Who Can Sponsor a Subclass 445 Visa in 2026, and What Happens if the Relationship Ends?
A Subclass 445 Dependent Child visa must be sponsored by the same person who sponsored or nominated the parent's permanent Partner visa application, and that sponsorship has to be approved before the visa can be granted. That is the position set out on the Australian Department of Home Affairs' Dependent Child visa (subclass 445) official page, as at July 2026. It is not the only possible sponsor, however: the Migration Regulations 1994 allow a different sponsor where the original nominator or sponsor has died, or where the parent's relationship with that person has ended and the parent has asked to be considered under the family violence or parental arrangements provisions.
Why the sponsor has to be the same person who sponsored the parent
The 445 exists to keep a dependent child attached to a parent who is still moving through the Partner visa process, so the sponsorship follows the same person who backed the parent's case. The Department's official page lists the parent's qualifying visas as the Partner (Provisional) visa (subclass 309), the Partner visa (subclass 820) and the Dependent Child visa (subclass 445); clause 445.111 of the Migration Regulations 1994 also refers to subclasses 310 and 826.
The child must also be a dependent child of that parent — under 18, or over 18 and financially dependent on the parent who holds the temporary Partner or Dependent Child visa. The Regulations and the Department's PAM3 guidance treat dependency as a continuing requirement, so it has to hold both when the application is made and when it is decided.
What if the relationship ends, or the original sponsor dies?
Can the parent sponsor the child instead?
Clause 445.223(3) covers this. Where the relationship between the visa-holding parent and the nominator or sponsor has ended, and the parent has requested consideration under the family violence or parental arrangements provisions for their subclass 100 or 801 application, the child can be sponsored by the visa-holding parent instead of by the former partner.
Suppose a mother holds a subclass 820 visa, her subclass 801 application is still undecided, her partner sponsored her, and the relationship has now broken down with a family violence request on file. Her child's 445 sponsorship can come from her rather than from the former partner — but the sponsorship itself still has to be approved.
What if the original sponsor has died?
Clause 445.223(3) also refers to the death of the nominator or sponsor as a route to the visa-holding parent becoming the sponsor. In practice this means the child's case does not simply stop because the person who sponsored the parent is no longer able to act.
Can a grandparent sponsor instead?
Only in a narrow chain. Clause 445.223(4) applies where the applicant is themselves a dependent child of another subclass 445 holder and the circumstances in subclause (3) apply. In that case the applicant can be sponsored by the sponsor of the person seeking the subclass 100 or 801 visa — which, in practice, is the child's grandparent. That is the exception, not the rule; the ordinary expectation remains the parent's own nominator or sponsor.
Does the sponsorship have to be approved at decision time too?
Yes. Clause 445.224 requires the sponsorship to have been approved and to still be in force when the application is decided, not just when it is lodged. The Department's official page puts the same point in plainer terms: the sponsorship must be approved before the visa can be granted. PAM3 guidance notes that applicants also carry an obligation to notify the Department of changes in circumstances, including changes affecting the sponsor, so a lapse in sponsorship during processing is a problem to fix rather than to ignore.
Can a sponsorship be refused because of a criminal record?
It can, and the official page is blunt about it. If the sponsor, or their spouse or de facto partner, has a pending registrable offence charge, the Department will refuse both the sponsorship and the visa application. If there is a registrable offence conviction, the sponsorship can be approved only in very limited circumstances. The Regulations link this to regulation 1.20KB, which requires refusal where the sponsor has an unresolved or convicted registrable offence.
What does a new sponsor have to show?
Where a new sponsorship is needed — the parent stepping in after a death or a relationship breakdown, for example — the Regulations and PAM3 describe the sponsorship as being made on Form 40CH, and as needing to meet the financial capacity requirement in regulation 1.20(2)(e): an ability to provide financial support for at least two years. Form numbers and evidentiary detail are procedural and can be updated, so treat the Department's current published requirements as the final word on what to lodge.
Policy guidance also indicates that in family violence or shared parental arrangement cases, the decision maker does not re-assess the merits of the parent's Partner visa claims; what matters is confirming that the request has been recorded.
What happens after the 445 is granted?
The child must apply to be added to the parent's permanent Partner visa application once this visa is granted; the Department's official page states this as a condition of how the visa works. PAM3 guidance refers to that step being made on Form 1002, and notes that the parent must still hold the qualifying temporary visa at the time of decision — once the parent's permanent Partner visa is granted, the basis for the 445 no longer exists. A child who misses that step is generally left looking at other child visa options rather than the 445.
Where do health, character and the other criteria fit?
Sponsorship is only one part of the picture. The child, and any dependent children applying with them, must meet the health requirement, and the child must meet the character requirement if aged 16 or over. An applicant aged 18 or over must have read, or had explained to them, the Life in Australia booklet and sign the Australian Values Statement. For a child under 18, the Department needs the written consent of everyone who can legally decide where the child lives, or another lawful basis for travel, and it may refuse the visa if granting it would not be in the child's best interests. Any debt owed to the Australian Government must be repaid or formally arranged.
This article is general information only and is not personalised migration or legal advice; sponsorship rules and their evidentiary requirements can change, so check the Department's current published requirements or get advice from a qualified professional about your own circumstances.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who has to sponsor a subclass 445 applicant?
The child must be sponsored by the same person who sponsored or nominated the parent's permanent Partner visa application, and the sponsorship must be approved before the visa can be granted. The Migration Regulations 1994 set out limited alternatives where that person has died or the relationship has ended.
Can the parent sponsor the child after a relationship breakdown?
Yes, under clause 445.223(3), but only where the parent has requested consideration under the family violence or parental arrangements provisions for their subclass 100 or 801 application. The replacement sponsorship still has to be approved and still in force at the time of decision.
What if the relationship ended but no family violence or parental arrangements claim was made?
The alternative-sponsor route in clause 445.223(3) is tied to that request having been made, so without it the ordinary rule applies and the sponsorship is expected to come from the parent's nominator or sponsor. This is one of the reasons a sponsorship can fail during processing rather than at lodgement.
Can sponsorship be refused because of the sponsor's criminal record?
Yes. A pending registrable offence charge against the sponsor, or their spouse or de facto partner, means the sponsorship and the visa application will be refused, and a conviction means approval is possible only in very limited circumstances.
Does sponsorship have to remain valid while the application is being processed?
Yes. Clause 445.224 requires the sponsorship to have been approved and to still be in force when the decision is made, so a sponsorship that lapses mid-processing needs to be addressed with a fresh, approved sponsorship.
Do over-18 children still count as dependent for this visa?
They can, if they are financially dependent on the parent who holds the temporary Partner or Dependent Child visa. Dependency is assessed both at application and at decision, so evidence usually needs to be current.