What Can You Do on a Subclass 116 Carer Visa in 2026? Work, Medicare and Sponsorship Rights
What a Subclass 116 Carer visa lets you do in 2026: work, Medicare, study, AMEP English classes, sponsoring relatives and travel.
If you have just been granted a Carer visa (subclass 116), you are already a permanent resident: you can stay in Australia indefinitely, work and study, enrol in Medicare, sponsor relatives, travel in and out for five years, attend free English classes through the Adult Migrant English Program if you are eligible, and later apply for Australian citizenship if you are eligible. Those entitlements are set out on the Australian Department of Home Affairs' Carer visa (Subclass 116) official page, as at July 2026. This summary follows that published page and is general information only — it is not personalised advice about your circumstances, so check your own visa conditions and, where it matters, get professional advice.
What does the grant actually give you?
The subclass 116 is a permanent visa, so the rights arrive with the grant rather than being earned over time. The department lists them as:
- stay in Australia indefinitely
- work and study in Australia
- enrol in Australia's public healthcare scheme, Medicare
- sponsor your relatives to come to Australia
- travel to and from Australia for 5 years
- attend free English language classes provided by the Adult Migrant English Program, if eligible
- apply for Australian citizenship, if eligible.
The visa's purpose does not shrink any of these. You were granted it to care for an Australian relative (or a family member living with that relative) who has a long-term medical condition and no reasonable access to care options in Australia, but the caring role is the reason for the grant, not a condition that removes your entitlements as a permanent resident.
Can you work, and does being a carer limit the job you take?
You can work and study in Australia. Because the visa makes you a permanent resident, you are protected by Australian workplace law — the same minimum pay, leave and fairness entitlements that apply to other workers covered by that system.
There is no requirement that you work around your caring duties, or that you work at all. Two practical caveats from the official page: your actual work and study entitlements are recorded against your visa, so confirm them in VEVO, and you and any family members included in the grant must still comply with all visa conditions and Australian laws.
Do you get Medicare straight away, and what about other government payments?
You can enrol in Medicare, Australia's public healthcare scheme. That eligibility flows from permanent residence, not from being employed or from how long you have been in the country.
Centrelink-type support is treated differently. As a newly arrived resident you may have to serve a waiting period before certain Australian Government payments and benefits become available, and Services Australia sets the rules for that. So the practical sequence is: Medicare on arrival, some other payments only after the newly arrived resident waiting period.
Can you sponsor relatives once you hold the visa?
Yes. As an Australian permanent resident you may be able to sponsor eligible family members to come to Australia. Whether a given relative qualifies depends on the visa they apply for and on the sponsor and applicant criteria attached to it, so the first step is finding the visa that fits them among the family and other visa options.
Sponsorship is a separate application with its own cost, evidence and queueing rules. Holding a subclass 116 does not guarantee any particular relative will be granted a visa.
Can you study, and are the free English classes open to you?
Study is covered by the general entitlement to work and study in Australia, with no field or level limitation stated on the visa page.
On top of that, you can attend free English language classes under the Adult Migrant English Program if you are eligible. Eligibility for that program is assessed separately from your visa, so holding the 116 does not by itself enrol you — but no separate visa or permission is needed to take part.
Which three dates actually shape your first years?
Three different clocks start at different moments, and confusing them causes most of the problems new holders run into.
| Date | What it governs | The rule |
|---|---|---|
| First entry date | Your first arrival | You must enter Australia before the date in your grant letter, generally 12 months from the date of grant |
| Travel facility | Re-entry as a permanent resident | Unlimited travel to and from Australia for 5 years from the date the visa was granted |
| Permanent residence for citizenship | The citizenship clock | For citizenship purposes, your permanent residence starts on the day you enter Australia on the visa |
Note the asymmetry in that last row: you become a permanent resident on the day the visa is granted, but for citizenship purposes the clock starts on the day you first enter Australia on it. Delaying your first entry therefore delays your citizenship eligibility, even though your residence status is already secure.
What happens when the five-year travel facility ends?
After five years you cannot re-enter Australia as a permanent resident on the subclass 116 travel facility alone. You would need to apply for and be granted a Resident Return visa (subclass 155 or 157) to come back as a permanent resident.
The other route is citizenship: if you become an Australian citizen you do not need a visa to enter Australia, and you would travel on an Australian passport instead. Eligibility requirements and current processing times for citizenship are published separately. To see exactly when your travel facility ends, check VEVO.
What do you still have to do while holding the visa?
Your obligations are narrow but real: enter Australia before the first entry date in your grant letter, meet all visa conditions, obey Australian laws, and tell the department if your situation changes. You can check your visa expiry, conditions and work and study entitlements in VEVO, and use VEVO to prove your status to anyone who needs to see it.
Your visa is digitally linked to your passport; you will not receive a visa label.
New Zealand passport holders
If an immigration officer processes your clearance at the border, tell them that you hold a Carer visa (subclass 116) and that you do not want a Special Category visa (subclass 444). If you do not, you may be granted the subclass 444 instead, and that grant can affect your eligibility for Australian citizenship.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I work full-time on a subclass 116 visa?
Yes. The visa makes you a permanent resident, and the department's page lists work and study as entitlements. You are also protected by Australian workplace law, which sets minimum pay and conditions for workers covered by it.
Is Medicare included from the day my visa is granted?
You can enrol in Medicare as a permanent resident. Enrolling is a separate administrative step from being granted the visa, so arrange enrolment after you arrive.
Will I get Australian Government payments immediately?
Not necessarily. As a newly arrived resident you may have to wait before you can access certain Australian Government payments and benefits, and Services Australia administers that waiting period.
Can I bring my partner or children with me?
Members of the family unit can be included in a subclass 116 application when you apply, and each family member must meet the health and character requirements. You must be outside Australia both when you apply and when the application is decided.
What if I miss the first entry date in my grant letter?
The first entry date is generally set at 12 months from the date of grant. If you do not travel before it, you can still travel to Australia with an expired first entry arrival date if your visa is still valid, but the visa may be cancelled before arrival or at the border — check your status in VEVO first.
Do I need a new visa after five years?
You keep your permanent residence, but the travel facility on the visa expires five years from the grant date. To re-enter Australia as a permanent resident after that you need a Resident Return visa (subclass 155 or 157), unless you have become an Australian citizen and travel on an Australian passport.