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When does the Assurance of Support period start
An Assurance of Support period starts on either the date:
- the assuree arrives in Australia
- they get their visa, whichever happens later.
You must tell us when your assuree:
- arrives in Australia
- gets their visa.
After we accept the Assurance of Support and a visa is issued, there will be no review unless the assuree receives a recoverable income support payment. The Assurance of Support can only be cancelled in very limited circumstances.
You are expected to provide support to your assurees so they will not rely on any Centrelink payments. You’ll need to pay us back if your assuree gets any recoverable income support payments while under the Assurance of Support period.
How long is the Assurance of Support period
The length of the Assurance of Support period depends on the type of visa you apply for:
- Community Support Program - in place for one year
- Orphan Relative visa and Remaining Relative visa - in place for 2 years
- Contributory Parent and Contributory Aged Parent visa - in place for 10 years.
For all other visa types, an Assurance of Support is in place for 4 years.
Read more about the Community Support Program on the Department of Home Affairs website.