To sponsor a child for this visa you must be:
the parent (or their partner) or step-parent of the child
older than 18 years of age
You must also be either:
an Australian citizen
the holder of an Australian permanent resident visa
an eligible New Zealand citizen.
You can sponsor a child if you are:
a step-parent who is no longer the partner of the child's parent but has a legal responsibility to care for the child and the child is younger than 18 years of age
an adoptive parent who adopted the child before you became an Australian citizen, the holder of an Australian permanent resident visa, or eligible New Zealand citizen.
You do not need to be in Australia at the time of application. You can still be a sponsoring parent if you:
entered Australia in the past but are outside Australia when you lodge the application
have been granted your Australian permanent resident visa but have not yet entered Australia.
A child who was adopted after you became an Australian citizen, the holder of an Australian permanent resident visa or eligible New Zealand citizen, might be able to apply for an Adoption visa (subclass 102).
Parental responsibility
This visa can be granted only if you can show one of the following for a child younger than 18 years of age:
you have the written consent of each person who can legally decide where the child lives
the laws of the child’s home country permit the removal of the child
it is consistent with any Australian child order.
The documents checklist lists you the documents you must provide with your application to support this claim.
Best interests of the child
This visa will not usually be granted if it is against the best interests of a child younger than 18 years of age.
Measures for the Protection of Children has more information.
Character requirements
You must meet certain character requirements. You must be prepared to provide a police certificate from each country you have lived in for 12 months or more during the past 10 years after you turned 16 years of age. Do not arrange for police certificates until we ask you to.
Assurance of support
We might ask for an assurance of support for the child so that welfare costs for some migrants are not borne by the Australian community.
Do not provide an assurance of support unless we ask for one and tell you what you need to do.