Adding Family Members to a Subclass 837 Application in 2026: Siblings and Children
Siblings each need their own subclass 837 application; dependent children can be added before a decision, never after — the 2026 Home Affairs rules.
On the Australian Department of Home Affairs' Orphan Relative visa (Subclass 837) page (as at the August 2026 official page), the rules split cleanly in two: a sibling who also wants this visa must have a separate application of their own, while the applicant's own dependent children can be included either when the application is lodged or at any time before the Department decides it. After a decision is made, no dependants can be added. This article sets out those published rules as general information — it is not advice on an individual case, and the current official pages and the legislation register remain the authority on amounts, criteria and current wording.
Can brothers and sisters be included in one subclass 837 application?
No. The Department states plainly that if the child has siblings who also want to apply, a separate application must be made for each sibling.
That follows from how the visa is structured. The subclass 837 is built around one person being an orphan relative of an Australian relative, and the Migration Regulations 1994 deal with secondary applicants separately in clauses 837.31 and 837.32 — a secondary applicant has to be a member of the family unit of the main applicant, covered by the same sponsorship, and the main applicant's visa must be granted before a secondary applicant's can be. A sibling is not the applicant's dependent child, so there is no mechanism to carry them on another person's application.
In practical terms, each sibling's own application means its own paperwork: Form 47CH (Application for migration to Australia by a child) and Form 40CH (Sponsorship for a child to migrate to Australia), lodged together on paper with the Child and Other Family Processing Centre, its own application charge, its own four passport-size photographs, and its own identity, relationship, health and character documents.
Who can actually be added — the child's own dependent children
The applicant's dependent children can be included on the application when it is made, or at any time before the Department makes a decision. This is the one category of family member that travels on the same file rather than starting a new one.
| Siblings | The applicant's dependent children | |
|---|---|---|
| Can they be on the one application? | No — a separate application each | Yes |
| When can they be added? | They lodge their own application | At lodgement, or any time before the decision |
| After the decision | Separate application still possible | No — dependants cannot be added |
| Documents | Own Form 47CH, Form 40CH, identity and character documents | Identity documents, proof of relationship such as a birth certificate, character documents if applicable, four passport-size photographs |
| Cost | Own application charge | A charge for each dependent child |
The applicant's dependent children must also meet the health requirement, which is discussed below.
What does "before we decide the application" mean in practice?
There is no published calendar deadline. The cut-off is the decision itself: additions are possible right up to the point the Department decides, and impossible one moment after.
A subclass 837 application must be lodged on paper. The completed Form 47CH and Form 40CH are posted or couriered to the Child and Other Family Processing Centre in Perth, and the application charge must be paid before posting. After lodgement, the Department indicates that an acknowledgement should arrive within approximately one month, and once that letter arrives the paper application can be imported into ImmiAccount using the application ID, date of birth and identity document number.
From there, additional documents can be uploaded through ImmiAccount, or — if ImmiAccount cannot be used — attached to a completed Child and Orphan Relative Visa Processing Centre online form. A dependent child added late in the process is, in document terms, an addition to a live application: identity documents, relationship evidence, photographs and, where applicable, character documents.
Two related notification duties sit alongside this. The birth of a child is listed among the changes the Department must be told about, and incorrect answers on a form already lodged are notified using Form 1023 (Notification of incorrect answers).
Adding people late is not cost-free in terms of time. The Department lists incomplete applications, missing documents or a need for more information, time taken to verify information, and failure to pay the full charge at initial lodgement as reasons an application can take longer to process, and it points to the visa processing time guide tool as a guide only, based on recently decided applications rather than any specific case.
What does a dependent child have to satisfy to be added?
Three things matter most.
Health. Dependent children of the applicant who apply for the visa must meet the health requirement. The Department also notes that family members who are not coming to Australia might have to meet it. Health examinations are arranged when the Department asks for them.
Identity and relationship. For every dependant under 18 applying with the child, the Department requires identity documents, proof of the child's relationship with them (a birth certificate is the example given), and character documents where applicable. Four recent passport-size photographs (45mm x 35mm) are required for the child and for any other dependant included.
Character. Children over 16 must provide police certificates from every country they have spent 12 months or more in over the last 10 years since turning 16. For Australia, only National Police Certificates applied for under Code 33 – Immigration/Citizenship are accepted, issued by the Australian Federal Police; certificates are valid for 12 months from issue. Children over 16 must also complete Form 80, and anyone who has served in the armed forces of any country must provide military service records or discharge papers.
Each family member is assessed on their own merits, and the regulations tie a secondary applicant's grant to the main applicant's grant — so the file moves, or stalls, as a unit.
Does adding a dependent child change the cost?
Yes. The Department's page states there is a charge for each of the child's dependent children who apply for the visa, on top of the charge for the main applicant. The page does not publish a dollar figure for the main applicant; it directs applicants to the Visa Pricing Estimator, which does not account for other costs. Those other costs can include health checks, police certificates and biometrics.
One concession is worth noting for families from the Pacific and Timor-Leste. 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 from a valid passport issued by one of the specified countries, and family members are also eligible for the lower cost, based on the passport of the primary applicant (or the visa holder who satisfies the primary visa criteria). The listed countries are:
- Federated States of Micronesia
- Fiji
- Kiribati
- Nauru
- Palau
- Papua New Guinea
- Republic of the Marshall Islands
- Samoa
- Solomon Islands
- Timor-Leste
- Tonga
- Tuvalu
- Vanuatu
If the application is refused, the application fee is not refunded.
What happens once the visa has been granted?
The answer is fixed: you cannot add dependants to this visa after a decision has been made. The Department's "already have this visa" guidance is unambiguous on that point, and it refers people to its visa options tool to work out what visa a family member might apply for instead.
This is why the pre-decision window matters so much. A dependent child left out at lodgement can still be brought in at any stage of processing; a dependent child identified only after the grant letter arrives cannot. For a hypothetical applicant whose child is born, or whose caring arrangements change, while the application is on foot, the timing of that notification is the whole difference between a child who is added and a child who later needs a visa of their own.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can my brother or sister be added to my subclass 837 application as a dependant?
No. The Department requires a separate application for each sibling who wants this visa. Each sibling files their own Form 47CH and Form 40CH, pays their own application charge and supplies their own documents.
Can I add my own child after I have already lodged?
Yes. The applicant's dependent children can be included when the application is made or at any time before the Department decides it. Additional documents can be uploaded through ImmiAccount once the paper application has been imported, or sent with a Child and Orphan Relative Visa Processing Centre online form.
Is there a deadline for adding a dependent child?
The only cut-off is the decision on the application. There is no separate published date; once the Department has made its decision, dependants cannot be added to the visa.
Do dependent children have to undergo health checks?
Dependent children who apply for the visa must meet the health requirement, and the Department arranges the examinations when they are needed. Family members who are not coming to Australia may also have to meet the health requirement.
Can I add a dependant after my subclass 837 is granted?
No. The Department states that dependants cannot be added to this visa after a decision is made. Its visa options tool is the published starting point for working out what a family member could apply for.
Does adding a dependent child make the application slower or more expensive?
There is a separate charge for each dependent child who applies, plus possible costs for health checks, police certificates and biometrics. On timing, the Department lists missing documents, verification time and incomplete applications among the reasons processing can take longer.