143 Parent Visa

The 143 visa allows parents of an Australian citizen, permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen to live in Australia permanently

At least half of the applicant’s children must live in Australia or the applicant must have more children living in Australia than in any other country.

With this visa, you can:

• Live in Australia permanently

• Work and study in Australia

• Access Australia’s public healthcare system, Medicare

• Sponsor eligible family members to come to Australia

• Travel to and from Australia for five years

• Attend free English language classes through the Adult Migrant English Program (if eligible)

• Apply for Australian citizenship (if eligible)

You must

• Have an eligible child who is a settled Australian citizen, permanent resident, or eligible New Zealand citizen

• Comply with all relevant visa conditions and Australian laws

• Not have previously applied for, or currently hold, a Sponsored Parent (Temporary) Visa (Subclass 870) at the time of application

If you hold a Contributory Parent (Temporary) (subclass 173) visa

You can apply for the subclass 143 visa through a two-step process by first obtaining a Contributory Parent (Temporary) (subclass 173) visa. This approach allows you to spread the cost of the visas over several years.

Additionally, you have already met the balance of family test.

Apply for a Parent visa (subclass 143) as a retiree

If you apply for the subclass 143 visa as a retiree, you do not have to:

• Meet the balance of family test
• Have a sponsor or provide an assurance of support

How long you can stay

This is a permanent visa that allows you to stay in Australia indefinitely.

For citizenship purposes, your permanent residency begins on the following days:

• The day we grant the visa if you are in Australia
• The day you enter Australia on this visa if you are outside Australia

Include Family

You can include members of your family unit in your application when you apply.

You are required to provide details of all your family members, regardless of whether they are migrating with you or not.

Family members applying for the visa must meet our health and character requirements. Additionally, family members who are not coming to Australia may also need to meet these requirements.

If you apply for this visa as a retiree:

• You can include your partner in your application, provided they are also a retiree.
• You cannot include your children in your application.

Apply from

You can apply for the visa while either in or outside Australia.

If you apply from within Australia, all family members applying with you must also be in Australia (but not in immigration clearance) at the time of your application. Conversely, if you apply from outside Australia, all accompanying family members must also be outside Australia when you apply.

If you are applying as a retiree, you must be in Australia (but not in immigration clearance) at the time of your application. You can be either in or outside Australia when we make a decision on your application.

Assessment

We assess applications for this visa in two stages:

1. Initial Assessment: We check your eligibility and either add your application to the queue or refuse it.
2. Further Assessment: We continue evaluating your application when a place becomes available and make a decision.

Please do not arrange to move to Australia until your visa has been granted. We will notify you in writing if your visa is approved.

Your obligations

You must enter Australia before the date specified in your grant letter, which is typically set at 12 months from the date of visa grant.

You and your family members are required to meet all visa conditions and adhere to Australian laws.

For details on the conditions that may be attached to this visa, please refer to our visa conditions page.

Meet the balance-of-family test

You must meet the balance-of-family test. You satisfy this requirement if:

• At least half of your children and stepchildren are eligible children, or
• There are more eligible children living in Australia than in any other single country.

For examples of how the balance-of-family test is applied, please see our resources.

If you apply for this visa as a retiree, you do not need to meet the balance-of-family test.

If you hold a Contributory Parent (subclass 173) (Temporary) visa, you have already met the balance-of-family test.

Health Requirement

You and any family members applying for the visa with you must meet our health requirements.

We may also require that other non-migrating family members fulfill these health requirements.

Character Requirement

You and any family members applying for the visa with you must meet our character requirements.

We may also request that other non-migrating family members meet this requirement.