How Do You Prove Dependence for an Older Child on Subclass 836 in 2026?

A child who has already turned 23 can still be included in a Carer visa (Subclass 836) application, but only on a different test than a younger adult child: they must be unable to earn a living to support themselves because of physical or cognitive limitations, and dependent on you or your partner. As of July 2026, the Australian Department of Home Affairs' official Carer visa (Subclass 836) page sets out both limbs for dependants over 18, and it does not publish a separate, prescriptive list of disability documents — it names the categories of documents to provide and leaves the substance of the proof to the applicant. This article explains the published criteria only; it is general information, not advice about your own circumstances, so check the current official page or get professional advice before you rely on it.

What exactly must be true for a child over 23?

The published criterion for dependants over 18 gives two alternatives, and an older child has to fit the second one.

Not yet 23: over 18 years of age but not yet turned 23, and dependent on you or your partner.
Over 23: over 23 years of age and unable to earn a living to support themselves due to physical or cognitive limitations, and dependent on you or your partner.

Two consequences follow from that wording. First, the age threshold and the incapacity are not alternatives for an older child — someone aged 23 or over has to satisfy the inability-to-earn-a-living limb. Second, dependence is a separate requirement on top of it. A child who cannot work but is not dependent on you does not meet the criterion, and neither does a child who is financially dependent on you but could support themselves.

	Age 18 to 22	Age 23 and over
Age test	Over 18, not yet turned 23	Over 23
Additional test	Dependent on you or your partner	Unable to earn a living to support themselves due to physical or cognitive limitations, and dependent on you or your partner
Condition named	Dependence	Disability or incapacity plus dependence

What documents does the Department list for an over-18 dependant?

For a child over 18 included in the application, the official page asks you to provide three things:

identity documents;
documents about their other relationships, if applicable;
character documents.

The character requirement follows the same rules as for other applicants aged 16 and over: Australian police certificates are needed where the person has spent a total of 12 months or more in Australia in the last 10 years since turning 16, and only complete disclosure National Police Certificates issued by the Australian Federal Police are accepted (valid for 12 months from the date of issue). Overseas police certificates are also required from every country where they spent 12 months or more in that same period, plus military service records or discharge papers if they served in any country's armed forces, and completed Forms 80 and 1221.

What is not itemised is the disability and dependence material itself. The page states the test rather than a document checklist, so the practical task is to build a file that speaks to each element of the wording: the child's age, the physical or cognitive limitation, the resulting inability to earn a living, and the actual dependence on you or your partner. Because the page gives no prescribed format, treat the official wording as the checklist and keep everything consistent with the identity, relationship and character documents you lodge alongside it.

What if the child turns 23 while the application is waiting?

This is the risk the official page flags directly: if your child is likely to turn 23 while your application is being processed, you will need to provide evidence that they are dependent on you due to disability.

That matters because of how long these applications can sit. The Department states that demand for Other Family visas is greater than the number of places available each year, that processing times can be lengthy, and that applications for this visa are subject to capping and queueing. An 18-to-22-year-old who qualifies on the dependence limb alone at lodgement can therefore be decided under the stricter over-23 limb by the time a caseworker looks at the file. Lodging the disability and dependence evidence at the outset, rather than waiting to be asked, removes the gap.

Is the child's disability evidence the same as the Bupa medical certificate?

No, and keeping the two apart avoids a common filing mistake. The Bupa Medical Visa Services certificate required for this visa concerns the person who needs care — your Australian relative who needs care, or that relative's family member who lives with them and needs care. It must state that the person has a medical condition and requires a certain amount of care, and the application will not be accepted unless that assessment process has at least begun.

The evidence for an older child is separate: it goes to that child's own inability to earn a living and their dependence on you. Both can sit in the same paper application, but one does not substitute for the other, and only the child's own material answers the dependant criterion.

What else has to hold up for the child?

Including someone in the application is not the same as getting them a visa. Family members who apply for the visa must meet the health and character requirements, and the Department may also assess the best interests of an applicant under 18 where that is relevant. Everyone included needs four recent passport-sized photographs (45 mm x 35 mm, less than six months old).

Identity is the hard gate. If a person cannot prove their identity, the Department says it will refuse the application, may not grant another visa for 10 years, and may not grant a visa for 10 years to any family members listed on the application.

How is it actually lodged?

Subclass 836 is a paper application. You complete Form 47OF (Application for migration to Australia by other family members) in English, pay before submission, and send the application by post or courier to the Child and Other Family Processing Centre in Perth at the address on the form — applications cannot be submitted in person. The applicant must be in Australia, but not in immigration clearance, both when the application is submitted and when it is decided.

Two mechanical points bear on dependant evidence. If any required step is incomplete, the application may be invalid and will not be processed. And only certified copies should be sent, never originals, so keep a full copy of what you lodge. If material is missing at lodgement, provide it as soon as you can; once the paper application is imported into ImmiAccount, further documents can be uploaded there.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can a child over 23 be included in a Subclass 836 application at all?

Yes, but only if they are unable to earn a living to support themselves due to physical or cognitive limitations and are dependent on you or your partner. The over-23 route is a separate limb from the 18-to-22 dependence test, and both elements of it must be met.

Does being financially dependent on me alone qualify my 24-year-old child?

No. For a child over 23, the published criterion requires dependence and an inability to earn a living caused by physical or cognitive limitations. Dependence by itself is the test for a child who has not yet turned 23.

What documents does the Department specifically ask for an over-18 dependant?

Identity documents, documents about their other relationships if applicable, and character documents. The page does not list specific disability documents, so the evidence has to address the criterion's own wording: the limitation, the resulting inability to earn a living, and the dependence.

What happens if my child turns 23 during processing?

The official page says that if your child is likely to turn 23 while the application is being processed, you will need to provide evidence that they are dependent on you due to disability. Because these applications are subject to capping and queueing and can take a long time, that evidence is best lodged at the start.

Is the Bupa medical certificate enough to cover my dependent child?

No. That certificate relates to the Australian relative who needs care or their family member who lives with them and needs care. An older child's dependence and incapacity are separate questions that need their own evidence.

Who can legally help prepare this evidence?

Only a registered migration agent, a legal practitioner, or an exempt person can give immigration assistance for a fee or reward. Anyone can be appointed to receive documents on your behalf, using Form 956A, while immigration assistance is appointed using Form 956.