Fact Sheet 37 - Processing Priorities
The Australian Government has established processing priorities for applicants who apply to migrate under the family stream.
Higher priority is given to immediate family categories such as dependent children (including children for adoption and orphan relatives), spouses, fiancé(e)s and interdependent partners.
Within these categories:
- a distinction is made based on whether the applicant has been sponsored by an Australian citizen (these sponsors have a higher priority than non-citizens), and
- higher priority is also given to spouse applications involving dependent children of the sponsor in Australia.
Lower priority is given to all other family stream applicants such as carers, remaining relatives, parents, and aged dependent relatives.
Within the priority processing order for family stream, applicants are generally considered in order of the date of lodgement.
However, a higher priority in processing may be appropriate in cases where there are compelling or compassionate circumstances. If such circumstances exist, applicants will need to advise the visa office where their application is being processed. Their request for higher priority will then be considered.
Priority processing of parent applications also takes into account factors such as:
- citizenship of the sponsoring child
- proportion of children in Australia, and
- whether or not the applicant is aged.
An aged parent is defined as a parent who is old enough to be granted an Australian age pension. For men the qualifying age for an Australian age pension is 65 and for women it is gradually being increased from 60 to 65.
Aged parents have a higher priority and are processed ahead of other parents.
Within the parent migration stream, the contributory parent category has a higher processing priority than the parent category.
In the contributory parent category, the following order of priority applies:
- Applications where the applicant had, prior to the lodgement of the application in the contributory parent category, an unfinalised visa application in the parent category and that application had been queued.
- Applications where the applicant had, prior to the lodgement of the application in the contributory parent category, an unfinalised visa application in the parent category and that application had not been queued.
- Other contributory parent visa applications are considered in the order of lodgement date.
Other factors taken into account in determining the processing order for parents are (highest to lowest):
- Australian citizen sponsored parents who have all their children living in Australia
- Australian citizen sponsored parents who have a majority of their children living in Australia
- Australian citizen sponsored parents who have only half or a minority of their children living in Australia
- non-Australian citizen sponsored parents who have all their children living in Australia
- non-Australian citizen sponsored parents who have a majority of their children living in Australia, and
- non-Australian citizen sponsored parents who have only half or a minority of their children living in Australia.
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 9am to 4pm (recorded information available outside these hours) for the cost of a local call anywhere in Australia.
Fact Sheet 37. Produced by the National Communications Branch, Department of Immigration and Citizenship, Canberra.
Revised 30 January 2007.
© Commonwealth of Australia 2007.