The Contributory Parent visas — subclass 143 (permanent) and subclass 173 (temporary, 2-year stage) — allow the parents of settled Australian citizens, permanent residents, and eligible New Zealand citizens to migrate to Australia permanently. These visas are part of Australia's Family Migration program and are processed as a capped and queued category — meaning the number of places granted each year is limited by the annual migration program allocation, and applications wait in a queue in lodgement-date order until a place becomes available.

The "contributory" aspect reflects the higher visa application charge — parents pay a significantly higher fee than under the non-contributory parent visa streams (subclass 103 and 804), in recognition of the higher long-term cost to Australia of the parent's likely access to social services and health care. For current queue release dates and processing times, refer to the DHA parent visa queue release dates page.

• Migration Act 1958 and Migration Regulations 1994 — Subclass 143 and 173 criteria
• DHA: Subclass 143 Contributory Parent visa — immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/contributory-parent-143
• DHA: Subclass 173 Contributory Parent (Temporary) visa — immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/contributory-parent-173
• DHA: Balance of family test — immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/balance-of-family-test
• DHA: Parent visas — queue release dates and processing times — immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/parent-visa-queue

Who can sponsor a parent

To sponsor a parent for a Contributory Parent visa, the child (the sponsor) must be:

• An Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident, or an eligible New Zealand citizen who is settled in Australia
• At least 18 years of age
• Able to provide the required Assurance of Support

The balance of family test

The parent (and their partner, if applying together) must pass the balance of family test. This test assesses whether the parent's family ties are more strongly connected to Australia than to any other single country. The test is passed if:

• At least half of the parent's children are settled in Australia — or more of the parent's children are settled in Australia than in any other single country; OR
• The parent's only remaining child is settled in Australia

All of the parent's children are counted — including stepchildren and adopted children (with limited exceptions for deceased children, children removed from parental custody by adoption or court order, and children registered as UNHCR refugees in camps or facing persecution). The balance of family test counts children settled in Australia against children settled in any other single country — not the rest of the world combined.

Two-stage pathway — subclass 173 then 143

Applicants have two options:

1. Apply directly for subclass 143 (permanent): The application is lodged and waits in the queue for a permanent place. The visa, when granted, immediately provides permanent residence.
2. Two-stage pathway — apply for subclass 173 first: The subclass 173 is a temporary visa (2 years) that allows the parent to live in Australia while waiting for their permanent 143 application to be assessed. The 173 is processed more quickly. The parent then applies for the 143 while in Australia on the 173.

The two-stage pathway involves paying the visa application charge in two tranches — a first instalment at the 173 stage and a second instalment when the 143 is granted. For current visa application charge amounts, refer to the DHA visa pricing page.

Assurance of Support

An Assurance of Support (AoS) is a legally binding commitment by the sponsor (and potentially an additional supporter) to repay the Australian government for certain social security payments made to the parent during the AoS period. For Contributory Parent visa holders, the AoS period is 10 years from the date of arrival in Australia or the date of grant of the permanent visa — and this period continues even if the parent subsequently becomes an Australian citizen. An AoS bond is paid to Centrelink; the bond is refundable at the end of the AoS period if no claim is made against it.

Capping and queueing — long processing times

Contributory Parent visas are subject to an annual cap — a fixed number of places are allocated to the contributory parent category within the family migration program each year. Applications that exceed the available places are placed in a queue, assessed in lodgement date order, and held until a place becomes available in a future program year. This results in significant wait times. For the current queue release date (the date up to which applications are being processed), refer to the DHA parent visa queue page. DHA cannot provide individual processing time estimates for capped and queued applications.

Non-contributory parent visas — comparison

The non-contributory parent visas (subclass 103 and 804) also allow parents to migrate to Australia but have significantly lower visa application charges. The trade-off is an even longer queue — non-contributory parent applications can wait substantially longer than contributory applications. The same balance of family test and Assurance of Support requirements apply.

The Contributory Parent visa has been subject to periodic policy discussion in Australia due to its cost to the government (health care and social services for elderly migrants). For the most current visa application charges, queue release dates, and AoS requirements, refer to the DHA subclass 143 page and the DHA queue release dates page. The queue release date is updated regularly and is the most accurate indicator of current wait times.