The processing time for a visa application that is lodged under the Parent (subclass 103) or the Aged Parent (subclass 804) category is likely to be significant – at the present time we think this will be 30+ years.

All applications under these visa subclasses are assessed in order of lodgement with the Department of Immigration.

About 2 to 3 years after the submission of a visa application (based on present timelines) under subclass 103 or 804 applicants can expect to be asked to attend a medical examination and to arrange a police clearance certificate from each jurisdiction in which the applicant has been present for more than 12 months in the previous 10 years.

Once these health and character requirements have been satisfied the application will be assigned a queue date, and will be placed in the queue for the relevant visa subclass.

The Department of Immigration’s online queue calculator enables Parent and Aged Parent visa applicants with a queue date to determine how many people are ahead of them in the queue.

Applicants can then estimate the approximate time it will take to be considered for the granting of the visa, based on the number of visa grants available for the visa subclass in any one Migration Programme year.

Of course, changes to the number of visa grants in a Program year will affect the length of time an applicant will wait before they will be considered for visa grant.

As those who are applying for subclass 864 Contributory Parent visa applications will be acutely aware, there has been no allocation of applications under this subclass for over 9 months – the last lodgment date allocated for assessment has been stubbornly stuck on the 8th of September 2016 since the end of April 2017.

At that time a reasonable expectation for the processing time of a subclass 864 visa applications was 12 months at most.

Here we are in February 2018, and what can subclass 864 visa applicants reasonably expect?

We have been advised in the last few days to expect “modest progress” with the cohort of subclass 864 applications in the first part of 2018.

Also, that the processing timeline for subclass 864 visa applications is now apparently to be brought closer to that of subclass 143 visa applications – which as many will know has now blown out to over 3 years.

This is patently a change in the prioritisation of Contributory Parent visa applications, which has not – so far as we know – been made known generally.

Indeed, we think it improbable that the result of this decision will be to markedly reduce the timeline for subclass 143 visa applications.

In our opinion keeping applicants in the dark by not advising a change in processing priorities is treating applicants and their advisors with contempt. A lack of transparency antagonises parent visa applicants and their families who are anxiously waiting for some certainty about their loved ones.

The Parent Visa Centre has an auto generated email available to all who send a blank email to parents@homeaffairs.gov.au. Is it unreasonable to ask to be better informed as to processing expectations through this communication channel?

Come on PVC, you can do better than this!

The address for the delivery of parent visa applications has been confirmed in a new Legislative Instrument.

The postal address is:

Parent Visa Centre
Locked Bag 7
NORTHBRIDGE
WA 6865

Courier deliveries are to be sent to:

Parent Visa Centre
Wellington Central
Ground Floor
836 Wellington Street
WEST PERTH
WA 6005

Parent visa applications (including Contributory Parent visa applications) must be sent to the correct address.

The Department of Immigration has released information about the number of visas granted during the 2016/17 program year – ie for the year to 30 June 2017.

Disappointingly, the number of parent visas actually granted during that year was some 1,112 less than had been announced by the Department when the migration program was announced at the start of the program year.

This represents a 13% shortfall in the number of visas granted, which in our experience is an unprecedented failure to deliver the program of parent visas.

We have not seen any other announcements regarding program numbers, so we are seeking an explanation from Canberra as to what has led to this outcome.

At a time when there is such a high demand for parent visas it is most disappointing to learn of such a shortfall.

Indeed, based on second Visa Application Charges alone 1,112 visas represents over A$40m in revenues foregone by the Australian Government.

Detailed numbers for 2016/17

• Non contributory parent visas
  • Budgeted – 1,500
  • Actual – 1,345
• Contributory parent visas
  • Budgeted – 7,175
  • Actual – 6,218

Is it perhaps that the Australian Government is slowing down the granting of parent visas to encourage more to take up the temporary parent visa when it becomes available?

For reference, the number of parent visas included in the migration program for 2017/18 is the same as was budgeted in 2016/17.

As we await the much anticipated introduction of the new temporary parent visa – scheduled for introduction this month – it is a good time to summarise what we know about the obligations and requirements to be met by a child who is to sponsor a new temporary parent visa application.

The Department of Immigration has already advised that the sponsor will need to:

• Be a biological, adoptive, or a step-child of their parent
• Provide valid evidence of their identity
• Be an Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident, or eligible New Zealand citizen
• Be 18 years or older
• Have lived in Australia for at least four years
• Meet a household income requirement
• Meet character requirements – ie provide police clearance certificates
• Accept legal liability for any outstanding public health debt their sponsored parent accrues

In respect of the character requirements we anticipate that these will follow the changes that were introduced for partner and prospective marriage visa applicants in November 2016.

Before the new visa is introduced some legislation is also required to become law.   This is presently sitting in the Upper House (the Senate) in the form of the Migration Amendment (Family Violence and Other Measures) Bill 2016.

Among other things, this Bill will separate the role of the sponsor from the visa applicant, such that once it becomes law the sponsor of a parent visa will be required to be approved by the Department of Immigration before the visa application is lodged.

At the present time the application for approval of sponsorship by the child of a parent visa applicant is lodged at the same time as the parent visa application.

We are also expecting that for the new temporary parent visa the application for approval as a sponsor and the subsequent visa application by the parent will be submitted to the Department of Immigration electronically.

Check back here regularly at the Go Matilda Parent Visas Blog for more information about Australian’s new temporary visa for parents!