Subclass 602 organ cases: clause 602.214 disadvantage to Australians and MOC advice (2026)

For an organ transplant or dialysis case on the Medical Treatment visa (Subclass 602), the decision does not turn only on whether an Australian hospital is willing to treat you. Clause 602.214 of Schedule 2 to the Migration Regulations 1994 adds a separate test: granting the visa must not result in an Australian citizen or permanent resident being disadvantaged in obtaining medical treatment. The Department of Home Affairs' official "Medical Treatment visa (Subclass 602)" page, as at the August 2026 version, frames the visa around treatment, consultation, organ donation and support, while the Department's PAM3 policy guidance identifies organ transplantation and dialysis as scarce services where the officer first obtains informal advice from a Medical Officer of the Commonwealth (MOC), and where a consultation-only case can be granted a short stay, with the treatment itself dealt with in a later application.

What does clause 602.214 actually require?

Clause 602.214 requires that the grant of the visa would not disadvantage Australian citizens or permanent residents in obtaining medical treatment. It is a criterion about the effect of the grant on the Australian health system, not about the applicant's own diagnosis, and it is assessed alongside the other Subclass 602 criteria at the time of decision.

The requirement is not universal across the visa. On the Regulations text, it does not apply to the "unfit to depart" case in clause 602.212(6) — the onshore case for applicants aged 50 or over who were refused a permanent visa on health grounds and cannot leave Australia. For everyone else, including treatment, organ donation and support-person cases, the question has to be answered affirmatively before a visa can be granted.

Which treatments trigger the scarcity question?

The policy guidance singles out organ transplantation and dialysis. Both draw on pooled, allocated capacity rather than on a service a hospital can simply add, so a visa applicant's use of them is assessed against the position of Australian patients who also need that capacity.

That is the practical reason a transplant case on Subclass 602 is not a standard medical-treatment case. The hospital's willingness to treat is necessary but not sufficient; the delegate must also be satisfied that the grant does not push an Australian citizen or permanent resident further back in the queue for the same scarce resource.

Where does the MOC fit in?

The MOC — the Medical Officer of the Commonwealth — is the Department's medical referee. Under the policy guidance for clause 602.214, where a case involves organ transplantation or dialysis the officer obtains informal MOC advice before deciding, and the assessment considers the potential effect on Australian citizens and permanent residents.

For the applicant, the consequence is about timing and evidence rather than about any step you can take yourself. A case routed to the MOC has an extra assessment inside the decision, and the Home Affairs page warns that processing takes longer when documents are missing or information needs to be verified; it points to the visa processing time guide tool, which reports times for recently decided applications and is a guide only, not specific to any one application.

Can you apply for the consultation stay first?

Yes, and for a transplant this is often the structure the policy guidance contemplates. If the applicant is only coming for a consultation at that stage, the guidance allows a short stay to be granted first, with the treatment dealt with in a separate, later application.

This sequencing matters because a Subclass 602 visa cannot be extended. The Home Affairs page states that you cannot extend this visa to stay longer; if you need more time for treatment or another reason, you need another visa, with the stay period on each grant decided case by case and influenced by the treatment plan. A consultation-first application therefore does not pre-authorise the transplant — it produces a second decision, on a second application, in which clause 602.214 is assessed again against the actual treatment proposal.

What changes if the donor travels with you?

The official eligibility list includes intending to receive an organ from someone who travels to Australia with you. On the Regulations text, the treatment limb in clause 602.212(2) requires, for an organ transplant, that the donor accompany the applicant or that arrangements have already been completed in Australia. The donor's own visa case carries the full health standard in PIC 4005, and support persons carry PIC 4005 as well.

Cost follows the applicant. The Home Affairs page treats the expenses of anyone who comes with you — expressly including an organ donor's expenses — as part of the means of support you must have or have access to, alongside travel, treatment and other stay-related expenses. Where a support person applies, each support person lodges a separate application unless included in your passport, applications can be processed together, and the support person's visa can only be granted after yours is granted.

What evidence carries the most weight in these cases?

The Home Affairs page is specific on treatment costs: you must generally pre-arrange payment of your medical costs, to show that it will not cost an Australian government or public authority anything, and you show this with written proof from a public or private hospital confirming that it has approved your treatment and the arrangements to pay all the costs.

The Regulations require that the treatment arrangements have been concluded, and the policy guidance describes what a strong hospital letter contains: the nature of the treatment, the expected duration, the costs and the admission date. For funds under clause 602.216, the guidance lists recent bank statements (around three months), payslips, property evidence and letters confirming support from relatives or friends, and treats support from a charitable organisation — such as ROMAC, CAFAT or Children's First Foundation — as strong evidence.

Health screening is not uniform. On the guidance, treatment applicants are assessed for active tuberculosis risk rather than a full health examination, while organ donors and support persons must meet the full PIC 4005 standard. PIC 4020, the integrity criterion, applies to all applicants, and false or misleading material can lead to refusal and a ban on further applications.

What else commonly decides an organ case?

Several criteria sit next to clause 602.214 and can decide the case independently:

Genuine temporary stay (clause 602.215): you must intend only to stay temporarily and do what the visa allows, judged against your visa history, compliance and other relevant matters.
Adequate funds (clause 602.216): funds for yourself and for anyone accompanying you, including a donor.
The 403 bar (clause 602.213): an onshore applicant must not hold, and must not have last held, a Temporary Work (International Relations) visa (subclass 403) granted in the Domestic Worker (Diplomatic or Consular) stream, subject to the exception for the unfit-to-depart case.
Visa conditions: the visa generally does not permit work (condition 8101) and limits study to three months (condition 8201), although the official page notes that longer study is possible if you meet the exemption criteria, with a limited work pathway only in the financial-hardship case.

This article is general information about how the criteria are framed, not personalised advice; because scarce-resource cases turn on individual clinical facts and on policy as it stands at the time, the current official wording should govern any decision, and anyone applying should confirm their position against the official pages or with a qualified professional.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does clause 602.214 mean organ transplant applicants are refused?

No. Clause 602.214 is a criterion that must be satisfied, not a prohibition: it requires that the grant would not disadvantage an Australian citizen or permanent resident in obtaining medical treatment. Cases involving scarce services such as transplantation are assessed with informal MOC advice before the decision is made.

What is the MOC?

The MOC is the Medical Officer of the Commonwealth, the Department's medical referee. In Subclass 602 cases involving organ transplantation or dialysis, the policy guidance directs the officer to obtain informal MOC advice on the potential impact on Australian patients before deciding.

Is dialysis treated the same way as a transplant?

Yes for this purpose. The policy guidance names organ transplantation and dialysis together as scarce services where clause 602.214 needs particular attention and where MOC advice is sought before the decision.

Can I get the visa for a consultation and the transplant later?

The policy guidance allows a short stay to be granted where only a consultation is proposed, with the treatment dealt with in a separate application. A Subclass 602 visa cannot be extended, so further treatment requires another visa application and a fresh assessment, including of clause 602.214.

Who pays the donor's costs when the donor travels with me?

The applicant does. The Home Affairs page lists the expenses of anyone who comes with you, expressly including an organ donor's expenses, among the costs your means of support must cover, together with travel, treatment and other stay-related expenses.

Does clause 602.214 apply to the unfit-to-depart case?

No. On the Regulations text, clause 602.214 does not apply to clause 602.212(6), the onshore case for applicants aged 50 or over who were refused a permanent visa on health grounds and are unfit to depart. That case turns on other criteria, including a written MOC opinion about being unfit to depart.

How long does a decision take?

The Home Affairs page does not give a fixed period; it refers applicants to the visa processing time guide tool, which reports times for recently decided applications and is a guide only. Processing takes longer where the application is incomplete, documents are missing, or information has to be verified.