All posts by Alan Collett

Parent Visa Grant Numbers – Year to 30 June 2024

We have received details of the number of Australian parent visas granted during the year to 30 June 2024.

The number of visa grants (with the number of visa refusals in brackets) was as follows:

Contributory Parent visas – 7,111 (535)

Non Contributory Parent visas – 1,709 (240)

TOTAL – 8,820 (775)

The total number of Contributory Parent visa applications cleared in the year to 30 June 2024 (ie granted plus refused) was therefore 7,646 – which is less than the total number of such applications lodged in May and June 2017.

As those who closely watch Contributory Parent visa processing will know, a large number of applications for these visas were lodged in May and June 2017, with most of the last processing year taken up with clearing just those two months of visa applications.

The Department of Home Affairs is now substantially through processing June 2017 applications, with applications held over into this month now being granted (we have had a 21 June 2017 subclass 143 visa application granted today, after the main Visa Application Charge was paid on 17 June 2024).

With the non Contributory Parent visa applications it is noteworthy that most of the visa grants were to subclass 103 applicants (1,581); only 128 visas were granted to subclass 804 visa applicants.

The number of subclass 870 visa applications granted in the year to 30 June 2024 was 3,734, with 110 refusals.

Note: Contributory Parent visa applications are made under subclasses 143, 173, 864, and 884.

The number of grants in the year to 30 June 2024 for each subclass was:

143 – 6,438

173 – 292

864 – 374

884 – 7

 

New Visa Application Charges for 2024_25

New Visa Application Charges are effective from today (1 July 2024).
 
Charges for 1st VACs (payable when the visa application is submitted) have been increased in line with the Consumer Price Index (CPI), rounded to the nearest $5.
 
New VACs for the most commonly encountered parent visa subclasses are:
 
  • 143 – $4,895 for the main visa applicant, plus $1,650 for a secondary visa applicant.
  • 864 – $4,895 for the main visa applicant, plus $2,445 for a secondary visa applicant.
  • 804 – $5,125 for the main visa applicant, plus $2,565 for a secondary visa applicant.
  • 870 – $1,180 for each visa applicant
There is no increase in the 2nd VAC (which is payable immediately prior to visa grant) for 143s, 864, and 804s.
 
The 2nd VAC for subclass 870 visas has been increased to $10,605 for a 5 year visa, and to $4,715 for a 3 year visa.
 
These VACs apply to parent visa applications lodged from 1 July 2024.

Parent Visa Numbers are Capped for the Year to 30 June 2024

A Legislative Instrument has been published by Australia’s Immigration Minister that caps the number of visas that can be granted to parents in the program year to 30 June 2024 as follows:
  • Contributory Parent visas – 6,800
  • Non Contributory Parent visas – 1,700
Of these totals some 112 Contributory Parent visas can be granted to Retiree pathway applicants; 13 can be granted to non-Contributory Parent visa applicants by Retirees.
 
Retiree pathway applicants are those who are applying under the pathway that is available to subclass 410 and 405 visa applicants.

Parent visas – The number of visas granted to date

Following a Freedom of Information request we have received the following information from the Department of Home Affairs regarding the number of parent visas granted during the current program year through to the end of February 2024 – ie from 1 July 2023 to 29 Feb 2024.

  Number Granted Number Refused
Contributory Parent Visas (CPVs) 4,624 308
Non Contributory Parent Visas 1,231 203
Subclass 870, Sponsored Parent Temporary 2,672 70

The parent visa program planning level (which excludes subclass 870) for the year to 30 June 2024 is for 8,500 visa grants, so if this is to be achieved there are some 2,624 parent visas available for grant in the 4 months to the end of June 2024.

In recent years there has been a tendency for the number of parent visas granted during a program year to come in at a few hundred less than the planning level – watch this blog for the actual numbers for the full year in the coming months.

Renewing Subclass 870 Visas – The 90 Day Conundrum

Many individuals apply for subclass 870 Sponsored Parent Temporary visas while they are waiting for permanent residency visas to be granted under subclass 143, Contributory Parent.

Subclass 870 visas are granted with a 3 year or a 5 year validity.

With processing times for subclass 143 visa applications now taking substantially longer than was anticipated when the applications were lodged – and was indicated by the Department of Home Affairs at that time – subclass 870 visa holders are now having to renew the visa because their permanent residency visa is not going to be granted within the validity period of their present 870 visa.

A practical problem facing those intending to renew their 870 visa is the need for most to be outside Australia for at least 90 days before applying.

This is what the Migration Regulations relevantly say:

870.223

(1)  If:

(a) the applicant is outside Australia at the time of application; and

(b) the applicant previously held a Subclass 870 visa; and

(c) there are no exceptional circumstances;

the applicant has been outside Australia for at least 90 consecutive days since the relevant departure day of the applicant.

(2)  The relevant departure day of an applicant is:

(a) if the applicant was in Australia when the last Subclass 870 visa held by the applicant ceased to be in effect—the first day on which the applicant left Australia after that visa ceased to be in effect; or

(b) if the applicant was not in Australia when the last Subclass 870 visa held by the applicant ceased to be in effect—the last day on which the applicant left Australia while that visa was in effect.

Permissions to apply onshore – ie when in Australia – for an initial subclass 870 visa were being approved during the Covid period when the border was closed.

However, such permissions are no longer being approved generally.

Department of Home Affairs policy guidance in this regard says:

Permission may be given to apply while in Australia in exceptional circumstances, such as an accident or serious illness which means the person cannot depart Australia to apply outside Australia.

There are no criteria in the Regulations in relation to approval of requests for permission to apply in Australia. The Minister has an unfettered discretion to give permission and all requests for permission must be considered on their merits. However, as indicated above, the policy intention is that permission will only be granted in exceptional cases, which would usually be where the parent is unable to depart Australia. The general expectation is that parents must apply for the Subclass 870 visa from outside Australia.

A request for permission to apply in Australia may be approved if the parent is unable to depart Australia, due to, for example:

  • an accident or serious illness (there should be medical evidence provided with the request); or
  • a natural disaster preventing travel to parent’s home country (e.g. ongoing ash cloud due to a volcanic eruption, pandemic or war).

On the other hand, a request for permission to apply in Australia should generally not be approved if the only reason for the request is that:

  • the parent does not want to travel overseas because of the cost and inconvenience including situations where a prospective visa applicant would simply prefer to remain in Australia for family related reasons (eg because a family member is due to give birth). In this case it is the responsibility of the parent to apply for and be granted a different visa if they seek to remain in Australia, before departing and re-applying for a further temporary parent visa offshore;
  • departure of the parent is not convenient for the sponsor;
  • the prospective visa applicant has sold their assets in their home country, and set themselves up in Australia in anticipation of being able to apply for and be granted another visa without leaving Australia;
  • the prospective visa applicant has failed to meet the permanent visa health requirement in relation to another visa application

A request for permission to apply in Australia should be supplemented with detailed information outlining the circumstances that are relevant to the request. 

A question to be asked by those whose subclass 870 visa is about to expire is therefore: do I need another subclass 870 visa?

Key to answering this is the reasonably expected timeline for the subclass 143 visa to be granted.

In this regard our contributory parent visa processing time calculator may be helpful to provide an indicative timeline of when the subclass 143 visa will be granted.

If there is a reasonable expectation of subclass 143 visa grant within 12 to 15 months of your subclass 870 visa expiring and you want to spend substantially all of that time in Australia you might reasonably look to a 12 month visitor visa under subclass 600.

If the processing time for the 143 visa grant is longer than this and you cannot leverage the exceptional circumstances provisions discussed above you should plan to have an extended holiday outside Australia of at least 3 months.

The sponsor application would be prepared in the last few weeks of one’s time in Australia – recall here that a new family sponsor approval application cannot be submitted while an existing family sponsorship is ongoing.

Family sponsorships are presently taking some 6 to 8 weeks to be approved.

The subclass 870 visa application would then be lodged, after which one can return to Australia on (say) a 3 month visitor visa (subclass e651, if available) while awaiting a decision on the 870 visa application.

Remember than you can be in Australia when a subclass 870 visa is granted.

At the moment visa applications under subclass 870 are also taking 6 to 8 weeks to be processed to a decision.

Clearly there are several logistical issues to address in this situation.  

Go Matilda Parent Visas will be delighted to support existing subclass 870 visa holders who need help renewing their subclass 870 visas.

Please complete the enquiry form on this web page if you think you will need help with your subclass 870 visa renewal and would like a free initial chat.