Nearly 2,300 applicants died waiting for a parent visa to Australia with processing times of up to 31 years
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‘Providing an opportunity for people to apply for a visa that will probably never come seems both cruel and unnecessary’, review says. Wait times for visas to bring parents to Australia are so long that nearly 2,300 applicants died before receiving a visa in the last three years, according to the home affairs department.
![[Dutton says Labor's student caps bill a 'dogs breakfast' as Greens slam 'race to the right' – video]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/83ac3844f853ba371c7928dae8897a132636fe27/0_0_1920_1080/1920.jpg?width=465&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
The department released the data to Senate estimates, revealing that 2,297 parent visa applicants and 87 other family members, such as aged dependent relatives or carers, had died while waiting for a visa. Processing wait times are now 14 years for a contributory parent visa, which costs $48,495 in fees, or 31 years for a general aged parent visa, which cost $5,125.
![[Manu Baines (far right) with wife and parents.]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/f61ec994d5514e3643479019f6c7e974b9870f0e/0_0_839_1111/master/839.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
Labor increased the annual number of parent visas from 4,500 to 8,500, but applications under way have still increased from about 140,000 in mid-2023 to more than 150,000. The migration review warned that long waits make “the probability of successful migration virtually nonexistent for many applicants”.
Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email. “Providing an opportunity for people to apply for a visa that will probably never come seems both cruel and unnecessary,” it said. The review recommended introducing a green-card style lottery system to more fairly allocate parent visas or even to “completely [remove] access to permanent residence for parents while improving access to temporary migration”.
