Travel to and from Australia for 5 years:

• The child can travel to and from Australia as many times as they want within the first 5 years from the date the visa is granted. They need to ensure the travel facility on the visa remains valid. If they want to travel after the initial 5-year period, they must apply for and be granted a Resident Return Visa (RRV) or consider Australian citizenship.

How long the child can stay:

• The Orphan Relative Visa is a permanent visa that allows the child to stay in Australia indefinitely. For citizenship purposes, the child becomes a permanent resident on the day they enter Australia on this visa.

Include other children:

• If the child has siblings who also want to apply, separate applications need to be made for each sibling. Dependent children of the child can be included on their application when they apply or before the application is decided.

Apply from:

• The child must be in Australia when the application is made and when the decision is made. The child cannot validly apply for this visa if they are in Australia on another visa with a “no further stay” condition.

The visa application fee for the Orphan Relative Visa is AUD 1,870.00. Additionally, there is a charge for each dependent child included in the application.

There are no specific conditions attached to the Orphan Relative (subclass 837) visa.

Unfortunately, processing times for this visa subclass are not available. It is recommended to contact the Department of Home Affairs for the most up-to-date information on processing times.

For Applicant:

1. Have a sponsor:

• The child must be sponsored by an eligible sibling or step-sibling, grandparent or step-grandparent, aunt, uncle, step-aunt, or step-uncle. The sponsorship must be approved by the Department of Home Affairs.

2. Be this age:

• The child must be under 18 years old when applying for the visa.

3. Have no parent who can care for them:

• The visa will not be granted if the child has parents who are capable of caring for them. This could be due to the parents being deceased, permanently incapable of caring for the child, or unable to be found.

4. Have consent to migrate to Australia:

• The visa will only be granted to a child under 18 years old if they have written consent from everyone who can legally decide where they live, or if the laws of their home country allow them to leave, or if it is consistent with any Australian child order about the child.

5. Hold a visa:

• The child may not be able to obtain this visa if they do not currently hold a substantive visa, if they have not applied for the Orphan Relative Visa within 12 months of the previous substantive visa ceasing, or if the last held visa was a subclass 771 Transit visa.

6. Not have had a visa cancelled or a previous application refused:

• The child’s immigration history will be considered, and they may not be eligible for this visa if they have had a visa cancelled or a previous application refused. However, there may be exceptions to this limitation.

For Sponsor:

1. Be suitable to sponsor:

• The sponsor must be a settled Australian citizen, eligible New Zealand citizen, or hold an Australian permanent visa. They must be 18 years or older and must be a relative of the child (or the current spouse or de facto partner of the relative).

2. Approval of sponsorship:

• The sponsorship must be approved by the Department of Home Affairs. The sponsorship may not be approved if the sponsor or their partner has been charged or convicted of offences involving children.