Introduction:

A child born in Australia does not automatically acquire Australian permanent residency or citizenship.

If you are a permanent resident and have a child in Australia, that child is an Australian citizen by birth.

If you are an Australian citizen and have a baby while overseas, you will need to apply to register the baby as an Australian citizen.

If you hold a temporary or provisional visa and have a baby in Australia, the child will receive the same visa as you. There is no need to apply for a separate visa, but you must inform the Australian Government of your child’s birth. The child will then be granted the same visa as you, with the same expiry date.

However, if you are a permanent resident and have a child outside Australia, that child will not automatically hold any visa. In this case, or if you are considering giving birth outside Australia or adopting a child from overseas, the child will need to apply for a Child visa to travel back to Australia with you.

Types of Child Visas:

There are basically three types of permanent child visas:

1. Child visa(available in both onshore and offshore versions). The child must:

• be a dependent child of a parent who is an Australian citizen, eligible New Zealand citizen or holder of an Australian permanent visa
• be under 18 years, a full-time student aged over 18 and under 25 and financially dependent on the parent, or over 18 and unable to work due to a disability
• be single and dependent on the parent
• be outside Australia when the application is made.

2. Adoption visa.The child must:

• have been under 18 years of age when adopted, when they apply and when a decision is made
• be outside Australia when the application is made and when a decision is made
• be adopted or in the process of being adopted by their sponsor parent.

3. Orphan Relative visa. It is for children outside Australia who have a relative in Australia and whose parents are deceased. The applicant must:

• be under 18 years of age, single and with no parent to care for them
• have a relative who is a settled Australian citizen, eligible New Zealand citizen or Australian permanent resident 
• be outside Australia when the application is made and when a decision is made.

A temporary visa for children of a parent migrating as the spouse of an Australian citizen

Dependent Child visa (Subclass 445). It is NOT a permanent visa. It is a temporary visa for children of a parent migrating as the spouse of an Australian citizen. The child must:

• be sponsored by the nominator or sponsor of the visa-holding parent.
• be a dependent on a parent who holds a:
  • Partner (Provisional) visa (subclass 309)
  • Partner visa (subclass 820)
  • Dependent Child visa (subclass 445)
• The child must apply to be added to their parent’s permanent Partner visa application when they have been granted this 445 visa.
• If the child is in Australia, they can’t hold another visa that has a ‘No further stay’ condition.
• The child may apply for Australian citizenship by descent instead of a visa to travel to Australia, if:
  • the child was born outside Australia
  • one of their parents was an Australian citizen at the time of their child’s birth.