870 visa work limits in 2026: what counts as unpaid work

A holder of the Sponsored Parent (Temporary) visa (Subclass 870) is not allowed to work in Australia, and being unpaid does not by itself make a task lawful. According to the Australian Department of Home Affairs Sponsored Parent (Temporary) visa (Subclass 870) page, as of the August 2026 version of that page, three kinds of unpaid activity are permitted — caring for grandchildren or other minor relatives in a domestic environment, volunteer work in a non-commercial capacity such as assisting a charitable organisation, and assisting at a local school attended by the sponsor's children or other minor relatives. The same page states that unpaid work is not permitted in a commercial environment or in a family business.

What does the no-work condition actually prohibit?

The condition is not a rule about wages, it is a rule about activity. The official page frames it in two moves: first, no work at all while the visa is held; second, a narrow allowance for unpaid activity in three named domestic or non-commercial settings, and an explicit exclusion for two settings.

That structure is why "I'm not being paid" is the wrong test. Pay is relevant to whether work exists, but the setting decides whether the unpaid allowance applies. Something can be unpaid and still prohibited if it happens in a commercial environment or a family business.

The Department's policy material describes this as a work limitation attaching to the visa; the practical consequence for a family is that the question to ask about any task is not "is anyone paying?" but "where is this happening, and whose operation does it support?"

Which unpaid activities are expressly allowed?

Three categories are named on the official page. Each one carries its own limiting words, and those words do the real work.

Allowed unpaid activity	The limit inside the wording
Providing care for grandchildren or other minor relatives	Must be in a domestic environment — a home, not a business premises
Volunteer work in a non-commercial capacity	Examples given are assisting a charitable organisation; the role itself must be non-commercial
Assisting at a local school	The school must be one the sponsor's children or other minor relatives attend

The boundaries are relational and geographic at the same time. Care is allowed because it is care for minor relatives and because it happens at home. School assistance is allowed because it is at the school the sponsor's own children or other minor relatives attend — a school with no connection to the family is outside the wording.

Where does the line sit: commercial environment versus family business?

Two settings are named as prohibited, and both are prohibited regardless of whether money changes hands.

A commercial environment is any setting organised around selling goods or services. A shop, a café, a clinic, a warehouse, a paid service of any kind — unpaid help there is not covered by the allowance.

A family business is called out separately, which matters. The official page does not limit this exclusion to businesses owned by the sponsor, or to regular help, or to help that replaces a paid employee. The words are unqualified: unpaid work in a family business is not permitted.

That separate listing closes the most common family assumption. Suppose a sponsor runs a retail store and a parent spends afternoons behind the counter without wages, "just helping the family." The relationship and the absence of pay are exactly the facts the exclusion already anticipates, so neither one changes the answer.

How do I test one specific task?

Work through the task in this order.

Write down the place where the help happens.

Ask whether that place sells anything to customers.

If it does, stop — the activity is in a commercial environment and is not allowed.

If it does not, ask whether the place is a family business of any relative.

If it is, stop — unpaid work in a family business is not allowed.

If neither, check the task against the three allowed categories: care for minor relatives at home, non-commercial volunteering, or assistance at the school the sponsor's children or other minor relatives attend.

If the task fits none of the three, treat it as not allowed.

Write the answer down and keep it with the visa papers.

What evidence would show which side of the line a task was on?

Because no wages may exist, the evidence is usually about the setting and the role rather than about money. The Department has not published an evidence checklist for this condition, so the following are the kinds of records that tend to reveal whether an arrangement was commercial in nature:

rosters, shift lists, timesheets or keys and point-of-sale access in a name
business registration records, an ABN, or a listing of the person as staff or a contact
uniforms, name badges, business cards, or a staff email address
public posts or listings describing the person as available to help customers
messages arranging cover for shifts, opening hours, or deliveries
payments in any form, including cash, board, groceries, or transfers labelled as gifts

None of these appear on the official page; they are the ordinary traces that a commercial arrangement leaves behind. Their relevance is that they show the setting, and the setting is what the condition turns on.

What counts as commercial when the money is not obvious?

Some arrangements look domestic but are not, and some look commercial but are not.

Assisting a charity is allowed in a non-commercial capacity. The same charity may also run a shop, a café, or a paid service; serving customers in that arm is work in a commercial environment, not non-commercial volunteering.

Care for grandchildren or other minor relatives is allowed in a domestic environment. Regular paid care of children who are not relatives, or care delivered through a business arrangement, is outside the wording.

Help given at a private home can still be commercial if the home is where a business operates — a home-based kitchen selling food, an online order operation run from the spare room, or a home used for paid client appointments.

Platform and gig work is commercial even when it is casual, occasional, or paid in goods rather than money.

What happens if the line is crossed?

The official page lists the obligations in plain terms: holders must obey Australian laws and meet all visa conditions, and the visa ends if it expires, if it is cancelled, if sponsorship is withdrawn and no new Parent Sponsor is found, or if the sponsorship is cancelled. A no-work condition is one of the conditions that must be met, so a breach sits inside that framework rather than outside it.

The policy summary of Subclass 870 describes the limitation as attaching to the visa with no general work rights under current policy, and refers to written ministerial permission as the mechanism by which such a limitation could be lifted. Treat the condition number and wording on your own record as authoritative, and rely on the latest official publication for the current position.

This article is general information about how the condition is framed, not personalised advice about a particular family's arrangements. Where a real arrangement is borderline, the decision should rest on the current official wording, the conditions shown against the visa itself, and, if needed, advice from a registered professional.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can my parents help in my family business if they are not paid?

No. The official page states that unpaid work in a family business is not permitted, without any exception for the sponsor's own business or for occasional help. Absence of pay is the fact the exclusion already assumes.

Can my mother look after my children while I am at work?

Yes, on the official wording, because caring for grandchildren or other minor relatives in a domestic environment is one of the three permitted unpaid activities. The care must happen in a home setting, not at a business premises.

Can my father volunteer at a charity shop?

It depends on the role. Assisting a charitable organisation in a non-commercial capacity is permitted; serving customers in the charity's retail or paid operation is work in a commercial environment, which is not permitted.

Can they help at the school my child attends?

Yes, the official page permits assisting at a local school where the sponsor's children or other minor relatives attend. A school with no such family connection is outside the wording of that category.

Does it help if we pay pocket money or cover board instead of wages?

No. Paying does not bring a commercial or family-business activity inside the allowance, and work that is paid is work, which the visa does not allow. Changing the label on the money does not change the setting.

How can I check the exact condition on a particular visa?

The Department's official page directs holders to use VEVO to see visa expiry and conditions, and to use VEVO to show conditions to someone else. The condition shown against the individual visa record is what applies in that case.