Can Subclass 124 permanent residents sponsor relatives to Australia in 2026?
Yes. Under the Department of Home Affairs' Distinguished Talent visa (Subclass 124) page, as of the version current in August 2026, one of the things this visa lets you do is "sponsor your relatives to come to Australia", and the visa's own summary of what you must do with it lists sponsoring eligible relatives for permanent residence. The grant turns you into an Australian permanent resident on the day the visa is granted, and it is that status — not the talent nomination behind it — that opens the sponsorship door. This article is general information about how the published rules are framed, not personalised advice for your family; which relatives qualify, and on what terms, depends on the visa each person actually applies for, so the official criteria for that visa are what govern the outcome.
What does the Subclass 124 visa actually give you?
The Home Affairs page lists the same package on both its overview and its "have this visa" sections: you can stay in Australia permanently, work and study, enrol in Medicare, sponsor your relatives to come to Australia, travel in and out of Australia for five years from the date of grant, and apply for Australian citizenship if you are eligible.
That list is worth reading carefully, because two of the items sound like entitlements but are described in conditional terms. Sponsorship is one of them: the same page says that as an Australian permanent resident you "might be able to sponsor eligible family members", which is not the same as every relative you name being granted a visa.
Is sponsoring someone the same as including them in your own 124 application?
No, and the distinction matters more than it first appears.
Including family is something you do before the 124 is decided. The Department says you can include members of the family unit when you apply, and you can add family to the application at any time before a decision is made. If you are under 18, you can include a parent and the members of that parent's family unit. Family members who apply this way must meet the health and character requirements, there is an additional charge for each family member who applies with you, and anyone 18 or over with less than functional English may face the second instalment (listed on the page as AUD 4,890). The Visa Pricing Estimator does not include that instalment or other costs such as health checks, police certificates and biometrics.
Sponsoring relatives is what happens after grant, and it runs through a separate visa application by the relative, not through your 124 file.
What do sponsored relatives still have to satisfy?
Home Affairs does not publish a sponsorship checklist for this visa. What the page does say is that you should find the right visa for your family member using the Department's visa options tool, and that eligibility sits with the visa your relative applies for.
The one requirement the page does spell out for family is health and character: family members who apply for the visa must meet the Department's health and character requirements. Treat that as the pattern rather than a guarantee — a relative sponsored later will be assessed against the criteria of their own visa, and those criteria are where the real answer lives.
Suppose a granted 124 holder wants to bring an adult sibling. The 124 page confirms the holder has the status to sponsor relatives in principle, but it does not say that sibling is eligible; that question is answered by the specific visa the sibling applies for and whether they meet its criteria, including health and character.
What sponsoring does not do for your relatives
Sponsorship is not a shortcut past the normal settings of Australian residence, and three limits are visible on the same official page.
First, Medicare and payments are different things. A 124 holder can enrol in Medicare, but the Home Affairs page points to a waiting period before newly arrived residents can access certain Australian Government payments and benefits — so "permanent resident" does not mean every public support is available immediately.
Second, permanent residence for your relative is not automatic. The Department's wording is that you might be able to sponsor eligible family members, and each relative is assessed on their own application.
Third, your sponsorship does not replace the relative's own travel arrangements. Your five-year travel facility is yours. After five years from the grant date, you yourself would need a Resident Return (RRV) visa (subclass 155 or 157) to re-enter Australia as a permanent resident, and the Department directs holders to VEVO to see when that five-year period ends.
What do you still owe as a 124 holder while sponsoring?
Two obligations appear on the official page, and both continue after grant. You and your family members must obey all Australian laws. And the Department expects that you will contribute to Australia in your field of expertise — an expectation that comes from the talent basis of the visa, not from sponsorship, but which sits alongside it for as long as you hold the visa.
Nothing on the page says sponsoring a relative changes, extends or suspends those obligations.
What should you check before acting on any of this?
The 124 page is explicit that its content is not the whole picture for a specific case. Its processing section says applications are assessed case by case and that actual times vary with how complete the application is, how quickly you respond to requests, how long checks take, how long it takes to get information from external agencies — particularly on health, character and national security — and how many places are available in the migration program. No fixed processing time, fee outcome or success rate should be read into that.
Because sponsorship is described as conditional on eligibility, the practical check is the current official criteria for the visa your relative would apply for, and the officially published charges on the day you apply.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a Subclass 124 visa let me sponsor relatives automatically?
No. The Home Affairs page says you can sponsor your relatives to come to Australia, but it also says you "might be able to sponsor eligible family members" as an Australian permanent resident, so eligibility is assessed rather than assumed. Each relative still has to apply for a visa in their own right and meet that visa's criteria.
Can I add family to my 124 application instead of sponsoring them later?
Yes, before a decision is made. You can include members of the family unit when you apply and add family at any time before the Department decides the application, with an additional charge for each family member. Adding someone to your file and sponsoring them after grant are separate routes with separate consequences.
Do family members have to meet health and character requirements?
The 124 page states that family members who apply for the visa must meet the Department's health and character requirements. For relatives you sponsor after grant, the page directs you to the visa that fits that relative, and the criteria of that visa govern their assessment.
Can my relatives get Medicare and government payments straight away?
Medicare enrolment is listed as something you can do on this visa, but it is not a promise about payments. Home Affairs points to a waiting period before newly arrived residents can access certain Australian Government payments and benefits, so timing depends on the relative's own circumstances and the current published rules.
What are my own obligations as a 124 holder while sponsoring someone?
You and your family members must obey all Australian laws, and the Department expects you to contribute to Australia in your field of expertise. The page does not present sponsorship as changing either of these.
How long can I travel after the 124 grant, and does that affect sponsorship?
You can travel to and from Australia for five years from the date the visa is granted; after that you need a Resident Return (RRV) visa (subclass 155 or 157) to re-enter as a permanent resident. The five-year facility is your own travel validity, and the Department does not tie it to your ability to sponsor.
Where do I find the right visa for a relative?
The Home Affairs 124 page points holders to its visa options tool to find a visa for a family member, rather than listing sponsorship pathways itself. That is where the eligibility question for a specific relative is settled.