Who this may suit
Parents and adult children preparing to discuss Australian parent migration, particularly families spread across several countries or with children from earlier relationships.
Key considerations
- There are two alternative calculations. Meeting either one is enough for this test, but does not establish eligibility for a visa.
- Count the relevant children of both the parent and their current partner. An adult child, an adopted child or a stepchild may affect the result.
- Australian citizenship and permanent residence are treated differently. Physical presence in Australia on a temporary visa does not make a child eligible.
- The test cannot be waived because a family has compelling circumstances. Separate rules apply to subclass 870 and the specific retirement visa pathway.
The two ways to meet the test
The test generally applies to parent subclasses 103, 143, 173, 804, 864 and 884, subject to special pathway and staged-application rules. Start after identifying the children who must be counted and any exclusions. For the first calculation, at least half of the counted children must be eligible children. Exactly half is sufficient: two eligible children out of four meets this limb.
For the second calculation, the number of eligible children must exceed the number of ineligible children in every individual overseas country. Compare the largest overseas country group with the eligible-child total. A tie is insufficient under this second limb. You are not comparing eligible children with all overseas children added together.
Use both calculations before reaching a conclusion. A family can fall short of half and still meet the single-country comparison. Conversely, having children spread across several countries does not automatically produce a passing result.
Sources: Home Affairs: Balance of Family Test and examples · Migration Regulations 1994: regulation 1.05 and family definitions, compilation 2 October 2026
Who is an eligible child?
An eligible child is an Australian citizen, an Australian permanent resident usually resident in Australia, or an eligible New Zealand citizen usually resident in Australia. The citizenship limb does not impose the same usual-residence condition as the other two categories. A citizen living overseas therefore needs different treatment from a permanent resident living overseas.
Other counted children are ineligible for this calculation and are treated as resident overseas. For example, a child studying in Melbourne on a temporary Student visa does not become eligible merely by living here. The regulations determine the overseas country to use, including previous usual residence and, in some circumstances, citizenship.
“Eligible New Zealand citizen” is a defined immigration category; a New Zealand passport alone does not establish it. Bring status and residence records for assessment instead of assuming every New Zealand citizen in Australia qualifies.
Sources: Migration Regulations 1994: regulation 1.05 and family definitions, compilation 2 October 2026 · Home Affairs: Form 47PA explanatory guidance
Build the complete family tree
List your children and your current spouse’s or de facto partner’s children, including adopted children and qualifying stepchildren. Do not stop at children who depend on you financially or maintain regular contact. An adult child with their own family can still count.
A stepchild includes a current partner’s child. A former partner’s child is included as a stepchild where the child is under 18 and the relevant guardianship, custody or parenting-order requirements are met. Home Affairs also identifies an exclusion for stepchildren born from polygamous or concurrent relationships. Complex family histories need individual review.
Distinguish adoption into your family from an adoption or legal order that removed a child from your exclusive legal custody. They can have different consequences. Collect the actual adoption or court documents rather than relying on a family description such as “raised by relatives”.
Sources: Home Affairs: Balance of Family Test and examples · Migration Regulations 1994: regulation 1.05 and family definitions, compilation 2 October 2026
Which children can be excluded?
Home Affairs identifies deceased children as excluded. Other exclusions cover removal from exclusive parental custody by adoption, court order or operation of law, other than through marriage; specified persecution or human-rights circumstances where reunion elsewhere is not possible; and a child registered as a refugee by UNHCR and living in a UNHCR-operated refugee camp.
These are defined circumstances requiring evidence. Estrangement, distance, financial independence or a difficult relationship is not itself an exclusion. A child whose whereabouts are unknown is generally assigned to their last known usual country of residence. Do not remove them from the calculation simply because contact has stopped.
Sources: Home Affairs: Balance of Family Test and examples · Migration Regulations 1994: regulation 1.05 and family definitions, compilation 2 October 2026
Worked family examples
These invented examples illustrate the arithmetic only. They assume the stated citizenship, residence and family relationships have been verified and no other children must be counted.
- Exactly half: a parent has four counted children. Two are Australian citizens; the other two are ineligible children usually resident in India. Two out of four meets the first calculation, even though the country totals are tied.
- Less than half, but enough: there are five counted children. Two are eligible, while the other three are usually resident in Canada, Japan and Singapore respectively. Two is greater than each overseas group of one, so the second calculation is met.
- A tie fails the second calculation: there are five counted children, with two eligible children, two ineligible children in India and one in Canada. Two is below half and does not exceed the largest overseas group of two. Neither calculation is met.
- An adopted child and a deceased child: the family records show four children, including one who has died. Of the three counted children, one biological child and one legally adopted child are Australian citizens; the third is an ineligible child overseas. Two out of three meets the first calculation.
- A current partner’s child matters: a parent has one eligible child and one ineligible child in China. Their current spouse also has an ineligible adult child in China. Assuming all three count, the result is one eligible child against two ineligible children in the same country; neither calculation is met.
Sources: Home Affairs: Balance of Family Test and examples · Migration Regulations 1994: regulation 1.05 and family definitions, compilation 2 October 2026
Prepare an evidence organiser
Make one row per child with their full name, relationship to each parent, date of birth, citizenship, immigration status, usual country of residence and supporting document. Add a separate “review needed” column for missing or uncertain information. This working sheet is a preparation tool, not a substitute for the application.
Home Affairs asks for evidence connecting you to each child, evidence of citizenship or residence and documents supporting any exclusion. A tidy family list makes it easier to identify a missing marriage record, a name change or a residence assumption before lodging.
- Relationship: birth certificates, adoption records and relevant marriage or parenting documents that connect the family tree.
- Status and residence: citizenship evidence or visa records, plus appropriate material showing usual residence where that matters.
- Exclusions: a death certificate or the relevant legal, refugee or other supporting records. Identify why each document is relevant.
- Consistency: check names, dates and countries against previous applications. Record uncertainties honestly and obtain advice before treating an unverified fact as settled.
Sources: Home Affairs: Parent visa 103 and supporting documents · Home Affairs: Form 47PA explanatory guidance
Subclass 870 and the specific retirement exception
The Sponsored Parent (Temporary) visa, subclass 870, does not require this test. It has its own sponsorship and visa requirements and is not a permanent parent visa. Do not assume that obtaining an 870 fixes a failed calculation for another pathway; restrictions on other parent applications also need checking.
A separate retirement pathway can exempt eligible applicants for subclasses 103 and 143 from the test. It is not an exemption for everyone who has stopped working or reached retirement age.
The published pathway requires the relevant subclass 405 or 410 status on 8 May 2018, or that one of those was the person’s last substantive visa on that date; no other substantive visa held between then and the pathway application; and presence in Australia when applying. Check a partner’s position separately. Have the complete visa history reviewed before relying on this exception.
Sources: Home Affairs: Sponsored Parent (Temporary) visa 870 · Home Affairs: retirement visa pathway eligibility · Home Affairs: Parent visa 103 and supporting documents · Home Affairs: Contributory Parent visa 143
What to check after the calculation
The result answers one question. The selected parent pathway may also involve sponsorship, settled-child requirements, health, character, financial support arrangements, age or application-location rules. Parent applications are subject to caps and queues, so passing this test does not establish when an application will be decided.
Before making commitments, record which facts could change: a child’s citizenship, usual residence or family circumstances. Ask when the relevant criteria must be satisfied for the particular application. Keep the family evidence together so changes can be assessed accurately.
Sources: Home Affairs: Parent visa 103 and supporting documents · Home Affairs: Parent Visa Centre and queue process
How we can help
Ausdirect can help map the family relationships, identify evidence gaps and assess how the calculation fits the parent visa options. A family tree and each child’s status records are a useful starting point; a brief online enquiry does not need your family’s sensitive documents.
Questions to consider
Does paying for a contributory parent visa remove the test?
No. A higher application charge does not remove the Balance of Family Test. The contributory pathways have their own requirements; the specific retirement pathway and existing temporary-contributory-holder arrangements need separate consideration.
Does an Australian citizen child living overseas count as eligible?
Yes, the citizen category does not have the usual-residence condition that applies to permanent residents and eligible New Zealand citizens. This does not resolve the separate settled-child or sponsorship requirements of the visa.
Can compassionate circumstances change a failed result?
Home Affairs says it will not waive the test, even for compelling or exceptional circumstances. A recognised exclusion or a pathway to which the test does not apply is a different question.
Where should we start if the family count is uncertain?
Prepare the complete family tree before choosing a subclass. Mark uncertain adoption, stepchild, citizenship or residence facts for review, and compare the available pathways only after those issues are understood. Explore parent visa options
Your next step
Bring a one-page family tree, the children’s citizenship or visa details and any relevant adoption or court documents to a consultation. Agree a secure document-sharing method with the team first.