A Carer visa suits a parent only when the parent is coming to care for an Australian relative with a certified medical need, and on that footing it is quicker and cheaper than a parent visa, with a 12-year queue estimate and A$4,785 in visa charges against 15 years and A$49,900 for a Contributory Parent visa. Parents without that medical ground use a parent visa, where the non-contributory queue is estimated at 33 years, or the temporary Sponsored Parent (subclass 870) visa, which allows stays of 3 or 5 years at a time but no work.
Carer visa or parent visa: what is the difference?
The difference between a Carer visa and a parent visa is the ground for the move: a Carer visa is based on an Australian relative's medical need for care, and a parent visa is based on the parent's family ties to children settled in Australia.
| Checked 24 September 2026 | Carer (116/836) | Contributory Parent (143) | Parent (103) | Sponsored Parent (Temporary) (870) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Permanent? | Yes | Yes | Yes | No: up to 3 or 5 years per visa, 10 years in total |
| Key test | The relative's medical need, certified by Bupa (rating 30 or more, need of at least 2 years) | Balance of family test | Balance of family test | An approved parent sponsor (income of at least A$83,454.80) |
| Places | Other Family: 400 planned for 2026–27, shared by six subclasses | Parent program: 7,060 planned for 2026–27 (2025–26 caps: 6,800 contributory, 1,700 parent) | Same program | Outside the permanent program |
| Estimate for a new application | 12 years | 15 years | 33 years | Not queued |
| Visa charges, one applicant, from 1 July 2026 | A$2,720 + A$2,065 = A$4,785 | A$6,300 + A$43,600 = A$49,900 | A$6,600 + A$2,065 = A$8,665 | A$1,515 + A$4,855 = A$6,370 (3 years) or A$1,515 + A$10,925 = A$12,440 (5 years), plus a A$420 sponsor fee |
| Assurance of support | Not a criterion | Required: 10 years, A$10,000 security | Required: 4 years, A$5,000 security | None |
| Work | Yes, after grant | Yes | Yes | No (condition 8103) |
Sources: regulation 1.15AA and clause 870.611 of the Migration Regulations 1994 (Cth); the Department's current visa pricing; its Other Family and Parent queue pages, as at 31 May 2026; the planning levels; and sections 19 and 24 of the Social Security (Assurances of Support) Determination 2018.
When is a parent the carer on a Carer visa?
A parent is the carer on a Carer visa when their Australian child, or a member of that child's family unit such as a grandchild, has a medical condition that Bupa Medical Visa Services certifies as needing direct help for at least 2 years, and that help is not reasonably available in Australia.
A parent is a "close relative", and so a "relative", under regulation 1.03. The adult Australian child, or that child's cohabiting partner, sponsors the application and must be 18 or over (clauses 116.212 and 836.213). The parent must be willing and able to give substantial and continuing care of the kind needed (regulation 1.15AA(1)(f)).
If the person who needs care is not the sponsoring child but, for example, a grandchild, regulation 1.15AA(1)(d) adds a further test: the Australian child must have a permanent or long-term need for help in providing that care.
When does a parent visa fit better than a Carer visa?
A parent visa fits better than a Carer visa when no one in the Australian family has a medical condition that meets the Carer visa test, because a parent visa asks about family balance rather than care.
The balance of family test is met when at least half of the parent's children are eligible children, or when more of them live in Australia than in any other single country, as the Department's Parent (subclass 103) page explains. Some parents applying through the Retirement visa pathway are exempt from it.
On the Department's own estimates, a family that can pay the contributory charge waits about 18 fewer years than on the non-contributory route (15 years against 33). That is a trade of money for time, not a shortcut to a grant.
How do the Carer visa and parent visa queues compare?
The Carer visa queue is the shortest of the three permanent routes: the Department estimates 12 years for a new Carer visa application, 15 years for a Contributory Parent visa and 33 years for a Parent or Aged Parent visa.
As at 31 May 2026, Carer applications had been released for final processing up to a queue date of 31 December 2023, and Contributory Parent applications up to November 2018. The Parent queue page gives February 2014 for Parent and Aged Parent applications in its text, while its table shows March 2014 for subclass 103 and April 2014 for subclass 804.
Carer visas sit under the Other Family cap and parent visas under their own caps, so the two queues move separately. Both are capped and queued, and a new application first receives a queue date and then waits for release.
How do the costs compare?
A Carer visa costs A$4,785 in visa charges for one applicant, compared with A$8,665 for a Parent visa, A$49,900 for a Contributory Parent visa, and A$6,370 or A$12,440 for a 3-year or 5-year Sponsored Parent (Temporary) visa.
The assurance-of-support security adds A$10,000 for a Contributory Parent visa and A$5,000 for a Parent visa, under section 19(2) of the Assurances of Support Determination. The Carer visa has no assurance criterion, but the relative's medical assessment is booked and paid with Bupa, whose published fee from 1 July 2026 is A$429.20 for an in-centre appointment.
Is the 870 a temporary option for parents?
The Sponsored Parent (Temporary) visa, subclass 870, is a temporary option for parents: it allows stays of up to 3 or 5 years per visa and 10 years in total, with no work rights and no path to permanent residence.
The Australian child must first be approved as a parent sponsor, for a A$420 fee, with taxable income of at least A$83,454.80 in the last completed income year or a combined income with a partner or another of the parent's children. One sponsorship is allowed per household, covering up to 2 parents. The visa is lodged within 6 months of approval, usually from outside Australia, and the parent must hold adequate health insurance. The 3-year option costs A$6,370 in visa charges and the 5-year option A$12,440.
The Carer visa has no temporary version, and the guide to the temporary Carer visa question sets out the short-stay alternatives, the 870 among them.
The following is a reading of the law, not a Department statement. Schedule 1 item 1123B contains no bar on an 870 holder lodging a subclass 836 application, and the 870's conditions (clause 870.611: 8103, 8303, 8501, 8531, 8564 and 8609) do not include condition 8503, so holding an 870 does not by itself stop a Carer visa application in Australia.
Can parents come to look after grandchildren on a Carer visa?
Parents cannot come on a Carer visa to look after healthy grandchildren, because the Department does not accept a Carer visa for general family support and the care must answer a certified medical need.
The Department's Form 40 states that a person "cannot be sponsored for a Carer visa to provide general family support". The one exception is the path above: a grandchild with a qualifying condition, and a parent in Australia with a long-term need for help in caring for that child.
Grandparents who want to help with childcare usually look at the 870, which allows unpaid help at home but no paid work.
Which route fits your family?
The route that fits depends on one question first: does someone in the Australian family have a medical condition that needs at least 2 years of direct help? If not, a parent visa or the 870 is the realistic route.
Parents, siblings, grandparents and other relatives can each be the carer, and the page on who counts as a relative lists them. The 12-year figure is an estimate only, and the guide to the Carer visa queue date explains how a date is given and released.
Families starting from the Australian side can read which visa lets a relative come to care for you, and families whose relatives are all settled here can compare the Remaining Relative and Aged Dependent Relative visas as well.
Both Carer visa subclasses are introduced on the Carer Visa Australia home page.
A registered professional makes a grant more likely
A parent's first application shapes every later option: an 870 blocks parent-visa applications, and a Carer visa without a qualifying medical need is refused with no refund. A registered migration agent or an Australian legal practitioner maps the family's facts to the right route before any charge is paid, which makes a grant more likely. No one can guarantee a grant or a queue position.
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