When do you need to give an assurance of support for subclass 114 in 2026?
You give it when the Department of Home Affairs asks for it — not when you lodge. On the official Aged Dependent Relative visa (subclass 114) page, current as of August 2026, the eligibility criterion is worded as an ability to obtain an assurance of support, and the department adds: "We will let you know when you need to provide the assurance of support." The same instruction reappears in the post-lodgement steps: you need to provide it when asked. The trigger is a request from the department during processing, not the date you post your application to Perth.
Is the assurance of support part of the lodgement package?
No. The paper application is built around Form 47OF Application for migration to Australia by other family members, your sponsor's Form 40 Sponsorship for migration to Australia, the first instalment paid through ImmiAccount before submission, and the documents listed for the paper route: identity pages, relationship evidence such as birth or marriage certificates, dependency evidence such as bank statements, money transfers and rent receipts, plus the sponsor's citizenship or residence proof. Police certificates are explicitly deferred — the department tells you when to arrange them. The assurance of support is handled the same way: a later, separately requested step.
That timing matters because of what else is happening. For subclass 114 the applicant must be sponsored by an eligible relative or that relative's partner, be old enough to receive the Australian age pension, have been dependent on the Australian relative for basic needs such as food, shelter and clothing for at least three years before applying, and have no partner. The assurance sits alongside those criteria rather than inside the application form.
What does the assurance of support actually promise?
It is a financial undertaking, not a character reference. According to the department's visa page, it assures the department that you will not have to rely on government assistance after you enter Australia on this visa, and it covers you and any family members who come to Australia with you on this visa.
The regulation framing is more precise. Under the Migration Regulations 1994, clause 114.225 is a criterion to be satisfied at the time of decision: the Minister must be satisfied that an assurance of support relating to the applicant has been accepted by the Secretary of the Department of Social Services. Clause 114.325 puts the same burden on accompanying family members — each must be covered by the main applicant's assurance or have one of their own accepted.
Why is it a decision-time requirement rather than a lodgement requirement?
Because acceptance belongs to another agency, and the department cannot know whether it will be granted until it asks. Sponsorship (Form 40) is approved by the department; the assurance of support is accepted under a separate social-services process involving a bond and an assessment of the assurer's financial capacity. The departmental procedures guidance sets out the bond as AUD 5,000 for the main applicant and AUD 2,000 for each additional adult, generally held for a two-year period. Bond amounts and periods are set and revised by the agency that accepts the assurance, so treat the currently published schedule as controlling.
The sequencing follows from this. The department's own steps say the second instalment invoice is sent after you have met all other requirements for the visa, and that the visa cannot be granted if that instalment is unpaid. Since an accepted assurance is one of those requirements, the normal run is: department requests the assurance → it is assessed and accepted → the second instalment invoice follows → the decision is made. Do not arrange travel before the grant is notified in writing.
What can be prepared before the request arrives?
Nothing needs to be lodged early, but the acceptance process is financial, so the waiting time is more useful if it is spent on readiness rather than on watching the application status. In practice that means knowing who will give the assurance — the sponsor or another acceptable assurer — and having income and asset evidence assembled for that person's assessment, since the bond alone does not settle the question. Suppose an applicant lodges with a sibling as sponsor and only receives the assurance request many months later: nothing has gone wrong, and no deadline was missed, because the department sets the timing.
Two distinctions are worth holding on to. The assurance of support is not the same thing as the Form 40 sponsorship — sponsorship is the relative's undertaking that must be approved, while the assurance is about not drawing on government assistance and is accepted separately. And an assurance accepted for one person does not automatically reach everyone: family members travelling on the same visa must be named in it or have their own accepted.
This article describes published requirements for general reference only; it is not advice on any individual situation, and visa rules, forms, bond amounts and processing steps change over time, so the department's current official pages and any qualified immigration professional you choose to consult remain the controlling sources.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I submit the assurance of support together with my subclass 114 application?
No. The department states on the subclass 114 page that it will let you know when you need to provide the assurance of support, and repeats in the post-lodgement steps that you provide it when asked. Your lodgement package is the paper Form 47OF, the sponsor's Form 40, the first instalment and the listed supporting documents.
Who has to be covered by the one assurance of support?
The department says the assurance is for you and any family members who come to Australia with you on this visa. Under clause 114.325 of the Migration Regulations 1994, each accompanying family member must be included in the main applicant's assurance or have a separate one accepted at the time of decision.
Is the assurance of support assessed when I apply or when the visa is decided?
It is a decision-time requirement. Clause 114.225 requires the Minister to be satisfied, at the time of decision, that the assurance relating to the applicant has been accepted by the Secretary of the Department of Social Services. Meeting it early is not possible, because the request comes from the department first.
If the assurance is accepted, will the visa be granted?
Not by itself. It is one criterion among several: approved sponsorship, age-pension age, three years of dependency on the Australian relative, no partner, health and character requirements, and payment of the second instalment must all be satisfied. An accepted assurance removes one obstacle; it does not complete the application.
How much is the bond, and how long does the assurance last?
Guidance commonly cites AUD 5,000 for the main applicant and AUD 2,000 per additional adult, for a period of around two years. These amounts are administrative figures set by the agency that accepts the assurance and are subject to change, so confirm the current schedule before budgeting.
Is the assurance of support the same as being sponsored?
No. Sponsorship is the eligible relative's (or relative's partner's) undertaking, made on Form 40 and approved by the department. The assurance of support is a separate financial undertaking that you will not rely on government assistance, accepted under the social-services process and, per clause 114.225, by the Secretary of the Department of Social Services.