What Can You Do on a Subclass 115 Visa in 2026? Work, Study, Medicare, Sponsoring

What the Subclass 115 visa lets you do in 2026: work, study, Medicare, sponsoring relatives, travel, and the waiting period.

Published: 10 July 2026 Reading time 12 min

On a Remaining Relative visa (Subclass 115) you can stay in Australia indefinitely, work and study, enrol in Medicare, sponsor relatives to come to Australia, attend free English classes through the Adult Migrant English Program if you are eligible, and apply for Australian citizenship if you meet the requirements. These entitlements are set out by the Department of Home Affairs for the Remaining Relative visa (Subclass 115). The practical catch for new holders is rarely work or study — it is timing, because newly arrived residents may have to wait before certain Australian Government payments and benefits open up.

What does the Subclass 115 visa actually allow?

The visa is a permanent visa, so the entitlements attach to residence rather than to a sponsor or an employer. The official page sets them out as six separate permissions.

What you can do	How the official page frames it
Stay	Stay in Australia indefinitely
Work and study	Work and study in Australia
Health cover	Enrol in Australia's public healthcare scheme, Medicare
Family migration	Sponsor your relatives to come to Australia
English classes	Attend free English language classes provided by the Adult Migrant English Program, if eligible
Citizenship	Apply for Australian citizenship, if eligible

Two of those six carry an "if eligible" qualifier in the official wording: the Adult Migrant English Program and citizenship. The others are stated without an extra eligibility test at the point of grant.

What work and study rights does the visa give you?

The official page lists work and study as visa entitlements, and separately notes that as the holder of this visa you become a permanent resident and are protected by Australian workplace law, pointing to the Fair Work Ombudsman fact sheet on visa holders and migrant workers for the detail.

Any conditions that apply are set out electronically: Home Affairs directs holders to VEVO for their specific visa conditions and work and study entitlements, which is the record of what applies to an individual grant.

Do you get Medicare, and what about other payments?

You can enrol in Medicare, Australia's public healthcare scheme. Enrolment is listed directly as a visa entitlement, so it is not tied to a waiting period in the same way as income support.

Government payments are a different matter. The Home Affairs page states that newly arrived residents may have to wait before they can access certain Australian Government payments and benefits, and points to Services Australia for the newly arrived residents' waiting period rules. So the honest reading is: Medicare enrolment follows from the visa, while some payments are governed by a separate waiting period administered by Services Australia.

Can you sponsor relatives once you hold the visa?

Yes — sponsoring your relatives to come to Australia is one of the six listed entitlements. The underlying structure of the visa runs on sponsorship in both directions: to qualify, you must yourself be the remaining relative of an Australian citizen, permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen, and have an eligible sponsor.

Family members can be included in your own application when you apply, and can be added at any time before a decision is made. Every family member who applies with you must meet health and character requirements; family members who are not migrating may also have to meet them. The official page also flags separate guidance for a child born after you apply.

How long can you travel in and out of Australia?

You can travel to and from Australia as many times as you like for five years from the date the visa is granted, until the travel validity expires. Home Affairs directs holders to VEVO to see exactly when their travel validity ends.

Once that initial five-year travel validity has passed, re-entering Australia as a permanent resident requires a Resident Return visa (RRV). The alternative the official page raises is Australian citizenship: citizens do not need a visa to enter Australia, but they do need an Australian passport to leave and re-enter.

When are you considered a permanent resident for citizenship purposes?

The page gives two starting points. You become a permanent resident for citizenship purposes when you enter Australia on this visa; or, if you were previously present in Australia and held a permanent visa immediately before you last left, at the time the visa is granted.

That distinction matters because citizenship eligibility runs partly off time spent as a permanent resident. The page does not set out the residence requirements themselves — it directs readers to the Department's citizenship material for eligibility and current processing times.

What must you do after the visa is granted?

You must enter Australia before the date specified in your grant letter, which Home Affairs says is generally set at 12 months from the date of grant. If you do not travel before that first entry date, you can still travel while the visa remains valid, but the visa may be subject to cancellation before arrival or at the border, and VEVO is the tool given for checking whether the visa is still valid.

After arrival, you and any family members included in the grant must meet all visa conditions and obey Australian laws. Conditions can be checked in VEVO; changes in your situation should be reported through the Department's change-in-situation process. There is no visa label — the visa is digitally linked to your passport. At the border, all arrivals complete an Incoming Passenger Card, and ePassport holders may be able to use SmartGate.

These notes describe the framework as the Department publishes it and are general information only — not personalised advice on your own eligibility, conditions or waiting periods, which should be confirmed against current official information or with a qualified professional.

What does the visa cost, and how is it paid?

The official page presents the visa application charge as a "from" amount and directs applicants to the Visa Pricing Estimator for their own figure, noting that the estimator does not include the second instalment or other costs. No single flat amount is published on the page itself.

Payment is split into two instalments: the first when you apply, the second when the Department asks for it. There is an extra charge for each family member who applies with you, and you may also face separate costs for health checks, police certificates and biometrics.

From 1 July 2026, a lower visa application cost applies to eligible Pacific Island and Timor-Leste citizens who lodge a valid application. Eligibility is recognised through a valid passport from one of the listed countries — the Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, Palau, Papua New Guinea, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Timor-Leste, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu — and family members are also eligible, based on the primary applicant's passport.

How long will the application take?

Home Affairs states plainly that demand for Other Family visas exceeds the number of places available each year, so processing can be lengthy, and that applications for this visa are subject to capping and queueing. The global visa processing times tool gives an indication based on recently decided applications, but the Department describes it as a guide only and not specific to any individual application.

The page also lists the things that slow an application down: an incorrectly completed form, missing documents or a request for more information, and verification that takes longer than usual. An application will not be processed at all if the correct visa application charge has not been paid.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the Subclass 115 visa permanent?

Yes. It is a permanent visa that lets you stay in Australia indefinitely. Travel is the part with a time limit: five years of free travel from the date of grant, after which re-entry as a permanent resident needs a Resident Return visa or Australian citizenship.

Can I work full-time and study at the same time?

The official page lists work and study together as visa entitlements, and notes that as the holder you become a permanent resident protected by Australian workplace law. Your own work and study entitlements, along with any conditions attached to your grant, are set out in VEVO.

When can I enrol in Medicare?

Medicare enrolment is listed as a visa entitlement for Subclass 115 holders, so it follows from the grant rather than from a separate application stream. The Department's page points to Medicare as Australia's public healthcare scheme for enrolment.

Will I get Australian Government payments straight away?

Not necessarily. Home Affairs states that newly arrived residents may have to wait before accessing certain Australian Government payments and benefits, and refers to Services Australia for the newly arrived residents' waiting period. Treat the waiting period as a separate rule from the visa itself.

Can I sponsor my relatives once I have the visa?

Yes, sponsoring relatives is one of the six listed entitlements on the official page. Relatives who apply still have to satisfy the health and character requirements that apply to their own application.

How much does the Subclass 115 visa cost in 2026?

The page publishes a "from" amount and directs applicants to the Visa Pricing Estimator, which does not include the second instalment or other costs such as health checks, police certificates and biometrics. It is paid in two instalments, with an extra charge for each family member applying with you.

Are the Adult Migrant English Program classes free?

The Department describes them as free English language classes provided by the Adult Migrant English Program, available if you are eligible. Eligibility is not set out on the Subclass 115 page itself.