Moving to Australia with your family

Added by National Visas on February 24, 2014
Saved under Partner Visas Articles

Living as a complete family of migrants in Australia is possible, and it is a reality for thousands of people using the available range of Australian family visas.

There is a range of family stream visa category which allows parents, grandparents, children, and extended family members to visit or live permanently in Australia.

If you are looking to be part of the diverse Australian community and be closer to hundreds of beaches and World Heritage-listed wonders, here are some pointers to remember before applying for visas for your entire family:

Seeking professional assistance before anything else is ideal to save both time and money. There are many visa subclasses that apply to family members—parents, partners, children, other family members—so it can be confusing to determine which is applicable to your situation. National Visas has expert migration agents who can provide professional assistance, from complete step-by-step guides for self-managing applicants to a full service for those who want to designate all complicated tasks to the experts.

The family stream comprises a third of the total places in Australia’s migration program. Hence, there are approximately 60,000 of these visas granted each year.

Two common requirements for visas within the family stream are those related to health and character. Applicants are required to have their health examinations only with Australian government-accredited panel physicians in order for their health documents to be valid. Character documents include police clearances for applicants at least 16 years of age. These can be clearances from both overseas and Australia, depending on your situation.

Identity requirements are basic documents that need to be prepared. These include certified copies of biographical pages of the current passport and birth certificates; these must show the applicant’s personal details like name, age, and signature. Two recent passport-sized photographs with the applicant’s name written on the back are also required for many applications. Depending on the situation of the applicant, other proof of identity may be required.

Document checklists are available from the representative migration agent processing your application. This checklist contains all important documents needed to be presented when you lodge your visa. Although it helps self-managing applicants know which documents to provide, this checklist is general and does not consider the individual situation of each visa applicant. Hence, it may be easier to have a migration agent check which of the documents are necessary for the visa applicable to you and each of your family members.

The processing time for each visa varies. A Partner Visa generally takes 5 to 10 months to process, while Parent Visas may take 2 to 15 years depending on the visa subclass. For child category visas, a period between 7 and 14 months is the average processing time. Also, take note that the location of lodgement (onshore or offshore) may also affect the average processing time.

With this basic information on visas for family members, having a faster visa application is more achievable—more so if you have a professional at National Visas to back you up in every step of the way. With personal experience in applying for visas themselves, National Visas agents are equipped with many years of industry knowledge which allows them to turn visa challenges to successful visa applications.

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National Visas offers Personalised Services to help you apply for a visa. National Visas has developed into a world leader in online immigration services. Our Migration Agents are registered to provide Australian immigration advice, as required by Australian law.