Arabic version: متقدمو تأشيرات الوالدين يواجهون فترات انتظار تمتد لعقود

According to The Guardian, more than 1,500 people applying for Australian parent visas died before receiving a decision during the 21 months to 31 March. Department of Home Affairs data provided to Senate estimates showed that 1,536 applicants died between 1 July 2024 and 31 March 2026 while waiting.

Non-contributory parent visas, which offer permanent residency for a fee of just under $9,000, have an estimated processing wait of 33 years. Contributory parent visas cost almost $50,000 each and have waits of about 15 years. At the end of the 2024-25 financial year, more than 157,000 applicants were in the parent visa backlog. The annual allocation has fallen from 8,500 to 7,060 this financial year.

Sydney surgical trainee Ji Tu has waited more than three years for applications lodged in China by his parents, aged 57 and 67. Under current estimates, their contributory parent visas will not be processed until at least 2038. His parents hold temporary visas in Australia but must leave for six-month periods every 18 months.

Ruby Liu, a 33-year-old engineer, has waited seven years for her 69-year-old mother’s contributory visa application. Her mother returned to China in February after her temporary visa expired. Liu said she feared that a ministerial direction prioritising onshore family visa applications could further delay her mother’s offshore application.

A 2023 expert review warned that waits of 30 to 50 years made successful migration virtually impossible for many applicants. Former immigration deputy secretary Abul Rizvi said reported reforms were intended to stop people entering on visitor visas and applying for parent visas onshore, allowing them to remain on bridging visas for decades. The Department of Home Affairs did not respond by the deadline.