Child Visa 101

[path2aus]

Finally I am able to put together some sort of information about Child Visa application. This is not comprehensive guide, this is just what I did for my daughters visa last year. 

Introduction:

Child Visa is a permanent residency visa for the children of Australian permanent residents. This is a paper application and cannot be done online at the moment. The process and documentation required are quite simple. I am just listing out what I did and what documents I submitted. This does not cover complex cases like divorce or non migrating parent cases. People who have information about the same can contribute to the thread.

Forms Required to be filled out:

1. 47CH - Application for migration 

This is a straightforward form where you enter all the information about your child. Answer the questions as you understand. Don't over complicate things.

2. 40CH - Sponsorship for a child to Migrate

This form as the name indicates is the information about the parent who is sponsoring the child. 

3. Form 1229 - Consent to grant an Australian visa to a child under the age of 18 years

This form needs to be submitted along with the above two application forms even if both the parents are migrating along with the child. Both migrating parents have to sign this form.

If you have complex cases like divorce etc, you might need to include other documentation such as proof of legal custody, Stat declaration from the non migrating parent etc. I don't have much information on that so will not be including that information as part of this instruction. People with experience can share their thoughts on the same.

Supporting Documents

1. Two passport size photograph of the child (Please follow the instructions on the immi website for instructions) - This is the hardest bit if you have an infant. Our daughter was just two weeks old when we tried to take her picture. It was really difficult as she wouldn't open her eyes for the camera (understandably so  ). The best method is put a white cloth on a table or a bed, make him/her lie down and take a picture. This is what we did. I don't think immigration could be too strict about a photograph of a few weeks old baby.

2. Copy of Baby's passport - So after the baby is born you would need to apply for the passport obviously. This is needed before you can apply for the child visa.

3. Payment for the visa - This is the tricky part. This differs by the country, so you would be better off looking at the following page to see what type of payment Australian high commission accepts. In India it was either cash or Demand Draft.

4. Birth Certificate - This is required for the application as a proof that you are the legal parent of the child. Copy of the birth certificate needs to be submitted along with the application.

5. Proof that the sponsor is a permanent resident/Photo ID of sponsor and spouse - This can be proved by copy of your passport. I included the grant letter also along with the passport copies of my wife and I.

6. Proof of Funds - Included 3 months of bank statement. There isn't any specific amount mentioned on the DIBP website.

There may be other documentation required if your child is adopted or step child etc. Please review the DIBP requirement for the same.

You need to submit all the above documentation along with the required payment to DIBP and then wait for the VO to contact you for further instructions. 

Depending on which country you are applying in you need to find out the application submission process. In India we needed to go to the VFS location to submit the application in person. In India, postal submission is not accepted, so we needed to go to our local VFS office to personally submit the documents.

Once the VO picks up your application you will be asked for the following:

1. Police checks for both you and your spouse - This will be for any country you resided for more than 12 months in the last 10 years. We lived int he USA, so had to provide the FBI clearance. 

2. Medicals for your child - This is very simple process, you can find panel physicians from the DIBP website and provide the HAPID to book an appointment. It took just few minutes to complete the process at the doctor's office. 

Once we submitted all the required documents, the grant was immediate. The day when we sent the final document, we got the grant notice on the same day. The overall process took just over a month for us. The delay was only from our side as we had to try and get FBI check done from overseas and it took some time. Getting appointment with a panel physician took time and then there was Christmas/New Year break. So I would consider the overall process to be less than a month for us. This is from my experience and what I did for my daughters Child Visa, people can correct or add anything I may have missed out. It has been 7 months since I did this and I am trying to recollect as much I could in putting this up.

This post has been promoted to an article

[brock79]

Great information. I was unsure if we'd need to complete Form 1229 if both parents were migrating with the child but it seems we do, so that clears that up!

Thanks for posting. 

[Guest The Pom Queen]

Thank you very much for sharing this with the members. I have made it in to an article which can be found here https://www.pomsinoz.com/articles.html/ I will also stick it to the top of this forum for now.

[DukeNinja]

Thank you so much for doing this, which must've been hard work, with a young child taking up your time! It's made things so much clearer.

Sent from my XT1635-02 using Tapatalk

[path2aus]

3 hours ago, DukeNinja said:

Thank you so much for doing this, which must've been hard work, with a young child taking up your time! It's made things so much clearer.

Sent from my XT1635-02 using Tapatalk
 

No worries. Glad to help out.

[path2aus]

On 09/05/2017 at 10:47 PM, The Pom Queen said:

Thank you very much for sharing this with the members. I have made it in to an article which can be found here https://www.pomsinoz.com/articles.html/ I will also stick it to the top of this forum for now.

Thanks @The Pom Queen

[Tasmiha]

A good informative post. I had the following queries. If anyone could clarify those it would be of great help. My queries are:

1. If both me and my husband want to migrate along with our child, do we need to fiill form 1229?

2. Do we both need to provide statutory declaration that we dont have any objection on the childs migration? If so what should be the format of the statutory declaration?

3. What minimum amount should we show as proof of funds?

4. What could be the maximum visa processing time?

I would really appreciate answers to my above questions.

Regards

Tasmiha

[path2aus]

On 31/05/2017 at 06:41, Tasmiha said:

A good informative post. I had the following queries. If anyone could clarify those it would be of great help. My queries are:

1. If both me and my husband want to migrate along with our child, do we need to fiill form 1229?

2. Do we both need to provide statutory declaration that we dont have any objection on the childs migration? If so what should be the format of the statutory declaration?

3. What minimum amount should we show as proof of funds?

4. What could be the maximum visa processing time?

I would really appreciate answers to my above questions.

Regards

Tasmiha

1. If both me and my husband want to migrate along with our child, do we need to fiill form 1229?

Yes both of you would need to sign the Form 1229

2. No statutory declaration is needed if you are submitting the Form 1229, unless there are some complications like non migrating parent etc.

3. I don't remember showing any specific funds. If you are migrating to a specific state, please look at the requirement.

4. You did not mention where you are applying from but again it depends. We got our visa granted in just over a month but it can depend. We lodged our application in India.

[brock79]

This thread is helpful, thanks. 

We will be applying for 2 child visas for our children. Can one parent be the sponsor on both child applications and therefore fill out Form 40CH twice with my details (the Father?). My wife can sponsor one child if needs be but just thought it would be easier filling out my details for both applications.

Thanks. 

[path2aus]

3 minutes ago, brock79 said:

This thread is helpful, thanks. 

We will be applying for 2 child visas for our children. Can one parent be the sponsor on both child applications and therefore fill out Form 40CH twice with my details (the Father?). My wife can sponsor one child if needs be but just thought it would be easier filling out my details for both applications.

Thanks. 

yes, just you as sponsor is enough.

[Guest]

Please advise, in case one of parent is non immigrant what's the required to do ?


Sent using Poms in Oz mobile app

[path2aus]

You need to be more specific. There might be more documents required if the parents are divorced etc.. As I mentioned in the article, I am not an expert on cases which aren't straight forward but I know that the non-migrating parent need to provide a "Statutory declaration" that they are okay with the child being granted the visa. Also in case of divorce you might have to provide custody papers and stuff I guess. Someone with more knowledge and experience can clear this up.

[Tasmiha]

Hello all,

I am applying for my child from my country Bangladesh.

1. In 40ch form, there is a part "About your home". In that part, information about my dwelling is asked. Should i provide my current dwelling information which is in Bangladesh or should i keep it blank?

2. And there is another question "would the child you are sponsoring be living with you in the same dwelling?" . Now in my situation where i am applying from Bangladesh, what should be the answer of this question?

Any useful reply to my above query will be highly appreciated 

Regards

Tasmiha

[brock79]

I have a couple of questions regarding Form 1229 & 47CH.

I have completed 2 child visa applications for our children, so that's two 47CH's & two 40CH's. I thought I would need to complete 2 Form 1229's as well but on the main front page Question 2 says "Give details of each child for whom you give permission to be granted an Australian Visa" and it has options for 4 children. I presume I can just put both of our children's details in that section and then we only need to submit the 1 Form 1229?

On the penultimate page of 47CH (the signatures section) who is required to sign section 57 & 58? So far I have just signed myself at 57 (Australian Values Statement) as I've completed the app on behalf of my child so I'm signing as the main applicant. At 58 (Biometrics Declaration & Consent) it mentions it should be signed by the main applicant (me on behalf of my child) and also by each accompanying person aged 16 or over. Does this mean that as we as parents will be accompanying our children to Australia that both parents also need to sign this section? That's what it seems like to me anyway. 

Thanks. 

[Expatriate123]

On 5/9/2017 at 04:39, path2aus said:

Finally I am able to put together some sort of information about Child Visa application. This is not comprehensive guide, this is just what I did for my daughters visa last year. 

Introduction:

Child Visa is a permanent residency visa for the children of Australian permanent residents. This is a paper application and cannot be done online at the moment. The process and documentation required are quite simple. I am just listing out what I did and what documents I submitted. This does not cover complex cases like divorce or non migrating parent cases. People who have information about the same can contribute to the thread.

Forms Required to be filled out:

1. 47CH - Application for migration 

This is a straightforward form where you enter all the information about your child. Answer the questions as you understand. Don't over complicate things.

2. 40CH - Sponsorship for a child to Migrate

This form as the name indicates is the information about the parent who is sponsoring the child. 

3. Form 1229 - Consent to grant an Australian visa to a child under the age of 18 years

This form needs to be submitted along with the above two application forms even if both the parents are migrating along with the child. Both migrating parents have to sign this form.

If you have complex cases like divorce etc, you might need to include other documentation such as proof of legal custody, Stat declaration from the non migrating parent etc. I don't have much information on that so will not be including that information as part of this instruction. People with experience can share their thoughts on the same.

Supporting Documents

1. Two passport size photograph of the child (Please follow the instructions on the immi website for instructions) - This is the hardest bit if you have an infant. Our daughter was just two weeks old when we tried to take her picture. It was really difficult as she wouldn't open her eyes for the camera (understandably so  ). The best method is put a white cloth on a table or a bed, make him/her lie down and take a picture. This is what we did. I don't think immigration could be too strict about a photograph of a few weeks old baby.

2. Copy of Baby's passport - So after the baby is born you would need to apply for the passport obviously. This is needed before you can apply for the child visa.

3. Payment for the visa - This is the tricky part. This differs by the country, so you would be better off looking at the following page to see what type of payment Australian high commission accepts. In India it was either cash or Demand Draft.

4. Birth Certificate - This is required for the application as a proof that you are the legal parent of the child. Copy of the birth certificate needs to be submitted along with the application.

5. Proof that the sponsor is a permanent resident/Photo ID of sponsor and spouse - This can be proved by copy of your passport. I included the grant letter also along with the passport copies of my wife and I.

6. Proof of Funds - Included 3 months of bank statement. There isn't any specific amount mentioned on the DIBP website.

There may be other documentation required if your child is adopted or step child etc. Please review the DIBP requirement for the same.

You need to submit all the above documentation along with the required payment to DIBP and then wait for the VO to contact you for further instructions. 

Depending on which country you are applying in you need to find out the application submission process. In India we needed to go to the VFS location to submit the application in person. In India, postal submission is not accepted, so we needed to go to our local VFS office to personally submit the documents.

Once the VO picks up your application you will be asked for the following:

1. Police checks for both you and your spouse - This will be for any country you resided for more than 12 months in the last 10 years. We lived int he USA, so had to provide the FBI clearance. 

2. Medicals for your child - This is very simple process, you can find panel physicians from the DIBP website and provide the HAPID to book an appointment. It took just few minutes to complete the process at the doctor's office. 

Once we submitted all the required documents, the grant was immediate. The day when we sent the final document, we got the grant notice on the same day. The overall process took just over a month for us. The delay was only from our side as we had to try and get FBI check done from overseas and it took some time. Getting appointment with a panel physician took time and then there was Christmas/New Year break. So I would consider the overall process to be less than a month for us. This is from my experience and what I did for my daughters Child Visa, people can correct or add anything I may have missed out. It has been 7 months since I did this and I am trying to recollect as much I could in putting this up.

This post has been promoted to an article

Hi .... firstly thank you for such a detailed info on the process.

just on a quick note, what was the time lag between your submission of application at VFS and the AO / VO contacting you for further information. Actually, I have submitted my boy's visa appln (Subclass 101) 10 days back including all the PCC's and other docs (excluding any bank statements). online tracking shows the appln is with australian consulate for processing, so just wondering as I need to travel on work...

Have you made your move to Australia 

[path2aus]

14 hours ago, Expatriate123 said:

Hi .... firstly thank you for such a detailed info on the process.

just on a quick note, what was the time lag between your submission of application at VFS and the AO / VO contacting you for further information. Actually, I have submitted my boy's visa appln (Subclass 101) 10 days back including all the PCC's and other docs (excluding any bank statements). online tracking shows the appln is with australian consulate for processing, so just wondering as I need to travel on work...

Have you made your move to Australia 

Mine happened really quick. I think the first contact was within few days. My overall process only lasted 40 days. Even the delay was with me not able to get the PCC on time and also the Christmas/New year break. Now the delay might be due to the End of the financial year in Australia. Yes I made the move in January 10 days after my daughter's visa was granted, I am in Adelaide right now.

[Expatriate123]

10 hours ago, path2aus said:

Mine happened really quick. I think the first contact was within few days. My overall process only lasted 40 days. Even the delay was with me not able to get the PCC on time and also the Christmas/New year break. Now the delay might be due to the End of the financial year in Australia. Yes I made the move in January 10 days after my daughter's visa was granted, I am in Adelaide right now.

Oooo good... so if all goes well with my kidos appln.... i may hear back from DIBP soon.. I suppose u were contacted thru email only as immiaact does not have any link up with child visa appln...i applied from dubai and soon after I applied it was EID so all govt organisations n embassy closed until 1st July 2017. I submitted even PCCs with the appln,so only medical left..once I have the HAPID  will do... i suppose ur kid had to go thru medicals rite....  is the medicals similar to adults or for kids just a medical examination ??? Are the parents required to do medicals again

Thank you in advance for all the info....

[path2aus]

13 hours ago, Expatriate123 said:

Oooo good... so if all goes well with my kidos appln.... i may hear back from DIBP soon.. I suppose u were contacted thru email only as immiaact does not have any link up with child visa appln...i applied from dubai and soon after I applied it was EID so all govt organisations n embassy closed until 1st July 2017. I submitted even PCCs with the appln,so only medical left..once I have the HAPID  will do... i suppose ur kid had to go thru medicals rite....  is the medicals similar to adults or for kids just a medical examination ??? Are the parents required to do medicals again

Thank you in advance for all the info....

The medicals for Children is not as complicated as us. It just too, few minutes to complete for my daughter.

[path2aus]

I meant it just took few minutes for my daughter

[Expatriate123]

On 6/29/2017 at 03:25, path2aus said:

The medicals for Children is not as complicated as us. It just too, few minutes to complete for my daughter.

Hi...I received an email from the Auzzie consulate providing HAPID and instructions for medical for my kid.....I have been asked by the clinic to complete form 26 and form 160 (Xray) - did u also complete the same.....I believe infants should not go thru xray rite ???

[path2aus]

On 07/07/2017 at 18:00, Expatriate123 said:

Hi...I received an email from the Auzzie consulate providing HAPID and instructions for medical for my kid.....I have been asked by the clinic to complete form 26 and form 160 (Xray) - did u also complete the same.....I believe infants should not go thru xray rite ???

Hello that does not seem right. No I did not have to fill any of those. Check with the clinic again and make sure they understand that it is an infant and not an adult.

Edited July 9, 2017 by path2aus

[brock79]

On 26/06/2017 at 11:18, brock79 said:

I have a couple of questions regarding Form 1229 & 47CH.

I have completed 2 child visa applications for our children, so that's two 47CH's & two 40CH's. I thought I would need to complete 2 Form 1229's as well but on the main front page Question 2 says "Give details of each child for whom you give permission to be granted an Australian Visa" and it has options for 4 children. I presume I can just put both of our children's details in that section and then we only need to submit the 1 Form 1229?

On the penultimate page of 47CH (the signatures section) who is required to sign section 57 & 58? So far I have just signed myself at 57 (Australian Values Statement) as I've completed the app on behalf of my child so I'm signing as the main applicant. At 58 (Biometrics Declaration & Consent) it mentions it should be signed by the main applicant (me on behalf of my child) and also by each accompanying person aged 16 or over. Does this mean that as we as parents will be accompanying our children to Australia that both parents also need to sign this section? That's what it seems like to me anyway. 

Thanks. 

Is anyone able to answer my queries above which I posted earlier in the thread?

Thanks. 

[Expatriate123]

On 7/10/2017 at 02:42, path2aus said:

Hello that does not seem right. No I did not have to fill any of those. Check with the clinic again and make sure they understand that it is an infant and not an adult.

Hi ...done with medicals....the clinic took 45 mins to complete the process of uploading the details on to the eMedical system and the actual examination took less than 10mins...... now waiting time..... what will be the next step....i suppose CO will send an email ??? thanks a lot for your help

[Expatriate123]

19 hours ago, brock79 said:

Is anyone able to answer my queries above which I posted earlier in the thread?

Thanks. 

I have signed all the papers on behalf of my kid (less than 6m old :-) ) - but I suppose as a Parent / Guardian - you being the primary applicant originally, i believe you will be required to sign off - for children at 16 years and older - I think you may have to counter sign approving their travel - these are my thoughts - however, I will wait to see comments from others who have similar experience

 

[path2aus]

14 hours ago, Expatriate123 said:

Hi ...done with medicals....the clinic took 45 mins to complete the process of uploading the details on to the eMedical system and the actual examination took less than 10mins...... now waiting time..... what will be the next step....i suppose CO will send an email ??? thanks a lot for your help

I think now since all documents have been submitted, you just need to wait for the grant. Just keep an eye out for an email with the Visa Grant Notice. Best of luck.