News & InsightsOn 25 September 2014, the Carer, Remaining Relative, Parent and Aged Dependent Relative visas were reinstated and are now available to new applicants. The available visa categories are:
- Parent Visa (subclass 103)
- Aged Parent visa (subclass 804)
- Aged Dependent Relative visa (subclasses 115 and 838)
- Remaining Relative visa (subclass 115 and 835)
- Carer visa (subclasses 116 and 836).
But the news is not all ‘roses’. The Department of Immigration and Border Protection has severely limited the number of visas that can be granted in these categories in the 2014/2015 program year. The bulk of the visa grants will be directed to the Carer visa subclasses. Based on current planning levels, the Department of Immigration and Border Protection is advising that Carer visa applications lodged in 2014 that meet the criteria to be queued will take approximately four and a half years to be released for final processing. However, Parent and Aged Parent visa applicants can expect to wait 25 years and, more startling, Remaining Relative and Aged Dependent visa applicants can expect to wait 56 years! Of course, these calculations are estimates only. Changes to processing priorities, visa allocations and the number of applications remaining in the queue will impact these figures on an annual basis. For more information on visa eligibility and processing priorities please contact one of our experienced Registered Migration Agents.