Can my child over 18 get a Subclass 445 visa in 2026? Financial dependency rules
Yes. A child who has already turned 18 can still be granted a Dependent Child visa (Subclass 445), but only through the second limb of the age rule: they must be over 18 and financially dependent on the parent who holds the temporary Partner visa (Subclass 309 or 820) or a Subclass 445 visa. According to the Australian Department of Home Affairs' Dependent Child visa (subclass 445) official page, as of July 2026, the age criterion is met either by being under 18 or by being over 18 and financially dependent on that parent. This page is general information only and not personalised advice — an adult child's circumstances, and how the current criteria apply to them, should be checked against the official page or with a qualified professional.
What does "financially dependent" mean for an over-18 child?
The official page defines the test by reference to need, not by reference to affection or family closeness. For an applicant who is over 18 when the application is made, the documents must show that the child is dependent on the parent holding the temporary Partner or Dependent Child visa for basic needs such as food, shelter and clothing, and must show how long that support has been provided.
Two things follow from that wording. First, the money has to be tied to living costs — general family transfers with no indication of what they paid for do not answer the question being asked. Second, duration is part of the test, so a single recent transfer is weaker than a record that runs across the period the child has been reliant.
Which documents does the Department list for financial dependency?
The official document checklist names three examples:
- Bank statements — showing the flow of funds and the child's own position.
- Money transfers — showing support moving from the parent to the child.
- Rent receipts — showing shelter being met, and by whom.
These are given as examples ("evidence could include"), not as a fixed set, so the test is whether the papers together cover food, shelter and clothing over a period of time. Suppose an applicant over 18 lives in rented accommodation paid for directly by the parent: the rent receipts establish shelter, regular transfers establish food and day-to-day costs, and the child's own bank statements show that those costs were not being met from the child's own income. That combination answers both halves of the criterion — what the support covered and how long it lasted.
Does the dependency have to continue after the application is lodged?
Yes. The Migration Regulations 1994 structure Subclass 445 around both time-of-application and time-of-decision criteria: at application the child must be a dependent child of a visa-holding parent and be sponsored, and at decision the parent must still be a visa-holding parent, the child must still be a dependent child, and the sponsorship must have been approved and still be in effect. Dependency is therefore a continuing state, not a snapshot taken on the day of lodgement.
The Department's Procedures Advice Manual (PAM3) describes dependency being looked at again where an over-18 assessment is more than six months old, with reasonable steps taken to confirm nothing material has changed. That is guidance rather than a regulation, so it is best read as an indication of what officers examine rather than a fixed rule.
What if the adult child cannot work because of a disability?
The official checklist carries a separate item for this situation. Applicants over 18 with a disability are asked to provide evidence from a qualified medical practitioner that the applicant has a total or partial loss of mental or body function that stops them from working. This is a medical-evidence route with its own requirement, distinct from the financial-dependency evidence described above, and the two should not be mixed: the practitioner's evidence addresses the incapacity for work, while bank statements and transfers address who is meeting basic needs.
One point worth flagging because it causes confusion: the official Subclass 445 pages do not list full-time study as a way of meeting the over-18 age criterion. The routes set out there are financial dependency, and the medical evidence described above. Families whose plans rest on study should check the current official page before relying on it.
Which parent's visa does the child depend on, and what if it changes?
The parent must hold a Partner (Provisional) visa (subclass 309), a Partner visa (subclass 820), or a Dependent Child visa (subclass 445) — and, per the Regulations, must continue to hold one of those at the time of decision. The 445 is described as an "event-based" visa tied to the parent's temporary visa: once the child is granted the 445, they must apply to be added to their parent's permanent Partner visa application. If the parent's temporary visa is replaced by the permanent Partner visa, the parent is no longer a visa-holding parent in the relevant sense, which changes the 445 pathway.
If the child is in Australia, they also cannot hold another visa with a "No further stay" condition.
Who has to sponsor the child?
The child must be sponsored by the same person who sponsored or nominated the parent's permanent Partner visa application, and that sponsorship must be approved before the visa can be granted. The official page is explicit about the limits: if the sponsor, or their spouse or de facto partner, has a pending registrable offence charge, the sponsorship and the visa application will be refused; if there is a registrable offence conviction, sponsorship can be approved only in very limited circumstances. The Migration Regulations 1994 (clause 445.223) set out narrow alternatives where the original sponsor has died or the relationship has ended and the parent has sought consideration under family violence or parental arrangements provisions — those are exceptional.
What else does an adult applicant have to satisfy?
Because the applicant is 18 or older, several requirements that do not apply to younger children come into play:
- Australian values statement — the child must have read, or had explained to them, the Life in Australia booklet and sign an Australian Values Statement confirming they will respect the Australian way of life and obey Australian laws.
- Character — applicants aged 16 and over must meet the character requirement and provide police certificates from every country where they have spent 12 months or more in the last 10 years since turning 16. For Australia, only AFP National Police Certificates applied for under Code 33 – Immigration/Citizenship are accepted; they are valid for 12 months from issue. Form 80 must also be completed, and military service records or discharge papers provided where applicable.
- Health — the child, and any dependent children applying with them, must meet the health requirement; family members not coming to Australia may also have to meet it.
- Identity and relationship — passport pages showing photo, personal details and issue and expiry dates, plus a birth certificate, marriage certificate, adoption certificate or officially issued family status certificate or family book showing the relationship to the parent.
- Photographs — four recent passport-size photos (45mm x 35mm), less than six months old, colour, full face against a plain light-coloured background.
If the child owes money to the Australian Government, it must be repaid or be subject to a formal arrangement to repay.
How is the application actually lodged?
Subclass 445 is a paper application. It is made on Form 918, completed in English, and sent by post or courier to the Child and Other Family Processing Centre in Perth. The application charge must be paid before posting, proof of payment must be included, and the Department will not process the application until the charge is paid. Only certified copies should be sent — not original documents — and the applicant should keep a copy of the whole application.
After lodgement, an application made in Australia can be imported into ImmiAccount once the acknowledgement letter arrives, which allows documents to be uploaded and the application status to be tracked. A child who applied onshore is granted a bridging visa that starts if their current visa expires before the decision, so they can remain lawful while the application is processed. Dependent children of the child can be added at any time before the decision, mistakes should be corrected using Form 1023, and changes such as a new passport, address or relationship status should be notified. The decision is given in writing, and the application fee is not refunded if the application is refused.
Where over-18 dependency claims usually come apart
The failure patterns follow directly from the criteria rather than from any hidden rule. The evidence shows money moving but not what it covered, so the food-shelter-clothing test is unanswered. The evidence covers a few recent months only, so "how long this support has been provided" is unclear. The child's own records show income or independent arrangements that sit awkwardly beside the dependency claim. Or the file is otherwise strong, but dependency stops, or the parent's temporary visa ends, before the decision is made — and the time-of-decision criteria are not met.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can my child over 18 still get a Subclass 445 visa?
Yes, if they are over 18 and financially dependent on the parent holding a Subclass 309, 820 or 445 visa. The Department's age criterion is met by being under 18, or by being over 18 and financially dependent on that parent.
What counts as financial dependency for this visa?
The official page asks for evidence of dependency for basic needs — food, shelter and clothing — and for evidence of how long the support has been provided. Dependence on the parent as a matter of family closeness, without financial reliance for those needs, does not meet the wording.
Which documents should we submit?
The Department's checklist names bank statements, money transfers and rent receipts as examples. They are examples rather than a mandatory set, so the practical question is whether the papers together show who met the child's basic needs and over what period.
Does full-time study make an adult child dependent?
The official Subclass 445 pages do not list full-time study as a way of meeting the over-18 age criterion. The routes set out there are financial dependency and, for applicants over 18 with a disability, evidence from a qualified medical practitioner of loss of mental or body function that stops them from working.
Does dependency have to continue until the visa is granted?
Yes. Under the Migration Regulations 1994, the child must be a dependent child at application and must still be a dependent child at decision, with the parent still a visa-holding parent and the sponsorship still approved and in effect. A dependency arrangement that ends mid-processing puts the application at risk.
Who sponsors an over-18 child, and can the application be lodged online?
The sponsor is the same person who sponsored or nominated the parent's permanent Partner visa application, and sponsorship must be approved before grant. The visa cannot be lodged online: it is a paper application on Form 918 sent to the Child and Other Family Processing Centre in Perth, with the charge paid before posting.