How the Balance of Family Test Works for Parent Visa 103 in 2026
Explains how the subclass 103 balance-of-family test is calculated, covering the half rule, the largest-country rule, and excluded children.
The balance-of-family test for the Parent visa (subclass 103) is passed either if at least half of your children and step-children are eligible children, or if there are more eligible children living in Australia than in any other single country. According to the Australian Government Department of Home Affairs' Parent visa (Subclass 103) official page, current as at July 2026, you only need to satisfy one of the two alternatives. Subclass 103 itself is the permanent parent visa for parents of Australian citizens, permanent residents or eligible New Zealand citizens under subclause 103.211 of the Migration Regulations 1994, and subclause 103.213 imposes this two-limb requirement.
How do the two limbs differ in practice?
| Limb | What it requires | What it ignores |
|---|---|---|
| At least half are eligible children | Eligible children must make up 50% or more of your non-excluded children plus step-children. | The countries where those eligible children live do not affect this limb. |
| Largest group of eligible children in Australia | Australia must hold more eligible children by residence than any other single country considered on its own. | Whether half has been reached; children who are not eligible are not counted toward any country. |
Which children are counted before any exclusion?
The denominator for the first limb starts as all your children and step-children — the Department’s wording expressly bundles step-children with natural children. Assume an applicant has four children and one step-child; before any exclusion, that is a pool of five. Their current country of residence does not change this starting headcount.
How is the "at least half" rule calculated?
Count how many of that pool are eligible children, then compare against half. Two out of four equals exactly half, so it passes; two out of five does not. Assume an applicant has four children and one step-child, and one of the children died years ago; providing the death certificate excludes that child, leaving three children plus one step-child, a pool of four. If two of the surviving children are eligible children, the fraction is two out of four, the halfway threshold is met, and the first limb is passed. The step-child sits in the denominator in the same way as a natural child, even though the step-child need not be the sponsor.
How is the "largest single group" rule calculated?
The second limb compares countries, counting only eligible children by where they live. Assume an applicant has five children and one step-child — six in total — with no deceased child. Only one of the six is an Australian permanent resident and lives in Australia; the other five live in one other country, and their documentation shows permanent residence of that country rather than Australian citizenship. The first limb fails, because one eligible child out of six is well below half. The second limb still succeeds: the Australian count of eligible children is one, the other country’s count of eligible children is zero, and one is greater than zero. The comparison therefore turns on eligible children plus residence, not on the raw number of children abroad.
Which children are left out of the calculation?
You can provide evidence that your child should not be included in the balance-of-family test, and the example given in the document list is their death certificate. A deceased child drops out of the denominator and therefore also out of any eligible pool. Evidence, rather than assumption, drives the exclusion: simply asserting a child should not be counted is not the step the published checklist describes.
When does the test not apply at all?
Retiree applicants do not need to meet the balance-of-family test. To use that pathway, you must, on 8 May 2018, have held or previously held an Investor Retirement (subclass 405) or Retirement (subclass 410) visa; you must also have held no other substantive visa between 8 May 2018 and the date you applied for the Parent visa, and you must be in Australia. Retirees additionally do not need an Assurance of Support and do not need a sponsor, which separates this pathway sharply from the standard criterion sets.
What documents support the numbers you declare?
The step-by-step checklist asks for three items in relation to the test: evidence of how you are related to each child, evidence of each child’s Australian citizenship or country of permanent residence, and evidence that a child should not be included, illustrated by that child’s death certificate. Sponsorship is a separate criterion: usually an eligible child sponsors you, and if your child is under 18 an eligible relative or community organisation can sponsor, but sponsorship still has to be approved and does not itself resolve the counting question.
Keep in mind this explanation is general in nature: it is not personalised migration or legal advice, does not come from a legal practitioner-client relationship, and does not promise any visa outcome. Your own position should be measured against the official Department of Home Affairs material and any advice obtained from a qualified professional, and the July 2026 setting described here remains subject to later departmental change.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the balance-of-family test count step-children?
Yes. The first limb is framed as "at least half of your children and step-children", so step-children sit in the denominator together with natural children. A step-child can therefore move the halfway result even if that step-child is not the one sponsoring you. Sponsorship and counting are separate criteria.
Can I pass if fewer than half my children are eligible?
Yes, under the second limb. If the number of eligible children living in Australia is greater than the number living in each other single country, the test is met without reaching 50 per cent. One eligible child in Australia can suffice where no other country has any eligible children.
What evidence shows whether a child is eligible?
The Department asks for evidence of your relationship to each child and evidence of each child’s Australian citizenship or country of permanent residence. Australian citizenship or permanent residence evidence places a child in the Australian eligible pool, while permanent residence of another country documents the child against that country.
Are deceased children counted?
No. You can give evidence that your child should not be included in the balance-of-family test, and the example the checklist gives is their death certificate. The deceased child therefore falls out of both the half calculation and the country comparison.
Is anyone exempt from the test altogether?
Yes. Applicants using the retiree pathway do not meet the test, and also do not need an Assurance of Support or a sponsor. The pathway requires holding or having previously held a subclass 405 or 410 visa on 8 May 2018, holding no other substantive visa from that date to applying, and being in Australia.
Where does the test come from in law?
The balance-of-family requirement for subclass 103 sits in subclause 103.213 of the Migration Regulations 1994, while subclause 103.211 defines the parent relationship to Australian citizens, permanent residents or eligible New Zealand citizens. The retiree transitional provision is at subclause 103.214, which sets out the exemption from the balance-of-family test for certain former subclass 405 and 410 visa holders.