Fact Sheet 34 - Assurance of Support

Some visa applicants need to provide an Assurance of Support (AoS) before their visa application can be granted.

What is an Assurance of Support?

An AoS is a legal commitment by a person (not necessarily the sponsor) to repay to the Australian Government certain welfare payments paid to migrants during their respective AoS period.

It is also a commitment to provide financial support to the person applying to migrate (the assuree), so that the assuree will not have to rely on social welfare payments.

Respective AoS periods are:

• 10 years for contributory parent visa holders
• two years for all other visa types where an AoS is needed.

The AoS period commences on the date of:

• visa grant, for applicants in Australia
• arrival in Australia on the migration visa for applicants outside Australia.

The AoS scheme enables welfare costs for these migrants to be met by an Australian permanent resident or citizen, rather than the Australian community.

Types of Assurance of Support

Mandatory Assurance of Support

Family stream

A mandatory AoS applies to the following permanent visas:

• Parent
• Aged Parent
• Contributory Parent
• Contributory Aged Parent
• Aged Dependent Relative
• Remaining Relative.

While all applicants for the visa categories listed above require an AoS, the bond component only applies to adult applicants aged 18 years and over.

Parent visas

For permanent Contributory Parent (including Contributory Aged Parent) visa applicants, an AoS bond in the sum of AUD10 000—held for 10 years—is required for the main applicant. The AoS bond sum for any adult secondary applicant is AUD4000.

For permanent Parent (including Aged Parent) visa applicants, an AoS in the sum of AUD5000—held for two years—is required for the main applicant. For any adult secondary applicant the sum is AUD2000.

For all Parent visas the following requirements apply:

• an AoS must be provided before the visa can be granted
• the AoS requirement cannot be waived.

Skilled stream

From 1 September 2007 an AoS is no longer required for skilled visa categories.

However, the AoS requirement must be met for the skilled visas listed below where the application was made before 1 September 2007. Where an application was made before 1 September 2007 but was not decided by 1 January 2008, the AoS will no longer be required for the following visas:

• Skilled – Australian-sponsored
• Skilled – Designated Area-sponsored
• Skilled – Australian Sponsored Overseas Student
• Skilled – Designated Area-sponsored Overseas Student
• Skilled – Australian-sponsored New Zealand Citizen
• Skilled – Designated Area-sponsored New Zealand Citizen.

Discretionary Assurance of Support

In other Family stream visas (that is Partner and Child visas), a discretionary AoS may be requested where applicants are assessed as being at risk of becoming a charge on Australia's welfare system. This request is based upon consideration of the education, skills, employment history, English language capacity and age of the visa applicant and sponsor.

Roles and responsibilities

The department

The Department of Immigration and Citizenship determines:

• which visas should include an AoS requirement
• in discretionary cases, when an AoS is needed.

The department does not assess AoS applications.

Centrelink

The AoS scheme is based on the Social Security Act 1991 and is managed by Centrelink. Centrelink assumed responsibility for all AoS assessments on 1 July 2004.

Centrelink has the responsibility to:

• provide AoS application forms
• assess an Australian resident's capacity to provide an AoS
• counsel assurers about the implications of the AoS undertaking
• advise the requirements to be met by assurers, including joint assurers
• advise about the bond lodgement as well as the procedures for bond release
• inform the assurer about the recoverable social security payments affected by an AoS.

More information about the AoS scheme can be obtained from Centrelink on their web site or by telephone.
See: Centrelink
Telephone:
132 850 (English)
131 202 (languages other than English)

What steps do I need to take to obtain an Assurance of Support?

The Department of Immigration and Citizenship will send you a letter advising that you need to obtain an Assurance of Support (AoS). You must forward this letter to your potential assurer.

Your potential assurer is to provide this letter to Centrelink to initiate the AoS assessment.

Centrelink will advise your assurer how to make an application as well as the responsibilities that accompany an AoS commitment.

How will I find out about the outcome of the Assurance of Support assessment?

Centrelink will advise the Department of Immigration and Citizenship and the assurer of the results of the AoS assessment process.

Further information is available on the department's web site.
See: www.immi.gov.au

The department also operates a national telephone service inquiry line.
Telephone: 131 881
Hours of operation: Monday to Friday from 9 am to 4 pm (recorded information available outside these hours) for the cost of a local call anywhere in Australia.

Fact Sheet 34. Produced by the National Communications Branch, Department of Immigration and Citizenship, Canberra.
Last reviewed 24 December 2009.

© Commonwealth of Australia 2009.