A child included in a subclass 820 application does not pay a second base charge. The child pays an additional applicant charge, which is a component of the same first instalment the main applicant pays, and Schedule 1 of the Migration Regulations 1994 sets two different amounts for it: one for an applicant who is at least 18, and a lower one for an applicant who is less than 18. The current amounts are not published as a single price — the Department of Home Affairs directs applicants to its Visa Pricing Estimator, which asks how many people are applying and their ages and returns a figure for that family. Use it before you budget, and again immediately before you lodge.
How the charge is built
Regulation 2.12C of the Migration Regulations 1994 sets out the components of the first instalment. The two that matter here are the base application charge and the additional applicant charge, and the regulation is explicit that they are alternatives: an applicant does not pay both for the one application. The main applicant pays the base charge. Everyone whose application is combined with it — the applicant's own children, a partner's children, a stepchild who meets the definition of a dependent child — pays an additional applicant charge instead.
For the partner visa the charge sits on the permanent half of the application. Schedule 1 item 1214C, the Partner (Temporary) (Class UK) item containing the subclass 820, sets the charge at nil. It is levied under item 1124B, Partner (Residence) (Class BS), whose tables list a base application charge and the two additional applicant charges. That is why 820 visa cost is quoted by the Department as a "from" figure: what you pay depends on who is on the form.
Key facts
Children included in the application pay an additional applicant charge, not a second base charge. Schedule 1 sets a different amount for applicants aged 18 and over and for applicants under 18. The current amounts come from the Department's Visa Pricing Estimator, and charges are usually indexed on 1 July each year.
When is the charge for a child paid?
At lodgement, with everything else. Schedule 1 makes the first instalment payable at the time the application is made, and the additional applicant charge for each combined applicant forms part of that instalment. For the Partner (Residence) (Class BS) visa the second instalment, payable before grant, is nil — so once the first instalment is paid there is no further amount owing at the permanent stage. How the payment works is covered on paying and refunding the charge. The money for the children has to be available on the day you lodge, not later.
What if a child is added later?
It depends on whether the application has been decided.
Before a decision. Regulation 2.08B of the Migration Regulations 1994 allows a dependent child to be added to an undecided Partner (Temporary) (Class UK) application. The Department must receive a written request from the original applicant claiming the person is a dependent child, and the additional applicant charge must be paid. The child's application is then taken to have been made on the latest of the day the request was received and the day the charge was paid, and taken to be combined with the parent's. Regulation 2.08A does the equivalent for the permanent application. A child added this way must satisfy the secondary criteria both at that deemed application date and at the time of decision.
A baby born after lodgement. Regulation 2.08 handles this automatically: a child born to an applicant after the application is made but before it is decided is taken to have applied for a visa of the same class at birth, combined with the parent's application. The Department still needs to be told — see telling Home Affairs about changes.
After the 820 is granted. This is the expensive one. The Department says family members cannot be added to the application after the temporary Partner visa is granted. A dependent child must first obtain a Dependent child visa (subclass 445), a separate application under Schedule 1 item 1211 with its own base and additional applicant charges, and can then be included in the subclass 801 permanent visa application while in Australia using Form 1002, with the Department notified through its Partner Processing Enquiry Form. Item 1124B sets the first instalment at nil for a subclass 445 holder, so the 801 stage does not attract another charge — but the 445 application does. Leaving a child off the original form to save money usually costs more later.
What else does a child add to the bill?
None of the following is part of the visa application charge, and each provider sets its own price.
- Health examinations. Children who apply must meet the health requirement, which normally means an examination at a clinic the Department nominates, paid to the clinic. Children are usually examined more briefly than adults, but the price is the clinic's and varies by country and age. See health examinations.
- Police certificates for older children. The character requirement applies to family members who apply. Police certificates are needed once a child reaches the age the Department specifies, from every country where the residence test is met, and each issuing authority charges its own fee. See police certificates.
- Translations and certified copies. A child's birth certificate is the document that proves the relationship, and if it is not in English it needs a translation to the standard the Department accepts. Where a child has a parent who is not migrating, custody or consent documents may also be needed, and those usually need translating too. See identity documents and translations.
Where this goes wrong
An application prepared by an Australian migration lawyer is more likely to succeed, and with children on the form the reason is specific. The definition of a dependent child in regulation 1.03 is narrower than the everyday meaning of the word, and a child who no longer meets it — through age, marriage or financial independence — cannot simply be added. Getting that wrong is what turns a cheap omission into a separate subclass 445 application.
Next: for how children go on the form rather than what they cost, read including children in your application, then the other costs of applying.
Common questions
How much extra does it cost to add a child to an 820 visa application?
A child included in the application pays an additional applicant charge rather than a second base charge. Schedule 1 of the Migration Regulations 1994 sets two different additional applicant charges, one for an applicant who is at least 18 and a lower one for an applicant who is less than 18. The amounts change, so use the Department's Visa Pricing Estimator, which asks how many people are applying and how old they are and returns a total for your own family.
When do I pay the charge for my children?
At lodgement. Schedule 1 makes the first instalment of the visa application charge payable at the time the application is made, and that instalment includes the additional applicant charge for each person combined with the main application. The second instalment for the partner visa is nil, so there is nothing further to pay to the Department before grant.
Can I add a child after I have lodged the 820 application?
Yes, while the application is still undecided. The Migration Regulations 1994 allow a dependent child to be added to an undecided partner visa application by written request, and the child's application is taken to have been made on the later of the day the request is received and the day the additional applicant charge is paid. A child born after lodgement is treated differently again and is taken to have applied at birth.
What happens if my child is left out and the 820 is already granted?
The Department says family members cannot be added to the application after the temporary Partner visa is granted. The child would need to apply for a Dependent Child visa (subclass 445) first, which is a separate application with its own visa application charge, and can then be included in the permanent Partner visa (subclass 801) application while in Australia using Form 1002.
Do children need medicals and police checks too?
Children who apply with you must meet the health requirement, so each child normally needs an examination at a clinic the Department nominates, and you pay that clinic directly. Police certificates are required once a child reaches the age the Department specifies, and any document not in English, such as a birth certificate, needs a translation. These are separate from the visa application charge.
Sources
Keep reading
The Hidden Costs: Medicals, Police Checks and Translations
The 820 partner visa costs that are not the visa application charge: medicals, police certificates, translations, certificates, registration and travel.
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Migration Lawyer Fees for Partner Visas
What a migration lawyer charges for an 820 partner visa, what the fee covers, what it does not, and how to check a lawyer before you pay.
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Paying and Refunding the 820 Visa Application Charge
How the 820 visa application charge is paid in ImmiAccount, the surcharge on some payment methods, and the narrow grounds for a refund under regulation 2.12F.
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