Who Can Sponsor a Subclass 115 Visa in 2026 — and What 'Settled' Means
Who qualifies as a Subclass 115 sponsor, and how the settled and usually resident requirements are assessed.
You can sponsor a Subclass 115 Remaining Relative visa if you are 18 or over, you are a settled Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen, and you are the applicant's parent, step-parent, sibling or step-sibling — or the partner of one of those relatives. That is the position set out on the Australian Department of Home Affairs' Remaining Relative visa (Subclass 115) page as at July 2026, read together with regulation 115.212 of the Migration Regulations 1994. Departmental policy guidance adds a further element that neither the page nor regulation 115.212 states for the sponsor: the sponsor must also be usually resident in Australia. The sponsorship itself also has to be approved, and the eligibility test does not stop at the relationship.
Who counts as an eligible sponsor in the first place?
The relationship comes before anything else. The Department's page states that an applicant must be sponsored by an eligible parent or step-parent, sibling or step-sibling, or an eligible partner of one of those relatives.
That list is closed in practice. Under regulation 115.212, the sponsor is either the Australian relative themselves or the spouse or de facto partner of that relative who lives with them — and in both cases the person must be 18 or over, settled, and an Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen. Departmental policy guidance notes that uncles, aunts, grandparents and cousins fall outside the eligible group, even where the family tie is close.
So the first question is not whether the person is willing to sponsor you, but whether they sit inside one of these categories.
What are the four boxes the sponsor has to tick?
The sponsor's own status is assessed separately from the relationship, and all four elements have to hold at the same time.
| Requirement | What it means in practice | Where the sponsor shows it |
|---|---|---|
| Age | 18 years or older | Identity documents |
| Status | Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident, or eligible New Zealand citizen | Citizenship certificate, passport, or a valid visa for eligible New Zealand citizens |
| Settled | Has established a stable life in Australia | Residence, employment and community-tie evidence |
| Usually resident | Australia is the main home and centre of life | The same body of residence evidence, read as a pattern |
The Department also lists the documents used to prove the relationship itself: birth certificates, marriage certificates, death certificates, adoption certificates, and officially issued and maintained family status certificates or family books.
What does 'settled' actually mean?
'Settled' is a defined term — regulation 1.03 of the Migration Regulations 1994 contains the definition of "settled" — but the definition turns on the sponsor's circumstances rather than a single document. The Department's official page does not publish a minimum number of years.
Departmental policy guidance describes the assessment as looking at whether the sponsor has a stable life in Australia, weighing factors such as how long they have lived here lawfully, their employment or income position, and their community ties. Guidance commonly refers to around two years of lawful residence as an indicator. Treat that as an indicator and not a threshold: decision makers have discretion, and a shorter period can still be supported by strong evidence of a settled life, while a longer period can be undercut by long absences.
This matters most for sponsors who have recently returned to Australia, or who have been here for years but keep their work, family life and assets elsewhere. The question being asked is not "how long has this person held a passport or a visa" but "is this person's life established here".
Is 'usually resident' a second, separate test?
Yes, and it is worth separating in your own head, because the two tests fail for different reasons.
'Settled' looks at whether life in Australia is established. 'Usually resident' asks where the sponsor's main home and centre of life actually sit. Short trips overseas do not disturb either test. What creates risk is a pattern: long stretches offshore, a job based in another country, children enrolled in school elsewhere, or a partner and household that remain outside Australia. A sponsor who is formally a citizen or permanent resident but lives most of the year abroad is the profile that most often runs into difficulty with this limb.
Policy guidance also treats usual residence as relevant beyond the sponsorship question, because the remaining relative test itself turns on where near relatives usually live.
Can the sponsor be living overseas right now?
Technically the status requirement is about being a citizen, permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen, and the official page does not say a sponsor must be physically in Australia on the day of application. The problem is the usually resident limb: if the sponsor's centre of life is overseas, the sponsorship is exposed even though the citizenship or residence status is intact.
Where a sponsor is overseas for a defined and temporary reason — a work secondment, a family emergency, a planned return — the evidence should show both the temporary character of the absence and the continuing Australian base: housing, employment, bank and tax records, and a return date.
How does sponsorship actually get made and approved?
The sponsor completes Form 40 Sponsorship for migration to Australia. The applicant lodges Form 47OF on paper and must be outside Australia when applying; the first instalment is paid at lodgement and the second instalment is invoiced later, once the other requirements have been met.
Two points are easy to miss. First, sponsorship has to be approved — it is not automatic, and regulation 115.222 requires the approved sponsorship to remain valid up to the decision. Second, the applicant can change sponsors before a decision is made, but the replacement must satisfy 115.212 in their own right, which is why it is worth checking a backup sponsor against all four elements rather than just the relationship.
One further limit sits in regulation 1.20K: policy guidance summarising that provision states that a person — or their spouse or de facto partner — who has already successfully sponsored a subclass 104, 115, 806 or 835 visa cannot act as a sponsor again. Because that bar is lifetime in effect and reaches the partner's history, it should be checked before an application is built around someone.
An assurance of support is also required, but it is a separate strand: the applicant must be able to obtain one, and it must be accepted by Services Australia, with the Department advising when to provide it.
This article is general information only and is not personalised advice about your circumstances; sponsorship and eligibility turn on individual facts, and the Department's current published requirements should be the final reference.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can my aunt, uncle, grandparent or cousin sponsor me?
The Department's page limits sponsorship to an eligible parent or step-parent, sibling or step-sibling, or the partner of one of those relatives. Wider family members — aunts, uncles, grandparents, cousins — do not fall within that group, even where the relationship is close. Regulation 115.212 points the same way.
Does my sponsor have to be an Australian citizen?
No. The official page accepts a settled Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident, or eligible New Zealand citizen, provided the person is 18 or over; departmental policy guidance adds that the sponsor must also be usually resident in Australia. For eligible New Zealand citizens, the listed evidence is a valid visa; for citizens, a citizenship certificate or passport.
My sponsor only moved back to Australia a year ago — is that fatal?
Not automatically. The Department publishes no minimum period, and policy guidance looks at the overall picture: length of lawful residence, employment or income, and community ties. A shorter period backed by a stable job, housing and local ties can be presented, though the case needs stronger evidence than one with a longer history.
Can my sponsor live overseas while the application is on foot?
Living overseas is not automatically disqualifying, but it puts the usually resident limb at risk if the sponsor's main home and centre of life sit outside Australia. A temporary, well-documented absence with a continuing Australian base is a different position from an open-ended relocation.
Can I change sponsors after I have applied?
Yes. Regulation 115.222 allows the applicant to change sponsors before the decision, provided the new sponsor meets the 115.212 requirements. The new sponsor must be assessed on age, status, settled and usually resident in their own right.
Can one person sponsor more than one remaining relative?
Not if they have already succeeded before. Regulation 1.20K, as summarised in departmental policy guidance, bars a person — or their spouse or de facto partner — who has already successfully sponsored a subclass 104, 115, 806 or 835 visa from sponsoring again. Check the sponsor's and their partner's full sponsorship history early.
Does sponsoring mean my sponsor has to support me financially?
Sponsorship and financial support are separate strands. The applicant must be able to obtain an assurance of support that Services Australia accepts; the Department advises when it is required. The sponsorship obligation under Form 40 is not the same thing as being the person who provides that assurance.