405 visa holders in 2026: maintaining your designated investment and renewing
What a current Subclass 405 holder must show in 2026 to renew: the designated investment and annual income you have to maintain.
If you already hold a Subclass 405 (Investor Retirement) visa, renewal turns on two numbers rather than three. Under clause 405.228 of the Migration Regulations 1994, as published on the Federal Register of Legislation, and the Department of Home Affairs' PAM3 guidance for Subclass 405, a holder whose last substantive visa was a Subclass 405 must have made and maintained a designated investment of at least AUD 250,000 where the sponsoring regional authority nominated a regional postcode, or AUD 500,000 where it did not — together with annual net income of at least AUD 50,000 or AUD 65,000 respectively. Amounts and their current operation should be checked against the Department's latest published material before you rely on them.
What does renewing a Subclass 405 visa actually require?
A renewal applicant is assessed on a reduced set of criteria. The net asset thresholds that apply to first-time applicants — AUD 500,000 in a designated regional area and AUD 750,000 elsewhere under clauses 405.227(2) and 405.227(3) — are replaced at renewal by the maintenance test in clause 405.228: keep the designated investment at or above the renewal floor, and keep annual net income at or above the renewal floor.
The regional/non-regional split follows the area indicated by your sponsoring state or territory regional authority, which is identified by postcode in a legislative instrument.
| Where you are sponsored to live | Designated investment to maintain | Annual net income |
|---|---|---|
| Designated regional postcode | AUD 250,000 | AUD 50,000 |
| Non-regional postcode | AUD 500,000 | AUD 65,000 |
Falling below either figure is not automatically fatal, but it does put you into the compassionate-and-compelling-circumstances territory discussed below, and the guidance requires the delegate to give you a chance to make that case before refusing.
How much designated investment do you have to keep, and where can it sit?
The investment is not a discretionary portfolio. Regulation 5.19A defines designated investment as government securities, and PAM3 records that they must run for at least four years, cannot be transferred or redeemed early, and must be held in the state or territory of the sponsoring regional authority. They can be held in your name alone or jointly with your spouse.
The state or territory treasury administers the investment; delegates do not take part in that decision. In the PAM3 decision flow, the invitation to invest is issued only after every other criterion has been assessed, and the applicant then completes the investment, lodges Form 1031 with the state treasury's confirmation, pays the second instalment of the visa application charge and signs the required declaration.
Practical consequence for a renewal: the delegate will be looking for continuous holding across the life of your previous visa, not just a balance on the day you lodge.
What counts as annual net income on a renewal?
PAM3's assessment guidance describes the income test as net onshore income, which can draw on both Australian and overseas sources — government pensions, superannuation or retirement income, investment returns and rent — but which excludes future income. Evidence typically takes the form of tax records, dividend statements and pension or superannuation statements.
Two further points from the same guidance matter if any of your income is earned outside Australia. Borrowed funds do not count toward the assets or the designated investment, and where income is held in another currency the conversion is done at the official bank buying rate on the date of application, with the most favourable buying rate available if the rate has moved by more than five per cent over a year.
What happens if you withdraw the investment early?
Withdrawing before the term ends is the single most consequential thing a 405 holder can do. PAM3 guidance states that delegates may consider cancelling the visa under section 116 of the Migration Act where the designated investment has been taken out early, but that cancellation is not mandated — a withdrawal driven by, say, rising medical costs is given as an example where cancellation is not automatic.
Even where cancellation is not pursued, early withdrawal removes the basis on which you were granted the visa. Condition 8516, which must be imposed under clause 405.611, requires you to keep satisfying the basis of the grant, so a shortfall will surface at the next renewal decision even if it does not trigger cancellation first.
The same clause imposes condition 8104 (work limited to 20 hours a week) and condition 8501 (adequate arrangements for health insurance) alongside 8516.
Can you be excused if you fall short of the investment or income threshold?
Yes, in principle, through the note to clauses 405.228(2) and 405.228(3). Where a renewal applicant cannot meet the investment or income requirement because of compassionate and compelling circumstances, the requirement can be waived. The examples given in PAM3 are permanent deterioration in health, the death of a spouse, unrest or disease in the home country, and a market collapse affecting a pension or superannuation balance.
The guidance is explicit that a delegate must issue a request for evidence of those circumstances before refusing on this ground, so supporting documentation — medical evidence, death certificates, fund statements — should be prepared rather than assembled after a request arrives.
One limit applies: a breach of condition 8303 (not engaging in disruptive or violent activity) is stated in PAM3 to be outside the compassionate waiver.
Do you still need private health insurance, and what health checks apply?
Condition 8501 must be imposed, and both you and your spouse must hold and maintain adequate private health insurance for the period of stay. PAM3 applies a "one fails, both fail" standard: if either of you is not adequately covered, both are treated as not covered. A delegate may still grant where the failure to comply was due to compassionate and compelling circumstances, and the associated guidance notes that policies are commonly issued for 12 months, so renewal of the policy has to be managed continuously.
Health assessment at renewal is narrower than at first application. Rather than the full public interest criterion 4005, clause 405.228(7)–(8) requires that you are free of tuberculosis and do not pose a threat to public health, and a chest X-ray may be requested. A health undertaking can be required under clause 405.228(9), which is not subject to the "one fails, both fail" standard. Renewal applicants must also meet public interest criteria 4001–4004, 4013, 4014, 4019, 4020 and 4021.
What else can break a renewal?
Three recurring failure points sit outside the financial tests.
Family composition. Neither you nor your spouse may have dependent children or any other dependant, even one who is not included in the application (clause 405.221 and regulation 1.05A(1)). Your secondary applicant must still be your spouse or de facto partner at decision, and cannot be granted before you are.
Sponsorship. A valid application requires sponsorship by the appropriate state or territory regional authority under Schedule 1 item 1212B(3)(d)(i). PAM3 records that if sponsorship is withdrawn, the visa may be cancelled.
Return and compliance history. Renewal applicants must satisfy special return criteria 5001 and 5002 (clause 405.222) and show substantial compliance with the conditions of the last substantive visa and any bridging visa held since, subject again to the compassionate-and-compelling exception in clause 405.223 for a previous Subclass 405 holder.
What to assemble before you lodge
- Evidence that the designated investment was held continuously since grant, in the correct state or territory and in an eligible name.
- Income evidence covering the whole relevant period: tax records, pension and superannuation statements, dividend and rental records.
- Current private health insurance cover for both you and your spouse, with the renewal date of the policy checked against the visa period you are seeking.
- Confirmation that no dependent child or other dependant exists in either family unit.
- Chest X-ray and any health undertaking material requested at the health stage.
- If you are below either financial threshold, documentary evidence of the compassionate and compelling circumstances, ready to be produced on request.
This article describes the Regulations and published departmental guidance in general terms and is not advice about your own circumstances; renewal decisions turn on your particular records, so check the current official pages and, if your position is uncertain, obtain professional advice before lodging.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I lodge a first Subclass 405 application in 2026?
Departmental guidance records that initial applications closed after 1 June 2018, leaving the subclass as a renewal route for existing or previous holders.
Is the AUD 250,000 floor available to everyone at renewal?
No. The lower figure applies only where your sponsoring regional authority has nominated a regional postcode; a non-regional nomination requires the designated investment to be maintained at AUD 500,000, with income of AUD 65,000.
What if I dipped below the investment floor part-way through my visa?
A temporary shortfall does not automatically end the visa, but clause 405.228 asks whether the investment was made and maintained, and condition 8516 requires you to keep meeting the basis of the grant. Expect to have to explain the gap, and to rely on compassionate and compelling circumstances if the balance is still short at decision.
Can my spouse's income count toward the annual income test?
The investment can be held jointly with your spouse, and the asset and income tests are framed around the applicant and, in places, the applicant's spouse or the couple's resources. Which income sources the delegate will accept in your case depends on whose names the assets and income are in, so document ownership clearly.
Will an early withdrawal automatically cancel my visa?
No. PAM3 treats cancellation under section 116 as a discretionary step rather than a required outcome, and gives increased medical costs as an example where cancellation would not follow. The withdrawal will still be relevant to whether you meet the renewal criteria.
Do I have to repeat the full health examination at renewal?
No. Renewal applicants are assessed against the narrower tuberculosis and public-health-threat standard in clauses 405.228(7)–(8), which may involve a chest X-ray, rather than the full criterion 4005 applied to first-time applicants.
Does a 405 holder have access to Medicare?
The guidance accompanying the Regulations notes that this visa does not confer Medicare eligibility, which is why condition 8501 requires private health insurance to be held and maintained throughout the stay.