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Thinking of sponsoring your parents to Australia from Dar es Salaam or Arusha? Read this first

Visa guide · 2026-08-31 · 4 min read

Imagine a family where a daughter works in Sydney and her parents live in Dar es Salaam. She wants them close by, so she looks up the parent visa. What she finds is a queue of roughly 33 years for the non-contributory Aged Parent visa. The contributory option, at close to $50,000 per applicant, is faster but still around 15 years.

Why this is more than a statistic

Parliamentary data covering the 21 months to 31 March this year show that more than 1,500 parent visa applicants died while still in the queue. They were people who paid large sums and supplied everything asked of them.

How the system got here

Three pieces fit together:

1. The yearly cap was cut from 8,500 places to 7,060 for this financial year.
2. The backlog has passed 157,000 people.
3. Parents who apply from inside Australia after arriving as visitors can remain on bridging visas and are often processed ahead of people applying from offshore.

A review of the migration system commissioned by the government in 2023 said that offering a visa which is unlikely to arrive in someone's lifetime is both cruel and unnecessary.

What families in Tanzania should watch

A larger overhaul of migration settings is expected, and one proposal would stop the spouses, children and parents of Australian citizens from applying while they are in the country as tourists. In theory, that would ease the queue-jumping that annoys applicants who followed the rules. In practice it is unclear whether new arrivals could use the onshore route at all. Nothing is final.

Where the pressure shows up

For many skilled migrants a parent visa is a practical need. Someone working long hours, for example in a hospital, may rely on a parent to look after children and the home. Temporary visas allow this only in six-month blocks, with parents leaving Australia for extended periods between them. The strain lands on careers, money and the parents' health.

Questions to ask the family first

Before any lodgement, sit down and agree what you are trying to solve. Is it childcare, companionship, or care for a parent who is getting older? Who will pay, and what happens if the visa has not arrived by the time your parents need help most? These conversations are uncomfortable, yet they decide whether spending close to $50,000 per applicant makes sense. Some families conclude that regular visits are the practical answer and that a permanent visa is a long-term hope rather than a plan.

Four moves to make now

• Confirm the stream. The contributory and non-contributory visas carry very different price tags and waiting times.
• Keep temporary visa travel airtight so no re-entry breaches a condition.
• Follow ministerial directions on processing priority, which can shift the order of the queue.
• Ask for a realistic timeline and compare it with the date your family needs help.

Common mistakes to avoid

Do not pay before comparing the two streams. Do not assume a long visitor stay will become a permanent one. Do not treat an estimate from years ago as current. And do not put your own career case on hold; if you are job hunting in Australia while arranging this, you can prepare a job-ready CV with Build AI CV alongside the family paperwork.

Speak to a migration agent registered with the Migration Agents Registration Authority (MARA) before choosing a stream. If an application asks for police clearance from the Tanzania Police Force, apply for that document only when it is requested.

Frequently asked questions

How many parent visas are issued each year?

The cap is 7,060 for this financial year, down from 8,500.

How many people are waiting?

The backlog has swollen past 157,000.

Is the contributory route worth it?

It is far faster than 33 years but still around 15, and it costs close to $50,000 per applicant. Weigh that against your parents' age and health.

Could the rules change?

Yes, a proposal would restrict applications from tourists in Australia, though it is not final.

What else should I read?

Try our piece on the skills shortage and the article on family migration plans, then check the current job listings.

Key takeaways

• The Aged Parent visa wait is about 33 years; the contributory pathway is around 15.
• More than 1,500 applicants died waiting in the 21 months to 31 March this year.
• The cap of 7,060 places sits against a backlog of over 157,000.
• Proposed restrictions on onshore applications are not final.
• Take tailored advice from an agent registered with MARA first.

#aged parent visa #parent visa #australia #family migration #tanzania