Do I need a lawyer or a migration agent?

Many visa applications are lodged directly. A registered migration agent or immigration lawyer helps with complex or refused matters.

What is a Section 48 bar?

It limits the visas you can apply for while unlawfully in Australia after a refusal or cancellation. A professional can map your options.

Can I appeal a refused visa?

Often yes — the Administrative Appeals Tribunal reviews many decisions, but strict time limits apply.

Debts to the Government, Cancelled Visas and Subclass 835 Eligibility in 2026

How unpaid government debts, cancelled visas and refusal history affect Subclass 835 eligibility in 2026, plus the limited onshore exceptions.

If you have had a visa cancelled or an earlier application refused, that history does not automatically rule you out for the Remaining Relative visa (subclass 835) — but the Department of Home Affairs will weigh it as part of your immigration history, and you may still be able to apply for a permanent visa in Australia in limited circumstances. According to the Department of Home Affairs official page Remaining Relative visa (Subclass 835), as at the July 2026 version of that page, the eligibility list also covers an unpaid debt to the Australian Government, an approved sponsor, an assurance of support, the health and character requirements, the Australian values statement, and the best interests of any child under 18.

This article explains how those published criteria work. It is general information, not an assessment of your own case; for your circumstances, rely on the current official pages and, if you need the rules applied to your facts, on advice from a registered migration professional.

What does the Remaining Relative visa (subclass 835) actually require?

The official page sets the criteria as a single list, and you must meet all of them:

You must be sponsored by an eligible parent or step-parent, sibling or step-sibling, or by an eligible partner of your relative, and the Department must approve that sponsorship.
Neither you nor your partner may have a near relative who usually lives outside Australia, or a near relative who lives in Australia on a temporary visa (bridging visas included) or unlawfully. Eligible New Zealand citizens are excluded from that second limb.
You must be able to obtain an assurance of support, which assures the Department that you and any family members coming with you will not have to rely on government assistance.
You and any family members applying with you must meet the health requirement and the character requirement; non-migrating family members may also be asked to meet them.
Any debt to the Australian Government must be repaid or covered by an approved repayment arrangement.
Your immigration history is taken into account, so a cancelled visa or a refused application can affect eligibility.
If you are 18 or over, you must have read (or had explained to you) the Life in Australia booklet and sign an Australian Values Statement.
The visa will not be granted if doing so would not be in the best interests of an applicant under 18.

Subclass 835 is an onshore, permanent family visa. The criteria in Schedule 2 to the Migration Regulations 1994 are framed around an applicant who is a remaining relative of an Australian relative, is sponsored by that relative or by that relative's partner, and has an assurance of support accepted by the Secretary of Social Services; where an applicant no longer holds a substantive visa, additional Schedule 3 criteria apply. Because those provisions are amended from time to time, the compiled legislation and the current official page should be read together.

Do you have to owe the Australian Government nothing?

Not exactly nothing — but nothing outstanding in a form the Department has not approved. The official page states that if you or any family member included in the application owe the Australian Government money, that money must have been paid back, or there must be an approved arrangement to pay it back.

Two details matter in practice. First, the requirement is not limited to the main applicant; it reaches family members included in the application. Second, the test is about the state of the debt when the decision is made, so evidence of repayment or of the approved arrangement is what carries the point. What counts as an "approved arrangement" is not spelled out on the eligibility page, so the arrangement itself needs to be one the relevant government area has actually approved rather than an informal plan.

Does a cancelled visa or a previous refusal make you ineligible?

It can, but the official wording is deliberately not automatic: "We will consider your immigration history when we make a decision on your application, which means you might not be eligible for this visa if you have had a visa cancelled or refused."

That framing matters. A cancellation or refusal is treated as part of a broader assessment rather than as a fixed ban on this subclass. The weight it carries will depend on what led to the cancellation or refusal — for example, whether it arose from a failure to meet a condition, from providing incorrect information, or from character-related concerns, all of which intersect with the character requirement and with the public interest criteria that apply at the decision stage.

It also works both ways. Meeting every other criterion does not neutralise a serious immigration history, and a serious immigration history does not by itself prove the other criteria are met. Both are assessed.

What the official page looks at	What it says	Is there a way through?
Debt to the Australian Government	Must be paid back, or covered by an approved arrangement	Yes — repayment or an approved arrangement
Visa cancelled or application refused	Immigration history is considered; you might not be eligible	Possibly — limited onshore exceptions exist
Applying from outside Australia	Separate re-entry ban rules apply	Depends on the ban recorded against you
Australian values statement (18+)	Must have read the booklet and signed the statement	Yes — sign it as part of the application

Can you still apply for a permanent visa while you are in Australia?

Sometimes. The official page says that in some circumstances you may still apply for a permanent visa even if you have had a visa cancelled or an application refused, and refers readers to the Department's information on limitations on applications in Australia.

This is the exception that most often surprises applicants. Australian migration law generally restricts what a person can apply for onshore once they no longer hold a substantive visa, and the restrictions are set out in criteria that must be satisfied rather than waived on request. The practical consequences are:

Confirm whether you currently hold a substantive visa, or whether you are on a bridging visa.
Check which limitations on onshore applications apply to you under the Department's current published material.
Identify whether your circumstances fall inside one of the recognised exceptions.
Gather evidence of the exception before you lodge, not after.
Confirm the position again at decision time, because sponsorship and eligibility must remain valid.

For a subclass 835 application specifically, the criteria also require the sponsorship to have been approved and to remain in force, and the applicant to continue to meet the remaining relative definition at the time of decision. A grant also requires the applicant to be in Australia at that point, so an exception that lets you apply does not, by itself, mean you can leave and return while the application is decided.

What if you are outside Australia — do re-entry bans matter?

Yes, and they are a separate question from subclass 835 eligibility. The official page directs applicants who are applying from outside Australia to the Department's "Can I go to Australia" re-entry ban information.

A re-entry ban operates on travel to Australia rather than on the merits of a visa application. That means a person could satisfy the family, sponsorship and support requirements for a subclass 835 visa and still be unable to enter Australia while a ban applies. Because subclass 835 must generally be applied for and granted while the applicant is in Australia, a ban also affects the practical route into the visa, not only the trip itself. The Department's re-entry ban page is where the current periods and conditions are published, and those periods should be taken from the current version of that page.

What else commonly stops a subclass 835 application?

The criteria most often in dispute are the ones about family structure and support rather than the ones about debt or history:

Near relatives. A near relative who usually lives outside Australia, or who is in Australia on a temporary visa or unlawfully, will prevent a grant. This is assessed for you and your partner.
Assurance of support. This is a separate step from sponsorship. It is a commitment that you will not need government assistance, and the Department tells applicants when it is required.
Health and character. These apply to family members who apply with you and can extend to non-migrating family members.
Values statement. For applicants 18 and over, reading the Life in Australia booklet and signing the Australian Values Statement are both required.
Best interests of the child. Where an applicant is under 18, the visa must not be granted against that child's best interests.

One further point comes from the Department's procedural guidance rather than the eligibility page: sponsorship is not unlimited. A person who has previously sponsored or been sponsored in certain other family visa categories can be barred from sponsoring again, so a sponsor's own history is worth checking early.

Assume an applicant whose spouse holds a bridging visa in Australia and whose brother usually lives overseas. On the published criteria, the near relative test looks at both the partner's status and the brother's usual residence, so the application would face a structural problem regardless of how strong the sponsorship or assurance of support is. Assume instead an applicant with a cancelled student visa and a repaid government debt, sponsored by a settled sibling, with no other near relatives: the immigration history is still weighed, but the other criteria can be met, and the onshore limitation rules become the deciding question.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does a cancelled visa automatically disqualify me from subclass 835?

No. The Department of Home Affairs states that it considers your immigration history and that you "might not be eligible" if you have had a visa cancelled or refused. Whether that history is fatal depends on what caused it and on the rest of your application.

What counts as a debt to the Australian Government?

The official page does not list particular debts; it says that if you or any family member owe the Australian Government money, it must have been paid back or be subject to an approved arrangement to pay it back. The safe approach is to resolve the debt or obtain the approved arrangement before a decision is made.

Can I apply for subclass 835 from outside Australia?

The visa is applied for and granted while you are in Australia. If you are outside Australia, the separate re-entry ban rules on the Department's "Can I go to Australia" information also apply, and those operate on your travel to Australia.

Does my family's history matter, or just mine?

Both. Debts, health and character requirements are expressed to cover family members applying with you, and in some cases non-migrating family members as well. The near relative test is assessed against you and your partner.

Do I have to sign the Australian values statement?

If you are 18 or over, yes. You must have read, or had explained to you, the Life in Australia booklet, and you must sign an Australian Values Statement confirming you will respect the Australian way of life and obey Australian laws.

What is an assurance of support and when is it needed?

It is a commitment that you and any family members coming with you will not have to rely on government assistance after you enter Australia on this visa. The Department tells applicants when it needs to be provided, and for subclass 835 it must be in place before the visa can be granted.

Where can I check the current rules myself?

The Department of Home Affairs publishes the eligibility criteria for the Remaining Relative visa (subclass 835) on its own visa page, along with separate pages on limitations on applications in Australia, re-entry bans, and the Australian values statement. Those pages are the authoritative source, and they change over time.