For many people, a permanent contributory parent visa may be out of the reach, financially, and the non-contributory visa not practical due to the lengthy processing times.

A visitor visa may be a fast and inexpensive alternative to bring parents to spend time with family in Australia. Longer validity visitor visas are available for parents of Australian permanent residents and citizens. Parents of Australian permanent residents and citizens currently have the option of using the Visitor (Subclass 600) visa stream to spend time with their children, which enables longer stays in Australia of up to 12 months in any 18-month period.