Subclass 884 Help: Migration Agents, Lawyers and Exempt Persons in 2026

As of October 2026, the official Contributory Aged Parent (Temporary) visa (Subclass 884) page of the Australian Department of Home Affairs allows only three categories of people to give you immigration assistance: a registered migration agent, a legal practitioner, or an exempt person. The same page puts a condition on paying for help before it describes anything else about the visa — read who can help you before you pay anyone.

That framing matters, because the 884 is a paper application with a long wait attached to it, and the choices you make about representation at the start are hard to undo later. What follows is general information about how the published process is structured, not advice tailored to any individual case; for a specific application, the current official wording and a qualified professional's opinion should govern.

Who can legally give immigration assistance on an 884 application?

The Department's rule attaches to the role, not to a job title. The Subclass 884 page states that if you appoint someone to give you immigration assistance, they must be a registered migration agent, a legal practitioner, or an exempt person. Anyone outside those three categories is not a lawful choice for that function, however much they know about parent visas or however often they have filled in forms for relatives.

In practice, the test is what the person actually does on your file. Preparing and advancing the visa matter is the activity the restriction targets; simply being the person who receives letters is treated differently. The Department's own warning is to read who can help before you pay someone; the rule applies when you appoint someone to give you immigration assistance.

The third category, "exempt person", is named on the visa page and is dealt with in the Department's separate guidance on who can help with an application. If you are considering someone whose status you cannot verify, the safest reading is that the burden of confirming the category sits with you, not with them.

What changes if someone only receives your correspondence?

You can appoint anyone to receive documents on your behalf relating to your visa matter. This is the authorised recipient arrangement, and the Department does not limit who can hold it — no registration, legal qualification or exempt status is required for that role alone.

The distinction is easy to blur and expensive to get wrong. An authorised recipient is a channel for correspondence; a migration agent, legal practitioner or exempt person is someone who may give immigration assistance. A relative can be your authorised recipient. That appointment does not turn them into someone who may lawfully give you immigration assistance.

Which form do you need: Form 956 or Form 956A?

The two forms carry different names for a reason, and the names do most of the work:

What you want	Who can be appointed	Form named by the Department
Someone to give you immigration assistance	A registered migration agent, a legal practitioner, or an exempt person	Form 956 Appointment of a registered migration agent, legal practitioner or exempt person
Someone to receive your correspondence	Anyone you choose	Form 956A Appointment or withdrawal of an authorised recipient
To end either arrangement	Not applicable	Form 956 for assistance; Form 956A for correspondence

Both forms also work in reverse. The Department's after-you-apply instructions ask you to tell it, using the matching form, if you no longer want someone to receive your correspondence or to give you immigration assistance.

How do the forms reach the Department on a paper 884 application?

Online lodgement is not available for temporary Contributory Aged Parent visa applicants. You must apply on paper, and you must be in Australia but not in immigration clearance when you submit. That shapes how the appointment forms travel.

Complete Form 956 if someone is giving you immigration assistance. Complete Form 956A if you are appointing or withdrawing an authorised recipient. Send the written notification or your forms with your paper application. Send the whole package by post or courier to the address on the form. Keep a copy of everything for your own records.

After lodgement, the position changes slightly. Once you receive your acknowledgement letter, you can import the paper application into ImmiAccount, and from then on you can send the appointment or withdrawal forms through ImmiAccount or through the Parent visa processing centre form. All forms must be completed in English.

What stays your responsibility after you appoint someone?

Appointing help does not move the substantive duties to the helper. Several of them are personal to you as the applicant.

You must provide accurate and complete information. If you cannot prove your identity, the Department states it will refuse the application, and it might not grant you — or any family member listed on the application — another visa for 10 years.

You must report changes to your phone number, email, address, passport, relationship status, and family composition, including the birth of a child. You should also tell the Department if you want to withdraw the application.

Some obligations sit with other people in the file and cannot be signed away by an agent either. An eligible sponsor must sponsor the application and complete Form 40 Sponsorship for migration to Australia. Each member of your family aged 18 or over must complete Form 47A, even if they are not migrating. If you have a pending application for a different Parent visa, you must withdraw it when you apply, using Part B of Form 47PA. And you cannot apply for the 884 at all if you have already applied for or hold a Sponsored Parent (Temporary) (subclass 870) visa.

How does the process handle fairness: notice, corrections and refusal reasons?

The published steps give you a set of points at which the record can be corrected before a decision is made. If you make a mistake on your application, you are asked to tell the Department as soon as you can by completing Form 1023 Notification of incorrect answers. If you have imported the application into ImmiAccount, you can upload the completed form there; otherwise it can go through the Parent visa processing centre form.

Requests run in one direction until they don't. The Department says it will let you know if you need to give anything more, including health examinations and biometrics, and it asks you not to arrange a police check until it asks you to. It also states that it cannot provide progress updates within normal processing times, so silence is not a signal either way.

Two decision-stage conditions are worth planning around. You must be in Australia, but not in immigration clearance, when the decision is made, and you must pay the second instalment when the Department sends the invoice — non-payment leads to refusal. If the application is refused, the Department says it will tell you why and whether you have a right to a review of the decision, and that it will not refund the application fee.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can a family member or friend prepare my 884 application for me?

Only a registered migration agent, a legal practitioner, or an exempt person may be appointed to give immigration assistance on the visa matter. The Subclass 884 page states this as a condition of the appointment. A friend or relative can, however, be appointed as your authorised recipient to receive documents on your behalf.

Is Form 956 the same as Form 956A?

No. Form 956 is the Appointment of a registered migration agent, legal practitioner or exempt person, used when someone gives you immigration assistance. Form 956A is the Appointment or withdrawal of an authorised recipient, used when someone receives your correspondence. Both forms are also used to end the arrangement they created.

Can I lodge the 884 application online if I use an agent?

No. Online lodgement is not available for temporary Contributory Aged Parent visa applicants, regardless of who assists you. The application must be lodged on paper while you are in Australia and not in immigration clearance, and it must be sent by post or courier.

Do I still need to report changes if an agent is handling my file?

Yes. You must tell the Department about changes to your phone number, email, address, passport, relationship status, and family composition, including the birth of a child. You should also tell it if you want to withdraw the application. The duty to notify does not transfer to the person you appointed.

Can I remove someone who is helping me?

Yes. Complete Form 956 if you no longer want that person to give you immigration assistance, and Form 956A if you no longer want them to receive your correspondence. Send the form through ImmiAccount or the Parent visa processing centre form.

Will the application fee be refunded if the visa is refused?

The Department states that it will not refund the application fee if it refuses your application. This applies whether or not you were represented. No fee amounts are reproduced here; check the current official charges before you lodge.

What happens if an answer on my application turns out to be wrong?

Tell the Department as soon as you can and complete Form 1023 Notification of incorrect answers. The form can be uploaded in ImmiAccount if you have imported the application, or sent through the Parent visa processing centre form. Leaving a known error uncorrected sits directly against the requirement to provide accurate and complete information.

References

• Australian Department of Home Affairs — Contributory Aged Parent (Temporary) visa (Subclass 884)