Including dependent children in a family violence PR claim in 2026

How a dependent child can reach permanent residence through a parent's family violence claim in 2026, and when a subclass 445 application is required.

Published: 11 October 2026

A dependent child does not hold a family violence claim of their own. Under the pathway published by the Department of Home Affairs, a child may be eligible for a permanent visa when two things line up around them: they are the dependant of a Partner visa-holding parent who has applied under the family violence provisions, and they have applied for a Dependent Child (subclass 445) visa. That is the position set out on the Department of Home Affairs' Family violence provisions page, and it explains why the child's result travels with the parent's file rather than being decided separately.

What follows describes how those published requirements are framed for general reference only. It is not advice on any one family's case; questions that turn on your own evidence, history or timing should be checked against the current official pages or with a registered practitioner.

Three consequences follow from that structure. The parent's claim is assessed first, and the child's outcome sits behind it. The child needs their own application — eligibility is not transferred automatically by being listed on the parent's file. And the existence of children enters the record early, through the relationship-breakdown notification, which affects what the former partner can still see.

What must be true for the child's permanent residence to follow?

The dependent child limb is built from three conditions that sit together.

The child is the dependant of a parent who holds or has applied for a Temporary Partner (subclass 820) visa or a Provisional Partner (subclass 309) visa (having entered Australia since applying), or who holds or previously held a Prospective Marriage (subclass 300) visa.
That parent has applied under the family violence provisions.
The child has applied for a Dependent Child (subclass 445) visa.

The parent's own position has to be sound as well. The provisions apply where the parent has applied for or holds an eligible visa, has experienced family violence, the perpetrator was their former partner or spouse, some or all of the violence occurred during that relationship, and the relationship has ended. For Partner visa applicants and holders, the perpetrator must be the former sponsor of the visa application. Where the parent held a Subclass 300 visa, the parent must be in Australia; if that visa has ceased, the parent must also not currently hold a substantive visa and must have applied for the Partner (subclasses 820 and 801) visa.

The family violence pages do not themselves publish the eligibility criteria for the subclass 445 visa. Those requirements belong to that visa's own listing, and nothing in the dependent child limb removes them. Having a parent with a live claim does not substitute for the child's own application meeting what subclass 445 asks.

Is the child making a claim, or following the parent's?

Following it. The department's pages set out two different routes into the provisions, and only one of them can apply to a child.

The secondary applicant route — covering a list of skilled, business and family visas, ranging from the Employer Nomination Scheme (subclass 186) and Skilled Independent (subclass 189) through to the Parent (subclass 103) and Contributory Parent (subclass 143) visas — is framed around a claimant who is the former partner or spouse of the primary applicant, with the primary applicant as the alleged perpetrator. A child on a parent's application is not in that relationship to anyone.

The dependent child limb is the one written for children, and it is defined by reference to someone else's action: the parent holding or having applied for the Partner visa, having applied under the provisions, and the child having applied for the subclass 445. Note the wording throughout is "may be eligible". The pages describe eligibility for a permanent visa; they do not describe an automatic grant.

Where do children enter the process when the relationship breaks down?

At the first step, before any evidence is gathered. A parent who has access to ImmiAccount notifies the end of the relationship using the 'Notification of Relationship Cessation' form, found in the 'Update Details' tab. The form asks three things: when the relationship ceased, whether the applicant has experienced family violence, and whether there are children of the relationship with the former sponsor.

Both boxes matter. The department's instruction is to choose both the family violence option and the children of the relationship option where both apply, and the automatic removal of the application is triggered only by the family violence choice. Once that option is selected, the Partner visa application and the sponsorship application are removed from every ImmiAccount, including your former sponsor's account and your migration agent's account. This is why the children question is not administrative noise: it is the point at which children of the relationship are recorded on a file that is being locked down.

After notification, the parent is advised to create a new ImmiAccount using an email address the former sponsor cannot access, and the department contacts them to transfer the application across and collect the new username and email address. Where ImmiAccount is not available, the notification can be made through the Partner processing enquiry form.

What does the assessment actually look at?

The order is fixed. The decision maker first has to be satisfied that the relationship with the former sponsor was genuine and ongoing before it ended, and only then moves to the family violence claim. The violence evidence must show two things: that at least part of the violence occurred while the claimant was in a relationship with the former sponsor, and that the former sponsor was the alleged perpetrator. All evidence must be in writing, in English, and in the format and level of detail requested.

Children surface inside that evidence in two ways worth knowing, because they are the parts of the framework that speak directly to a child's own risk.

Judicial evidence — court documents — includes a record that a court convicted the former partner or spouse of a family violence offence against the claimant or their dependant(s), and a record that a court recorded a finding of guilt for such offences against the claimant or their dependant(s). An injunction under the Family Law Act 1975, or an order made under a state or territory law, also falls in this group, and only one listed item is needed. Interim orders may meet the threshold; where one does not, a copy can still be provided while awaiting the final outcome, and the final order must be provided once made.

Among the non-judicial categories, one is written with children specifically in mind. Child welfare officer evidence — a report, letter or statutory declaration — must detail fears for the dependent child's safety due to family violence within the household, and must identify the alleged perpetrator or give enough information for that identity to be reasonably inferred. Like the other categories, it has to come from a person acting in their professional capacity, and only one document may be supplied per category.

Non-judicial evidence otherwise means either a joint undertaking made before the court, or a minimum of two pieces of evidence accompanied by a Commonwealth statutory declaration. The published categories include medical, police, family violence support service provider, social worker, psychologist, family consultant and family relationship counsellor, and education professional evidence, each with its own required contents. Anything beyond the minimum may still be weighed by the decision maker as part of the whole assessment.

What happens to the child if the parent's claim is not accepted?

There is no published fallback inside this limb. The eligibility is defined by reference to the parent's position, so if the parent's claim fails, nothing in the dependent child pathway operates independently of it. In practice the parent's decision is the load-bearing one.

Where the department is not satisfied that family violence occurred, it refers the claimant to an independent expert and tells them it has done so. The expert arranges an interview about the claims and gives an opinion on whether family violence has been experienced. The process may take some time, and the department must accept the expert's opinion. If the opinion is adverse, the claimant is given an opportunity to comment on it. If it is favourable, further requests may follow — commonly a health examination, or character documents such as an Australian or overseas police certificate. Those same requests can also follow a claim accepted without referral to an expert.

Does it change anything if the other parent withdraws sponsorship?

Withdrawal is not itself a decision about the child. A sponsor who withdraws does so through the Partner processing enquiry form with a statement to that effect, and privacy law then prevents the department from giving that sponsor any details about the application or applicant — including the outcome and whether the applicant is in Australia. The department notes that grounds to grant a permanent Partner visa may still exist. It also states that when it receives information that a relationship has ended, it must tell the visa applicant and give them a chance to respond to that information before deciding the application. For a child whose pathway depends on the parent's claim, that response opportunity is where the parent's family violence claim enters the decision.

Support that does not depend on how the visa decision goes

The department's Where to get help page states plainly that people affected by domestic and family violence have the right to feel safe and that support is available regardless of visa status. The national support services listed there cover counselling, support and advice, and also assist with housing, finances, food, medical needs and legal matters.

Two practical details from that page are worth repeating. Most helplines are free from a landline, payphone and most mobile phones, but the number will still appear on your phone bill, so anyone who can see the bill can see that a call was made. Private browsing is recommended, and browsing history should be cleared if that is not possible. In an emergency or life-threatening situation, the department advises calling police on 000.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does my child need to have applied for the subclass 445 before the parent's claim is decided?

The published requirement is framed as the child having applied for a Dependent Child (subclass 445) visa; the pages do not set out a deadline or a required sequence for lodging it. Confirm the current position against the department's own pages before relying on a particular timing.

Does my child need their own family violence evidence?

The claim is the parent's, assessed on whether part of the violence occurred during the parent's relationship and whether the former sponsor was the alleged perpetrator. A child's own experience enters the file through specific evidence types — judicial records covering offences against dependants, and child welfare officer evidence detailing fears for the dependent child's safety within the household.

My child is listed as a secondary applicant on someone else's visa. Does that count?

No. The secondary applicant route is framed around a claimant who is the former partner or spouse of the primary applicant, with the primary applicant as the alleged perpetrator. A dependent child's published route runs through the parent's Partner visa and family violence claim plus the child's own subclass 445 application.

Will the automatic removal from ImmiAccount cover my children's details?

Once the family violence option is chosen on the Notification of Relationship Cessation form, the Partner visa application and the sponsorship application are removed from all ImmiAccounts, including the former sponsor's. This is also why the form asks whether there are children of the relationship, and why both that option and the family violence option should be selected where both apply.

What happens if the parent's claim goes to an independent expert?

An independent expert interviews the claimant and gives an opinion, and the department must accept that opinion. If the opinion is adverse, the claimant gets a chance to comment on it before a decision is made on the application, and because the child's eligibility depends on the parent's claim, that step determines the child's position too.

What if the parent turns out not to be eligible for the provisions at all?

The pathway for children described here would not be available, because it is defined by reference to the parent having applied under the provisions. The department's position is that help remains available and that people have a right to a safe environment regardless of visa status.