Subclass 870 parent visa: cost, sponsor rules, and the 10-year limit

What the subclass 870 Sponsored Parent (Temporary) visa costs, who can sponsor a parent, the 10-year lifetime cap, and the one sequencing mistake that can shut a family out of a permanent parent visa. Figures as at September 2026.

Read the full guide, with official sources →

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Chapters

  1. 0:00 The 870 visa: months, not decades — but only for up to 10 years
  2. 0:15 3 or 5 years per grant
  3. 0:27 No work rights on the 870 visa
  4. 0:51 870 visa: no Assurance of Support,
  5. 1:03 15,000 places nationally, per year
  6. 1:14 3 years: $6,370
  7. 1:37 No Medicare.
  8. 1:48 The order matters:
  9. 2:04 Where to read more

Transcript

Want a parent in Australia in months instead of decades? The subclass 870 visa can do that — but only for up to 10 years, and it never leads to permanent residence.

Each 870 grant runs for up to 3 years, or up to 5 years. A parent can hold more than one grant, but every grant they ever hold adds up to a lifetime cap of 10 years.

A parent on the 870 cannot work in Australia. It's a firm rule, not something that varies case by case.

To sponsor a parent, your taxable income must be at least $83,454.80. Can't meet that alone? Combine it with your partner's, as long as your own share is still 50% of the threshold.

Unlike the permanent parent visas, the 870 needs no Assurance of Support bond, and no Balance of Family Test — the rule that normally requires at least half your children to live in Australia.

The program is capped nationally at 15,000 primary applications a year. Once that's reached in a program year, no more are granted until the next one starts.

As at 1 July 2026, a 3-year grant costs $6,370 in total — $1,515 up front, then $4,855 before grant. A 5-year grant costs $12,440 — the same $1,515 up front, then $10,925.

A parent on the 870 can't access Medicare, so adequate private health insurance is a strict visa condition, not a recommendation, for the whole time they're here.

Here's the mistake that costs families the most. Once you've applied for, or been granted, an 870, you can't then start a new permanent parent visa application. If you want to keep that option open, lodge the permanent application first.

The full guide, with the official sources, is on migratio.com.au. The link is in the description. And if you'd like to talk it through, you can compare registered migration agents there, and see their fees before you book anything.

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