Australian Parent Visa Update – Fee increase for AOS bond

The Australian Government will increase the value of Assurance of Support (AoS) bond.

The AoS Bond amount will increase from 1 April 2019 and will impact those visas already lodged. The new amounts are as follows:

• Main Applicant $15,000 AUD (previously $10,000 AUD)
• Secondary Applicant $6,000 AUD (previously $4,000 AUD)

This legislative change is driven by Social Security and not by Immigration.

Assurance of Support FAQ’s

What is an Assurance of Support?

The Assurance of Support (AoS) is a commitment to pay back any income support provided to the visa holder during their initial stay in Australia.  The AoS support period differs for each visa type.

• 10 years for Contributory Parent Visas (143 / 864)
• 2 years for Parent Visas (103/804)

This time starts from when your visa is granted.

What is the Assurance of Support bond?

The Assurance of Support includes a ‘bank guarantee’ or ‘AoS bond’. This is held with the Commonwealth Bank of Australia for the duration of the AoS period (either 2 or 10 years).

Should you experience any financial difficulty during the AoS period then the money used to provide you with income will be deducted from the ‘AoS bond.’

Who is the assurer?

Generally the sponsor (your Australian Child) acts as the assurer unless you have  arranged someone else to act as the assurer either alongside your sponsor or in place of them. The assurer agrees to financially support you during the AoS period if required.

You can use a maximum of 2 people as part of the assurance of support. For example, your sponsoring child and their partner can both act as assurers.

You do not need to choose who will be your assurer until you have been contacted by the Parent Visa and asked to arrange the assurance of support. This gives your sponsor a choice to act as the assurer or use someone else. The assurer must be an Australian Citizen or Permanent Resident.

Should you not claim any social security during the AoS period then the AoS bond is returned in full to the assurer.

Why does the assurer/sponsor have to complete an income test with Centrelink?

Should the income support you need exceed the bond amount then the assurer will be required to support you financially. To ensure the assurer can support you financially they will need to provide details of their income and details of how many dependents they have.

If your sponsor does not work full time then they can use another Australian Citizen or Permanent Resident to help them with the Assurance of Support. Centrelink can guide them on what they need to do for this.

Will the increase in the value of AoS bond impact me?

If your Assurance of Support has not been finalised before 1 April 2019 then the bond increase will apply. The new fees from this date are as follows:

• Main Applicant $15,000 AUD (previously $10,000 AUD)
• Secondary Applicant $6,000 AUD (previously $4,000 AUD)

For more details on the Assurance of Support please visit the Department of Human Services website.

Can I speed up my visa application to avoid the increase in cost?

No – the processing times for the parent visa will continue to fluctuate. I  will continue to monitor progress of your visa application and provide updates on the processing times. Unfortunately there is nothing which can be done to expedite your visa application and they will continue to be processed in date order.

All applicants can monitor visa processing times on the Government website.