Before an application can be submitted for a subclass 870 Temporary Sponsored Parent visa an approved family sponsorship must be in place.
A key requirement to be satisfied is the income test.
The Legislative Instrument that is currently in effect requires evidence to be provided that confirms taxable income of an amount that is at least A$83,454.80.
This income does not have be solely that of the sponsoring child. Migration Regulations allow the following to be aggregated:
- The taxable income of the sponsor
- The spouse or de facto partner of the sponsor
- One additional child of the sponsored visa applicant, so long as the child is an Australian citizen, an Australian permanent resident, or an eligible New Zealand citizen
Where income of a spouse/de facto partner and/or an additional child is being considered the taxable income of the sponsor must be at least one-half of the specified amount – ie A$41,727.40 presently.
It should also be noted that the requirement is to be met for the income tax year preceding that in which the family sponsor application is submitted.
This means that those looking to submit an application for approval as a family sponsor currently (July 2019) will need to submit their 2019 Australian tax return at the earliest opportunity as the 2019 Tax Assessment Notice will be needed to satisfy the income test.
A Tax Assessment Notice is usually available within a few days of the annual personal tax return being submitted to the Australian Taxation Office.
The author of this article is a registered tax agent as well as a registered migration agent. He will be happy to discuss the practicalities of the tax assessment process if you are interested in sponsoring a subclass 870 visa application – please feel able to complete the enquiry form on this page for a free initial discussion.
