The child’s obligations

The child must comply with all Australian laws and all visa conditions. This includes:

• entering Australia by a set date
• not getting married or entering into a de facto relationship before arriving in Australia.

You must tell us in writing if circumstances change in a way that could affect the child’s eligibility for a visa, or your eligibility to sponsor the child.

Sponsors

Who can sponsor a child?

To sponsor a child for this visa you must be:

• the parent (or their partner) or step-parent of the child
• older than 18 years of age

You must also be either:

• an Australian citizen
• the holder of an Australian permanent resident visa
• an eligible New Zealand citizen.

You can 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.

A child who was adopted after you became an Australian citizen, the holder of an Australian permanent resident visa or eligible New Zealand citizen, might be able to apply for an Adoption visa (subclass 102).

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.

The documents you must provide with your application to support this claim are listed under the Follow these steps tab.

Character

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.

Assurance of support

We might ask for an assurance of support for the child so that welfare costs for some migrants are not borne by the Australian community.

Do not provide an assurance of support unless we ask for one and tell you what you need to do.

Sponsorship obligations

As a sponsor you must:

• be responsible for the cost to the Australian Government of the child living in Australia
• provide adequate accommodation and enough financial support to meet the child’s reasonable living needs for their first two years in Australia
• help the child settle in Australia
• support the child to attend any required English language class.

You must tell DHA in writing if circumstances change in a way that could affect the child’s eligibility for a Child visa, or your eligibility to sponsor the child.

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