How to Apply for Subclass 864 Online in 2026 (ImmiAccount Steps)

How to lodge the Contributory Aged Parent (subclass 864) visa online in 2026: the three ImmiAccount steps and the paper exception.

Published: 5 October 2026

Subclass 864 is lodged online through ImmiAccount in three steps: create an account or log in, attach your documents, then pay the application fee. For any application lodged on or after 22 April 2026, the Department of Home Affairs requires the online route — a paper application is only considered where an ImmiAccount technical fault cannot be resolved. This follows the Department of Home Affairs official page for the Contributory Aged Parent visa (subclass 864), as at July 2026.

The subclass 864 visa is the permanent contributory parent pathway: it lets you stay in Australia indefinitely, work and study, enrol in Medicare, and travel to and from Australia for five years from the grant date. What follows is general information about how the department describes the process, not advice on any individual's circumstances; the official page is the authority on current requirements, and anyone who needs advice about their own situation should obtain it from a properly qualified professional.

Do you have to lodge subclass 864 online in 2026?

Yes, for applications lodged on or after 22 April 2026. The official page sets out three steps for online applications: create an ImmiAccount or log in to an existing one, attach documents, and pay the application fee.

Online lodgement is not just a submission channel. It is also how you upload documents you did not send with the application, read messages the department sends you, update your details, and check your application status. Applicants who do lodge on paper can import the application into ImmiAccount later to get the same access, so most people end up in the online system either way.

Where do you need to be when you lodge — and when the decision is made?

Location is the part of this visa that causes the most confusion, and the official page is not perfectly consistent on it.

The "Apply from" section states that you, and any family members applying with you, must be in Australia — but not in immigration clearance — when you apply. The application-step section frames it differently: applicants can be in or outside Australia, but not in immigration clearance, when they submit; retiree-pathway applicants must be in Australia and not in immigration clearance at submission, but may be in or outside Australia when the decision is made. The visa-outcome section, by contrast, says you must be in Australia and not in immigration clearance when the decision is made.

Given the two readings, the conservative position is to be in Australia and outside the border-clearance process both when you lodge and when the decision is made, and to confirm the current wording on the official page before committing to a lodgement date or travel plan. "Immigration clearance" refers to the border process you pass through on arrival, so being physically in the country is not the same as being clear of it.

What has to be settled before you start the online form?

Three things can block an application before documents even matter:

Passports. You, and anyone applying with you, must hold valid passports before the visa is granted.
An earlier Parent visa application. If you have applied for a different Parent visa and no decision has been made on it, you must withdraw that application when you apply for subclass 864. The official page says this can be done as part of the new application.
Subclass 870 history. You cannot apply for subclass 864 if you have already applied for, or hold, a Sponsored Parent (Temporary) visa (subclass 870).

You also need to decide who, if anyone, is assisting you. Only a registered migration agent, a legal practitioner, or an exempt person can give immigration assistance. Anyone can be appointed to receive documents on your behalf, using Form 956A; appointing someone for immigration assistance uses Form 956.

Which documents do you attach to the online application?

Document group	What the official page asks for
Identity	Photo and personal details pages of your current passport, national identity card if you have one, and proof of change of name where applicable
Sponsor	Form 40 Sponsorship for migration to Australia, completed by an eligible sponsor
Balance of family	Evidence of your relationship to each child, each child's citizenship or country of permanent residence, and evidence where a child should be excluded
Character	Police certificates and related documents — only after the department asks
Assurance of Support	Provided when asked; not required if you apply as a retiree
Partner	Identity and character documents, plus evidence of the marriage or of a de facto relationship of at least 12 months before you apply
Dependants under 18	Identity documents, evidence of your relationship, and character documents if applicable
Dependants 18 and over	Identity, relationship, other-relationship, character and dependency documents
Photographs	Four recent passport-size (45mm x 35mm) photos per person, less than six months old, colour, full face against a plain light background

Two groups get different treatment. If you hold a Contributory Aged Parent (Temporary) visa (subclass 884), or your subclass 884 ended in the 28 days immediately before you apply, you do not need to provide some of the documents usually requested — but you still need documents showing who is helping you, and evidence of any change in your situation since the 884 was granted. If you apply as a retiree, you cannot include your children or your partner's children in the application at all.

Identity documents carry the sharpest consequence on the page: if you cannot prove your identity, the department will refuse the application, and it may refuse visas for you and for family members listed on the application for ten years.

How do the three ImmiAccount steps work in practice?

Create or log in. ImmiAccount is the department's online portal. The official page also asks applicants to protect their email account, passwords and ImmiAccount details and not share them, and to keep contact details current — the department may need to contact you directly even if you have nominated your sponsor's email for correspondence or appointed an authorised recipient.

Attach documents. This is where the material in the table above is uploaded. If you have already submitted online, or imported a paper application, you can use ImmiAccount to upload further documents later; the alternative route is the Parent visa processing centre form.

Pay the application fee. You pay the first instalment when you apply. The second instalment is invoiced later, and the visa will not be granted until it is paid — if you do not pay the invoice, the department will refuse the application.

What does it cost, and when is each instalment due?

The official page states the visa costs from AUD49,900 for a single applicant, with costs possibly lower for subclass 884 holders and for holders of a substituted Visitor (subclass 600) visa. The cost is paid in two instalments: the first when you apply, the second when the department asks for it. On top of the visa charge, each applicant may face separate costs for health checks, police certificates and biometrics.

From 1 July 2026, a lower visa cost applies to eligible Pacific Island and Timor-Leste citizens who lodge a valid application, recognised through a valid passport from a specified country: Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Republic of the Marshall Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Timor-Leste, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu. Family members are eligible on the basis of the primary applicant's passport.

If the application is refused, the application fee is not refunded.

What if ImmiAccount is not working — can you still lodge on paper?

The paper route is a fallback, not an alternative preference. If you cannot apply online because of a technical issue, the official page directs you to submit an ImmiAccount Technical Support Form. Only if technical support does not resolve the issue will the department consider allowing you to submit a paper application.

Assume an applicant whose ImmiAccount session fails repeatedly during payment, who submits the technical support form and whose case is not resolved: under the published process, that is the point at which a paper application becomes a possibility rather than an automatic right. Nothing on the page turns a preference for paper, or a difficulty gathering documents, into grounds for lodging outside the online system.

Paper applicants are not locked out afterwards. Once you receive your acknowledgement letter, you can import the application into ImmiAccount by entering your application ID, date of birth, and identity document number — an ImmiCard, passport or Titre de Voyage number. Both new and on-hand applications can be imported.

What happens between submission and the decision?

You will be told when the application and documents have been received, but the department does not provide progress updates within normal processing times. Parent visas are subject to capping and queueing and are processed in the order received, in two stages: an initial assessment to decide whether the application joins the queue or is refused, then final assessment as places become available.

Several obligations run through that waiting period. Tell the department if you want to travel outside Australia while the application is processed, and hold a valid visa to return. Complete health examinations, provide character documents and give biometrics when asked. Pay the second instalment on the invoice. Use Form 1436 to add family members before a decision — a spouse or de facto partner can be in or outside Australia when added unless you applied as a retiree, in which case they must be in Australia; a dependent child can be in or outside Australia either way. Use Form 1023 to correct incorrect answers, and notify changes to your phone number, email, address, passport, relationship status and family composition.

If you applied in Australia, the department is likely to grant a bridging visa that starts when your current visa expires, letting you stay lawfully while the application is processed. Do not cancel your current visa — doing so may leave you unlawful and ineligible for a bridging visa.

The decision arrives in writing. A grant notice gives your visa grant number, the start date and your visa conditions. A refusal notice gives the reasons and tells you whether you have a right to review.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I have to apply for subclass 864 online in 2026?

Online lodgement through ImmiAccount is required for applications lodged on or after 22 April 2026, according to the Department of Home Affairs official page. The three published steps are creating or logging into ImmiAccount, attaching documents, and paying the application fee.

Can I lodge on paper if ImmiAccount keeps failing?

Paper is only considered after a technical fault has been reported and not fixed. You submit an ImmiAccount Technical Support Form first; if technical support does not resolve the issue, the department will consider allowing a paper application.

Do I need to be in Australia to lodge subclass 864?

The official page's "Apply from" section says you and any accompanying family members must be in Australia and not in immigration clearance when you apply, while the application-step section says applicants can be in or outside Australia, with retiree-pathway applicants required to be in Australia. Being in Australia and outside immigration clearance at both lodgement and decision is the safe reading; confirm the current wording before you lodge.

Can I include my adult children in the application?

A dependent child can be included if they are under 18, or 18 to 22 and dependent on you or your partner, or over 23 and unable to earn a living because of physical or cognitive limitations while remaining dependent. If you apply as a retiree, you cannot include your children or your partner's children at all.

When do I pay the second instalment?

The department sends an invoice when the second instalment is due, and the visa will not be granted until it is paid. Failure to pay the invoice means the application will be refused.

Is the application fee refunded if the visa is refused?

No. The official page states the application fee is not refunded if the application is refused, and it also warns that the application will be refused if the second instalment invoice is not paid.

Do I need an Assurance of Support?

You provide one when the department asks for it. It is not needed if you apply as a retiree, and the sponsor or a family member does not have to provide it — an individual, more than one person, or an organisation can.