Requirements to be eligible for Carer visa (Subclass 836)

There are two different catagories of requirements for the applicant (the carer) and those for the person requiring care beside their sponsor and their main sponsor in order to be eligible fo Carer visa (subclass 836)

Requirements for the Applicant (Carer):

1. Location: You must be located inside Australia when you lodge your application and usually when a decision is made on your application. You must not be in immigration clearance.

2. Valid Visa: You must hold a substantive visa at the time of application. If you hold a visa with a “No Further Stay” condition (such as 8503, 8534, or 8535), you must have this condition waived before you can apply.

3. Provide Care: You must be genuinely willing and able to provide substantial and ongoing care and support to your sponsoring relative or the family member of their household who needs care.

4. No Other Reasonable Care Options: You must demonstrate that the required care cannot be provided by another relative who is an Australian citizen, permanent resident, or eligible New Zealand citizen in Australia, and the said care also cannot be obtained from Australian welfare, community, or hospital services too.

5. Sponsorship: You must be sponsored by your relative in Australia who needs the care (or whose family member needs the care), or their cohabiting partner. The sponsorship must be approved by the Department of Home Affairs.

6. Assurance of Support (AoS): The Department will usually inform you when it is necessary for you to provide an AoS. The primary condition of AoS is that one (normally your sponsor or another Australian resident/organisation) makes a legally binding obligation of providing you with the financial resources so that you can continue your living in Australia without the help of social security payments from the Australian government for a specific period after you were given this visa.

7. Health Requirements: You (and any family members applying with you) must meet Australia’s health requirements. So this means you need to undergo medical examinations through Bupa Medical Visa Services in Australia.

8. Character Requirements: You (and any family members 16 years or older applying with you) must meet Australia’s character requirements. This generally means providing police certificates from every country you have lived in for 12 months or more (cumulatively) during the last 10 years since you turned 16, including an Australian police check. The purpose of this is to make sure you can provide evidence of your good character and to confirm you have no outstanding legal issues or pending court proceedings in your current country of residence, or you have no criminal record back home.

9. Debts to the Australian Government: If you or any family members included in your application owe the Australian Government money, you must have paid it back or have an approved arrangement in place to pay it back.

10. Australian Values Statement: If you are 18 years of age or older, you must sign an Australian Values Statement, confirming you will respect the Australian way of life and obey Australian laws.

11. No Previous Visa Cancellation or Refusal: If you have had a visa cancelled or an application refused while in Australia, this might affect your eligibility.

Requirements for the Person Requiring Care and the Sponsor:

1. Relationship to Applicant: The carer applicant in Carer visa (Subclass 836) , must have a some kind of specific family connection to an Australian sponsor, who must be an Australian citizen, a permanent resident or elgible New Zealand citizen. Since, the Australian sponsor must be the applicant relative, this relationship could either be partner, parent or step-parent, child or step-child, sibling or step-sibling, grandparent or step-grandparent, grandchild or step-grandchild, aunt or step-aunt, uncle or step-uncle, niece or step-niece, or nephew or step-nephew. But, the actual person requiring care due to a medical condition can either be the sponsoring Australian relative directly, or it can be a member of this sponsoring Australian relative’s immediate family unit like partner or dependent child, currently living in the same household as the sponsoring Australian relative.

2. Sponsor’s Status in Australia: The sponsor (your relative or their partner) must be an Australian citizen, an Australian permanent resident, or an eligible New Zealand citizen.

3. Sponsor Settled in Australia: The sponsor must be “settled” in Australia. This usually means they have been lawfully living in Australia for a reasonable period, typically at least 2 years.

4. Sponsor’s Age: The sponsor must be 18 years of age or older.

5. Medical Condition of Person Requiring Care:
The person who requires care in this visa application must have a permanent or long-term medical condition that has impaired their ability to attent to the practical aspects of their daily life. And, this caree most likely needs for at least 2 years of support from the applicant.

6. Medical Assessment Certificate:
The medical condition and the level of care required must be assessed by Bupa Medical Visa Services (or another health service provider approved by the Department for this purpose). The assessment must certify that the person’s medical condition meets a minimum impairment rating specified in the migration regulations (currently a score of at least 30 on the relevant assessment scale). This certificate must be obtained before you lodge the visa application.

7. Sponsorship Obligations: The sponsor must agree to provide you (the carer) and any accompanying family members with adequate accommodation and financial support for the first two years in Australia.

8. Arrange Assurance of Support (AoS): The sponsor will likely be the one to arrange the AoS.

Checklist for Carer visa (Subclass 836)

(This is a general guide. The specific documents required will vary based on your individual circumstances. Always refer to the document checklist provided by the Department of Home Affairs or our migration agent here when you apply.)

A. Applicant’s (Carer’s) Identity and Civil Documents:

• Passport bio-data page (certified copy) for you and any migrating family members.
• Recent passport-sized photographs (meeting specific requirements) for you and any migrating family members.
• Original or certified copy of your full birth certificate showing both your parents’ names.
• National ID card (if applicable).
• Evidence of name change (if applicable, e.g., marriage certificate, deed poll).
• Evidence of your current Australian visa.
• If applicable, evidence of “No Further Stay” condition waiver.

B. Documents Relating to the Person Requiring Care & Their Medical Condition:

• Identity documents for the person requiring care (e.g., certified copy of passport, birth certificate).
• Evidence of their Australian citizenship, permanent residency, or eligible New Zealand citizen status.
• The original medical certificate from Bupa Medical Visa Services (or the approved assessor) stating their medical condition, the level of impairment (score), and the need for care. This assessment must be completed before the visa application is lodged.
• Detailed medical reports from treating doctors or specialists describing the medical condition, its permanency or long-term nature, and the type of care needed.

C. Sponsor’s Documents:

• Evidence of their Australian citizenship, permanent residency, or eligible New Zealand citizen status (e.g., Australian birth certificate, citizenship certificate, passport, visa grant notice).
• Evidence they are “settled” in Australia (e.g., documents showing residence in Australia for at least 2 years, such as utility bills, rental agreements, employment records).
• Proof of their current residential address in Australia.
• Completed sponsorship form (Form 40 Sponsorship for migration to Australia).
• Passport-sized photograph.
• Evidence of their relationship to the person requiring care, if the sponsor is not the person needing care (e.g., marriage certificate if sponsoring their partner who needs care).

D. Relationship Documents (Applicant/Carer and Sponsoring Relative):

• Certified copies of birth certificates, marriage certificates, family books, or other official documents clearly showing the relationship between you (the carer) and your sponsoring relative.

E. Evidence of Inability of Others to Provide Care / Unavailability of Other Care Services:

• Detailed statements and evidence explaining why other relatives in Australia (who are citizens or permanent residents) cannot provide the necessary care. This might include their age, health, location, work commitments, or family responsibilities.
• Evidence of attempts to seek care from Australian government welfare, community, or hospital services, and why these services are unavailable, unsuitable, or insufficient to meet the required level of care. This could include letters from service providers.
• A statement detailing your willingness and ability to provide the required care.

F. Health Documents (Applicant and Migrating Family Members):

• Evidence that you have made arrangements for health examinations with Bupa Medical Visa Services for all applicants included. (Do not arrange these until you have lodged your application and are instructed by the Department, or as per current guidelines for onshore applications).

G. Character Documents (Applicant and Migrating Family Members 16+, and potentially Sponsor):

• Australian National Police Check for the applicant and any migrating family members aged 16 or over.
• Police certificates from every overseas country the applicant (and any migrating family members aged 16 or over) has lived in for a total of 12 months or more in the last 10 years since turning 16.
• If applicable, military service records or discharge papers.
• Form 80 – Personal particulars for assessment including character assessment (for applicant and migrating family members 16+).
• The sponsor may also need to provide police certificates in some circumstances.

H. Assurance of Support (AoS) Documents:

• These will be requested by the Department at a later stage if the visa application meets other criteria. Documents will relate to the assurer’s financial capacity to provide support.

I. Documents for Accompanying Family Members (of the Carer):

• Identity documents for each family member as listed in Section A.
• Evidence of their relationship to you (e.g., marriage certificate for partner, birth certificates for children).
• Evidence of dependency for any dependent children.
• If a child under 18 is migrating and only one parent is applying, or if there are other custody considerations, Form 1229 Consent to grant an Australian visa to a child under the age of 18 years or a statutory declaration from the non-migrating parent/guardian.
• Health and character documents for each family member as required.
• Evidence of their current Australian visa.

J. Other Forms:

• Completed visa application form (Form 47OF Application for migration to Australia by other family members) for the main applicant and any accompanying family members.
• Form 956A Appointment or withdrawal of an authorised recipient (if someone is assisting you with correspondence).
• Form 956 Appointment of a registered migration agent, legal practitioner or exempt person (if you are using a migration agent).
• Signed Australian Values Statement (for applicants 18 years or older).