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Dataset 01 · reviewed 3 August 2026

Which 2026 changes affect Aged Parent visa 804 applications?

Two dated changes on the Australian Department of Home Affairs Aged Parent visa (subclass 804) page affect this visa in 2026. The Department of Home Affairs states that applications lodged on or after 22 April 2026 must be lodged online through ImmiAccount, and that from 1 July 2026 a lower visa cost applies to eligible Pacific Island and Timor-Leste citizens who lodge a valid application. Everything else on this visa — the queue, the two-instalment fee structure, the requirement to be in Australia — continues alongside those changes. This article is general information about published rules, not personalised advice about any individual's circumstances; where your situation is unusual or the rules move, rely on the official page and on a registered migration agent or legal practitioner.

What changed on 22 April 2026?

Online lodgement is no longer optional for this visa. If you apply on or after 22 April 2026, you must lodge an online application using ImmiAccount.

The official page sets out three steps:

  1. Create an ImmiAccount or log in.
  2. Attach your documents to the application.
  3. Pay the application fee.

That is the full published sequence, and it is worth noting how much of the later process depends on it. Once an application is online, the same account is used to upload further documents, read messages from the department, update your details and check the application's status. Lodgement method and ongoing case management are now the same decision.

What if you cannot apply online?

The published exception is narrow and technical. If you cannot apply online because of a technical issue, the 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.

Preference, inability to use a computer, or wanting to lodge on paper is not the same thing as a technical fault. The practical sequence is: try ImmiAccount, use the technical support form if the system fails, and wait for the outcome of that request before assuming a paper lodgement is available.

What changed on 1 July 2026?

A cost concession started. From 1 July 2026, a lower visa cost applies to eligible Pacific Island and Timor-Leste citizens who lodge a valid visa application.

The mechanism matters as much as the date. The department says it will charge eligible applicants the lower application cost during the application process, and that it recognises eligible applicants when they apply with a valid passport from one of the specified countries. There is no separate application described on the page — eligibility is read off the passport you lodge with.

Change Date What it means
Online lodgement On or after 22 April 2026 Must lodge through ImmiAccount; paper only if a technical issue is unresolved after the support form
Cost concession From 1 July 2026 Lower visa cost for eligible Pacific Island and Timor-Leste citizens lodging a valid application

Which passport holders are covered?

The primary applicant must hold a valid passport issued by one of the following countries:

Family members are also eligible for the lower cost. That eligibility is based on the passport of the primary applicant — the visa holder who satisfies the primary visa criteria — not on each family member's own passport. So a family unit does not need every member to hold one of these passports.

What does the visa cost more broadly?

For everyone else, the page states the visa costs from AUD 8,665 for a single applicant, with additional charges for each family member who applies with you, and concessions in limited circumstances.

The fee is paid in two parts. You pay the first instalment when you apply and the second instalment when the department asks for it. The second instalment is a grant condition: the page says you must pay it before the visa is granted, and if you do not pay the invoice the application will be refused. The application fee is not refunded if the application is refused.

Health checks, police certificates and biometrics can add separate costs per applicant. For the exact figure that applies to your own application, the official current visa pricing page is the reference point, since published "from" amounts are base figures rather than a quote.

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

Location is a live requirement, not just a lodgement detail. The official page says you, and any family members applying with you, must be in Australia — but not in immigration clearance — both when you apply and when the department makes a decision on the visa.

That means an airport or seaport clearance zone is not a valid place to be at either moment. Two related points follow from the same page: you must tell the department if you want to travel outside Australia while the application is being processed, and you need a valid visa to return.

For retiree applicants, the step-by-step section adds that you must be in Australia, but not in immigration clearance, when you submit, and that you can be in or outside Australia when the decision is made. Retiree applicants also cannot include their children or their partner's children in the application.

What if you already have a paper application?

A paper application already submitted can be imported into ImmiAccount after you receive your acknowledgement letter. Importing requires your application ID, your date of birth, and an identity document number — an ImmiCard, passport or Titre de Voyage number.

The benefit is functional rather than cosmetic. An imported application can use ImmiAccount to attach supporting documents, view messages, update details and view status. A paper application that is never imported can still send additional documents using the Parent visa processing centre form instead.

What has not changed in 2026?

Several of the constraints people find most consequential are untouched by the two new dates.

You cannot apply for this visa if you have already applied for or hold a Sponsored Parent (Temporary) visa (subclass 870). If you have a different, undecided Parent visa application, you must withdraw it when you apply for subclass 804 — and the page says you can do that as part of the new application.

Processing is also unchanged in character. Demand for Parent visas exceeds the places available each year, applications are subject to capping and queueing, and they are processed in the order received. Assessment happens in two stages: an initial eligibility check that either queues or refuses the application, then a final assessment as places become available. The department will not provide progress updates within normal processing times; the published queue release dates are the reference for timing.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I have to apply online if I lodged before 22 April 2026?

No. The online requirement applies to applications lodged on or after 22 April 2026. A paper application lodged before then can be imported into ImmiAccount after you receive your acknowledgement letter, using your application ID, date of birth and identity document number.

Is the Pacific and Timor-Leste concession applied automatically?

The department says it recognises eligible applicants when they apply with a valid passport from one of the specified countries, and charges the lower visa application cost during the application process. No separate application for the concession is described on the official page.

Do my family members need eligible passports too?

No. Family members are eligible for the lower cost based on the passport of the primary applicant — the visa holder who satisfies the primary visa criteria — rather than on each family member's own passport.

Can I apply for subclass 804 if I hold a subclass 870 visa?

No. The official page states you cannot apply for this visa if you have already applied for or hold a Sponsored Parent (Temporary) visa (subclass 870). If you have another undecided Parent visa application, you must withdraw it as part of applying for subclass 804.

Will I get my fee back if the application is refused?

No. The page states the application fee is not refunded if the application is refused. It also states that failing to pay the second instalment invoice will itself result in refusal.

Do I need to be in Australia for the whole process?

The page says you must be in Australia, but not in immigration clearance, when you apply and when the decision is made. You must tell the department if you intend to travel outside Australia while the application is being processed, and you need a valid visa to return.

References