A practical pathway to bring your parents to Australia.
For Australian residents who want their parents to live with them in Australia, without the multi-year wait of the contributory parent line. The SC870 offers a temporary visa with 3-year or 5-year duration choices.
Who this is for
- Australian citizens, permanent residents, or eligible NZ citizens whose parents are offshore
- Australian-based residents seeking faster reunion than contributory parent visas allow
- Families balancing financial reality against the multi-decade wait of non-contributory parent visas
- Sponsors who can satisfy the household income test required for sponsorship approval
Eligibility at a glance
For the parent applicant
At least one of your children must be an Australian citizen, permanent resident, or eligible NZ citizen, settled in Australia. You must have an approved sponsor, meet health and character requirements, hold adequate health insurance for the duration of the visa, and intend to stay temporarily for periods up to 3 or 5 years.
For the sponsor (your child in Australia)
Australian citizen, permanent resident, or eligible NZ citizen aged 18+. Settled in Australia (typically 4+ years residence). Your household assessable income must meet the published sponsor income threshold. Sponsor character requirements apply, including police checks and no significant criminal history.
Choice of duration
- 3-year visa option — for parents whose family circumstances suit a shorter initial grant; lower visa application charge than the 5-year option
- 5-year visa option — longer single-grant duration; fewer renewal applications over time and fewer 90-day offshore periods to plan around
- 10-year lifetime maximum — cumulative cap across multiple SC870 grants per applicant parent; once reached, the parent must depart Australia or apply for a different visa
- No paid work rights and no PR pathway — SC870 is temporary with Condition 8103 (no paid work); if PR is the goal, the contributory parent line (SC143 / SC864) is the alternative
Additional requirements
- Health insurance — adequate health insurance for the duration of the visa is required; SC870 holders are not typically eligible for Australia's public healthcare system
- Immigration medical examination — required for the parent applicant; older applicants may face additional health assessment scrutiny
- Police clearances — from every country lived in 12+ months since age 16, for both the applicant parent and the sponsor
- Genuine temporary intention — the parent must satisfy the Department that they intend to stay in Australia temporarily and will leave at the end of the visa period
How we prepare your parent visa application
The SC870 has more moving pieces than most family visas — sponsor approval, applicant health, the income test, and the duration choice. We coordinate them all.
01
Sponsor eligibility check
We confirm the sponsor’s settled status, household income, and character requirements before any time is spent on the parent application itself. Sponsor failures are a frequent cause of SC870 refusal.
02
Duration strategy
We help you decide between the 3-year and 5-year options based on your parent’s intended stay pattern, your family’s financial position, and the lifetime 10-year cap.
03
Health requirement
Parent visa applicants are typically older, and health is a more common refusal reason than for younger applicants. We help you understand the health bar and whether a health waiver may be needed.
04
Sponsor income test
We work through the income test calculation with your sponsor — including assessable income from all sources — to confirm sponsorship eligibility before lodgement.
Timeline & cost
SC870 processing varies by individual circumstances and Departmental capacity. The Australian Government sets an annual allocation for the SC870 program, and once the annual cap is reached, no further visas are granted until the new program year begins on 1 July. Applying early in the program year reduces the risk of waiting through to the next allocation.
The fee structure for SC870 differs between the 3-year and 5-year options and is paid in two installments — one at lodgement and one before grant. The 5-year option carries a higher fee than the 3-year option. We’ll walk you through current applicant fees, sponsor application charges, and the timing of installments during your consultation.
What’s worth understanding strategically: SC870 is not a pathway to permanent residence on its own. If permanent residence for your parents is the goal, the contributory parent options (SC143 / SC864) are the alternative — though those involve substantially higher fees and longer waits.
Why decision-ready matters
Parent visa refusals are emotionally costly in a way that other visa refusals often aren’t — they affect how long parents and grandchildren can be together.
The most common avoidable refusals we see:
- Sponsor income calculations that don't account for all assessable income sources
- Health concerns that weren't flagged or addressed pre-lodgement
- Insufficient evidence of the parent-child relationship
- Parents who don't satisfy the genuine temporary intention test
- Sponsor character matters that weren't disclosed
We approach SC870 with the care this pathway deserves — because behind every parent visa is a family waiting for their parents to arrive.
Take the next step
Start with the sponsor
80% of SC870 issues are sponsor-side: income test calculations, settled residence timing, character matters. Book a consultation and we’ll work through your sponsorship eligibility before anything else.
Or book a consultation
Speak with Dulari Premadasa Smith (MARN 2418399) about your specific situation. We’ll work through sponsor eligibility, the income test, the duration choice, and the alternative pathways available — including the contributory parent options if SC870 doesn’t fit.
Frequently asked questions
No. The SC870 is a temporary visa that allows your parents to visit and live with you in Australia, but Condition 8103 applies, meaning no paid work. If your parents need work rights in Australia, the SC870 is not the right pathway.
SC870 is temporary (up to 5 years per grant, 10-year lifetime cap) with a more accessible fee structure than the contributory parent visas. Contributory parent visas (SC143, SC864) are permanent but involve substantially higher fees and a longer wait. Non-contributory parent visas (SC103, SC804) have wait times that can extend to many years due to capped annual places. We’ll discuss which pathway fits your family’s circumstances during consultation.
Yes. The sponsor income test is a core eligibility requirement. Your household assessable income must meet the published threshold for SC870 sponsorship to be approved. The threshold is updated periodically by the Department of Home Affairs. We’ll calculate this carefully during consultation using the current threshold.
The SC870 can be applied for either onshore or offshore. However, applicants who have previously held an SC870 must generally spend at least 90 days outside Australia before lodging a further application, unless they have written permission from the Department to apply onshore. We’ll discuss which application path fits your parents’ current situation during consultation.
At that point, the SC870 pathway is exhausted for that parent. They must either depart Australia or apply for a different visa category that permits them to remain. If permanent residence is the goal, the contributory parent pathway is typically the next step — though it involves a separate application, substantially higher fees, and longer waits.
This page provides general information about Australian visa programs. It does not constitute migration advice. Your individual circumstances may affect eligibility, processing, and outcomes. Book a consultation for personalised advice from a registered migration agent (MARN 2418399).