A Carer visa is granted only if the relative's impairment is rated at 30 or more under the Impairment Tables, the threshold that regulation 1.15AA(1)(c) of the Migration Regulations 1994 (Cth) and instrument IMMI 17/126 set. The rating is recorded in a Bupa Medical Visa Services certificate that the Department must treat as correct, so the carer's visa turns on a score given to the relative, not to the carer.
What impairment rating does a Carer visa need?
A Carer visa needs an impairment rating of 30 or more, because section 5 of IMMI 17/126 sets the rating for regulation 1.15AA(1)(c) at 30. The instrument has been in force since 13 October 2017, and a rating that is equal to or higher than 30 meets the test.
The relative who needs care is the person rated. The carer lodges the evidence that the assessment has been sought, and the carer's visa stands or falls on the result.
The Department of Home Affairs' Carer visa pages never state the number. They say only that the Bupa certificate must include a statement that the person "requires a certain amount of care".
What does regulation 1.15AA require?
Regulation 1.15AA requires six things before an applicant counts as a "carer" of an Australian citizen usually resident in Australia, a permanent resident or an eligible New Zealand citizen (the resident).
- Paragraph (a). The applicant is a relative of the resident.
- Paragraphs (b) and (ba). A certificate finds that the resident, or a member of the resident's family unit, has a medical condition causing physical, intellectual or sensory impairment of daily life. It records the rating under the Impairment Tables and a need for direct help lasting at least 2 years. The person needing care must be a citizen, permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen.
- Paragraph (c). The rating is equal to or higher than the figure the Minister sets, which is 30.
- Paragraph (d). If the person needing care is not the resident, the resident has a permanent or long-term need for help to provide that care.
- Paragraph (e). The help cannot reasonably be provided by another relative in Australia, or obtained from welfare, hospital, nursing or community services in Australia.
- Paragraph (f). The applicant is willing and able to give substantial and continuing help of the kind needed.
Subregulation (2) says which certificate counts: one from a medical assessment done for the specified provider and signed by the medical adviser who did it, or one the provider issues after reviewing that opinion. Subregulation (3) makes the certificate's opinion on the paragraph (b) matters binding.
What are the Impairment Tables?
The Impairment Tables are the 15 tables in the Social Security (Tables for the Assessment of Work-related Impairment for Disability Support Pension) Determination 2023, which regulation 1.15AA adopts through the definition in section 23(1) of the Social Security Act 1991 (Cth). The Determination has been in force since 1 April 2023.
Each Table covers one area of function, such as physical exertion and stamina, the upper and lower limbs, mental health, brain function, intellectual function, communication, hearing and vision. Within each Table the ratings step from 0 to 5, 10, 20 and 30 points.
Section 13 sets three rules. A rating cannot be placed between two steps, so 15 is never given. Every descriptor for a level must be met before that level is given. And no Table's rating exceeds its own maximum.
Are these the Disability Support Pension tables?
Yes, these are the Disability Support Pension tables, but the Carer visa uses them for a different purpose and a higher bar: 30 for the visa, against 20 points for the pension under section 94(1)(b) of the Social Security Act 1991 (Cth). The Determination defines impairment as a loss of capacity "affecting a person's ability to work", and says the Tables apply only to the pension "unless otherwise authorised by law" (sections 5 and 7(2)(a)). Regulation 1.15AA is that other law, so a search for "impairment tables" leads to Centrelink pension pages whose 20-point rule is not the visa's rule.
How is a Carer visa impairment rating worked out?
A Carer visa impairment rating is worked out in five steps, from the relative's medical evidence to a number on the certificate.
- Medical reports. The relative's treating doctor, specialist or allied health professional provides signed reports, less than 12 months old, covering diagnosis, prognosis, treatment and the effect on daily living. Bupa's Statement of Assistance sets these requirements and does not accept hospital discharge papers as a medical report.
- Examination. Bupa's medical adviser examines the relative, usually at a clinic, sometimes at home, and in exceptional cases on the papers alone.
- Choosing the Table. The loss of function is identified, and the Table for that function is chosen (section 12(1) of the Determination).
- Assigning points. Points are assigned against that Table's descriptors, on what the person can do rather than what others do for them (section 8(1)).
- The certificate. The medical adviser signs a certificate recording the rating (regulation 1.15AA(2)(a)(ii)), and the rating is compared with 30.
Does the rating bind the Department?
Yes, the rating binds the Department: regulation 1.15AA(3) says the Minister "is to take the opinion in a certificate … on a matter mentioned in paragraph (1)(b) to be correct". That covers the condition, the impairment, the rating and the 2-year need. It does not cover whether other care is available (paragraph (e)) or whether the carer is willing and able (paragraph (f)). The Department decides those two.
What the certificate is called, when it must be lodged and what it records are explained in the guide to the Carer Visa Assessment Certificate, which follows the assessment from booking to result. For an 836 or a 116, the Department asks for the certificate within 3 months of applying if it was not lodged with the application, and it does not grant the visa without one.
The Administrative Review Tribunal reviews a refusal in the Minister's place, so on a reading of regulation 1.15AA(3) it is bound by the certificate in the same way.
Can a Carer visa impairment rating be reviewed?
A Carer visa impairment rating can be reviewed only through Bupa's own procedures: regulation 1.15AA(2)(b) accepts a certificate that the specified provider issues "in relation to a review of an opinion", carried out "in accordance with its procedures". Neither the Department nor the Tribunal puts its own rating in place of the certificate's.
Bupa does not publish its review procedure, time limit or fee. Because the review concerns the relative's assessment, the relative, or a representative they have authorised, deals with Bupa.
Which law decides which Carer visa question?
Each Carer visa question is decided by a named provision, and the table matches each provision to the situation it decides and to where it is explained.
| Provision | Situation it decides | Where it is explained |
|---|---|---|
| reg 1.03, "relative" and "close relative" | Who can be the carer | The guide to a Carer visa for a family member |
| reg 1.15AA(1)(b)(i)–(ii) | Whether the relative's condition qualifies | The guide to qualifying medical conditions |
| reg 1.15AA(1)(b)(iii) and (c) | Whether the impairment reaches the threshold | This page |
| IMMI 17/126, s 5 | What the threshold is (30) | IMMI 17/126 on the Federal Register |
| LIN 24/040, s 4 | Who assesses (Bupa Medical Visa Services) | LIN 24/040 on the Federal Register |
| Social Security Act 1991, ss 23(1) and 26(1) | What "Impairment Tables" means | Social Security Act 1991 |
| Impairment Tables Determination 2023, ss 8, 12, 13 and Part 3 | How points are assigned | The 2023 Determination |
| reg 1.15AA(2) and (3) | Which certificate counts, and its binding effect | This page |
| reg 1.15AA(1)(e) | Whether other care is reasonably available | Migration Regulations 1994 |
| reg 1.15AA(1)(f) | Whether the carer is willing and able | Migration Regulations 1994 |
| Sch 1, items 1123A(3)(c) and 1123B(3)(d) | What must go in with the application: evidence the assessment has been sought | Migration Regulations 1994 |
Where does the rating fit in the Carer visa check?
The rating is the second link of the Carer visa check: it follows the relative's condition and comes before the carer and the unavailability of other care. A certificate below 30 breaks the chain, however strong the rest of the application is.
A rating below the threshold is one of the grounds set out in the guide to why Carer visas are refused, with the review options that follow a refusal. Families without the means to pay can start with free legal help with a Carer visa. Anyone who wants the medical reports checked before the examination can ask a registered practitioner through the enquiry form.
The guide that lets you check the three links in order shows where the rating sits among the other criteria, and the overview of both subclasses is on the Carer Visa Australia home page.
A registered professional makes a grant more likely
The rating is fixed by a certificate that the Department must accept, and only Bupa's own review changes it, so what goes into the assessment matters more than any argument afterwards. A registered migration agent or an Australian legal practitioner who checks that the medical reports address the Tables' functional descriptors before the examination makes a successful outcome more likely, never certain.
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Carer visa requirements: check the three links in orderCheck each Carer visa criterion in order, from the relative's condition to the sponsor.
Carer visa refusal: why Carer visas are refused and what comes nextEach refusal names a failed criterion, and the ART clock starts at notification.