Permanent parent visas can take years, sometimes decades. The Sponsored Parent (Temporary) visa, Subclass 870, answers a simpler question: what if you could just be there, for the school concerts, the birthdays, the ordinary Tuesdays, for up to ten years?
No balance-of-family test, no permanent queue: a sponsorship-based long-stay visa that many families use alongside a queued permanent application. Here is how it works in 2026.
The Sponsored Parent (Temporary) visa lets the parent of an Australian citizen, permanent resident or eligible NZ citizen live in Australia for three or five years per grant, renewable up to a lifetime maximum of ten years.
The trade-offs are real: no work rights, no Medicare (health insurance is mandatory), and no direct path to permanent residency. It is a long visit, engineered beautifully, not a migration outcome.
The 870 flips the usual model: your child applies first, as sponsor.
Because the income test sits with your child, the preparation often starts in Australia. We work with both generations to sequence sponsorship approval and application correctly.
The 870 is a two-step process:
Smart families coordinate the 870 with a contributory parent application, living the queue out in Australia rather than an ocean away.
Charges: AUD 1,515 at lodgement, with a second instalment before grant of AUD 4,855 for a three-year stay or AUD 10,925 for five years. The sponsorship application carries a small separate fee.
Insurance: mandatory Australian health cover for the full stay, a genuine cost to budget, rising with age.
Capacity: the programme is capped annually, and demand from waiting contributory families is strong; apply early in the programme year.
The comparison that matters: ten 870 years cost around half of a contributory visa, but buy time, not permanence. The right answer is often both.
Sponsor readiness: the income test is assessed on your child’s household: tax returns and structure reviewed before anything is lodged.
Insurance engineering: the right policy satisfies the Department without paying for cover you won’t use.
The dual-track: an 870 for presence, a queued permanent parent application for the future, sequenced so the ten-year clock and the queue work together, not against each other.
Exit planning: the ten-year maximum is real; families who plan the endgame from year one never face it unprepared.
Discuss your eligibility and explore your options with a dedicated migration specialist.
Certified passport and birth certificate, evidence of your relationship to your Australian child (their birth certificate naming you), and any name-change documents.
Your child’s sponsorship approval, built on their identity and status evidence, household income documentation (usually tax records), and character clearances. The sponsorship must be approved before your visa application can be lodged.
Proof of adequate Australian health insurance covering your entire intended stay, mandatory for grant, and the policy terms matter. We match cover to Departmental expectations without over-insuring.
Immigration medical examinations appropriate to your age and intended stay, booked when instructed so validity aligns with grant.
Police certificates from every country of 12+ months residence in the last ten years, started early, as retirement-age applicants often need certificates from several jurisdictions.
Nearly three decades guiding successful emigrations to Australia.
Former Emigration Officials with deep, current knowledge of Australian immigration law.
Considered, discreet guidance tailored precisely to your circumstances.
Three or five years per grant, renewable to a lifetime maximum of ten years, the longest parent stay available outside the permanent visas.
No. Unlike the permanent parent visas, the 870 doesn’t care where your other children live. One eligible Australian child sponsor is enough.
No. The 870 carries no work rights. It is designed for presence with family, not employment.
No. You must hold adequate private health insurance for your entire stay, and maintaining it is a condition of the visa.
AUD 1,515 at lodgement, plus a second instalment of AUD 4,855 for a three-year grant or AUD 10,925 for five years, a total of AUD 6,370 or AUD 12,440, plus insurance and a small sponsorship fee.
Yes. That is its smartest use. Many families live the contributory queue out together in Australia on an 870 rather than apart.
To be an adult Australian citizen, permanent resident or eligible NZ citizen, typically meeting a household income threshold, with sponsorship approved before your application.
Not directly. It has no PR pathway. Pair it with a contributory parent application if permanence is the goal; we sequence both tracks together.
Book an assessment and our team will assess your options.
Receive tailored advice and a clear migration strategy built entirely around you.
Let us manage your application from lodgement to decision, or choose to be guided.
Whether you have questions or need guidance on your Australian immigration path, our specialists are ready to listen and advise. Contact us today.