Starting From July 1st, the Assurance of Support (AoS) Requirements for Parent Visa will Increase. Have You Met the New Income Requirement?

The Department of Home Affairs recently announced the income requirements for economic sponsors for the 2024-25 financial year. These new requirements will apply to AoS applications submitted after July 1st, 2024. Applications submitted before this date will still follow the existing fee requirements.

What is an Assurance of Support?

Assurance of Support (AoS) is a legal agreement between an Australian resident or organization (assurer) and the Department of Home Affairs. Assurer pledges to provide financial support to new immigrants, ensuring that visa applicants do not rely on Centrelink welfare payments. It's also a legal commitment to repay any social security payments made by the Australian Commonwealth Department of Human Services. The assurance of support comes into effect as soon as the sponsored person enters Australia or, for onshore sponsored persons, as soon as the permanent residency visa is approved.

Number of People that Can be Sponsored: An assurer can sponsor two adults and their dependent children (no limit on the number of children).

Duration of Sponsorship:

• The duration of the AoS may be 1 year, 2 years, 4 years, or 10 years depending on the visa type.

• For Contributory Parent visa applicants (subclass 143), the sponsorship period is 10 years.

• The sponsorship period starts from the sponsored person's entry into Australia or from the approval date of the parent visa.

• Some AoS agreements require a bank guarantee from the Commonwealth Bank of Australia. This means you need to deposit the required amount into the bank, with the term matching the AoS period. If the Department of Home Affairs pays certain welfare payments to the visa applicant during the AoS period, the bank guarantee can be used to repay the Department.

Economic Support Review Authority: Services Australia

Submission of Economic Support:

Before the parent migration visa is approved, the Department of Home Affairs will require the applicant to submit the assurer application.

The assurer needs to present the Department of Home Affairs' request letter to Centrelink, where they will be informed of the conditions and procedures for applying as an economic sponsor.

Once Centrelink verifies eligibility, they will directly inform the Department of Home Affairs of the outcome. The Department of Home Affairs will only make a visa decision after receiving the AoS review result.

The assurer can be a child, spouse, or friend of the visa applicant. The same person does not need to be the sponsor for both parents' visas. If you are an Australian permanent resident or citizen, feel free to inquire about parent migration matters.