A five-year temporary visa for eligible non-New Zealand family members of certain New Zealand citizens. We advise on partner and dependent-child eligibility, Subclass 444 status, onshore and offshore lodgement, renewals after separation, bridging visas and longer-term strategy.
Tell us briefly about your Subclass 461 situation. We will review your location, the New Zealand citizen's status, your relationship and visa history.
Submitting this form does not create a solicitor-client relationship. Government visa charges, processing times and eligibility requirements can change.
The New Zealand Citizen Family Relationship (Temporary) visa allows an eligible person who is not a New Zealand citizen to live, work and study in Australia for five years where the relevant New Zealand family member holds, or is eligible to hold, a Subclass 444 Special Category visa.
The 461 does not itself grant Australian permanent residence.
The visa starts on the date of grant and can be renewed if the criteria are met.
You may apply inside or outside Australia, subject to the location-specific criteria.
The New Zealand citizen generally needs to hold or be eligible for the Special Category visa.
The application remains paper-lodged; it can later be imported into ImmiAccount.
The standard 461 pathway is generally for a member of the family unit of a New Zealand citizen who is not an “eligible New Zealand citizen” and who holds or is eligible for a Subclass 444 visa.
The application is unusual because it remains a paper Form 147 process, even though applicants can now import the lodged application into ImmiAccount for ongoing document management.
Check the New Zealand citizen's 444 position, family relationship, applicant status and whether a different Partner Visa route is better.
Identity, relationship, family-unit, health, character and immigration-history evidence.
Pay the correct charge and lodge the valid paper application with the required documents.
Import the application where available, maintain lawful status onshore and respond to Department requests.
Live, work, study and travel to and from Australia during the visa period, subject to visa conditions.
For some couples, the 461 is the natural pathway. For others, the New Zealand citizen's status may make an Australian Partner Visa available. The long-term consequences are very different.
| Issue | Subclass 461 | 820/801 or 309/100 Partner Visa |
|---|---|---|
| Outcome | Temporary visa for 5 years | Temporary/provisional stage leading to permanent residence |
| 2026 main application charge | From AUD 1,330 | From AUD 11,710 for most primary applicants |
| NZ citizen status | Usually based on a NZ citizen holding or eligible for Subclass 444 and not being an eligible NZ citizen | Sponsor must be Australian citizen, permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen |
| Separate sponsorship application | No separate Partner Visa sponsorship application | Yes, sponsor assessment forms part of the Partner Visa framework |
| Renewal | A further 461 may be available | Not a five-year renewal cycle if permanent visa is granted |
| Permanent residence | No direct PR outcome | 801/100 is permanent residence |
Subclass 461 holders can live, work and study in Australia for five years and travel to and from Australia as many times as they wish during the visa period.
That flexibility makes the 461 attractive for many New Zealand families, but the temporary nature of the visa should be understood from the outset. A five-year grant is not permanent residence and time outside Australia does not extend the visa.
This is one of the most important features of Subclass 461 and one of the areas where generic visa pages often provide too little detail.
If the relationship with the qualifying New Zealand citizen continues and the relevant requirements remain met, a further 461 application can be considered before expiry.
A former 461 holder may still be eligible where they hold a 461, or their last substantive visa was a 461, they are no longer part of the original family unit and they have not become a member of the family unit of another person.
Additional rules apply. The applicant generally needs to have held the 461 when they last left Australia and satisfy residence-in-Australia or substantial-ties criteria, together with the rules about not joining another family unit.
Home Affairs currently requires Form 147 and supporting documents to be lodged by post. Since 23 July 2025, a paper 461 application can be imported into ImmiAccount after lodgement for online document management.
Applicants in Australia must satisfy the onshore immigration-status rules as well as the relationship criteria.
Home Affairs states that an onshore applicant generally needs to hold a substantive temporary visa, other than the excluded diplomatic domestic-worker stream, or have last held an eligible substantive temporary visa within the previous 12 months.
Where an eligible substantive visa was held at lodgement, an associated Bridging Visa A may become available and come into effect if the current visa ends before the 461 application is decided.
Subclass 461 looks simple when reduced to “partner of a Kiwi”. The difficult cases arise when the New Zealand citizen's status, the applicant's onshore status or a later relationship change does not fit the standard template.
The answer can determine whether 461 or an Australian Partner Visa should be considered.
Renewal rules can preserve eligibility after the original relationship ends, but only if the specific criteria are satisfied.
Additional onshore criteria can apply where the applicant does not hold a substantive visa.
Visa conditions may prevent valid onshore lodgement until a waiver issue is resolved.
Immigration history can affect onshore application options and must be reviewed before lodgement.
Age, dependency and family-unit evidence become important, particularly for dependants over 18.
We can assess 461 eligibility, the New Zealand citizen's 444 status, onshore validity, relationship evidence, former-holder renewal rights and whether an Australian Partner Visa pathway should be considered instead.
Last legal review: 25 September 2026. General information only and not legal advice. Official source: Department of Home Affairs, New Zealand Citizen Family Relationship (Temporary) visa (Subclass 461). Government charges and processing times can change.
Read the related guides below for more detail on the issues relevant to your circumstances.
