Eligibility Quiz
Are you currently a citizen of Australia or New Zealand?
Requirements
To qualify for this visa, you must not be an Australian or New Zealand citizen yourself. Your eligibility is tied to your relationship with a New Zealand citizen who lives, or intends to live, in Australia.
The New Zealand Citizen Sponsor
Your family member must:
- Hold a Subclass 444 Special Category Visa (SCV); or
- Be traveling to Australia with you and be eligible for an SCV upon entry.
- Important Limitation: They must not be an "Eligible New Zealand Citizen." In Australian law, this term refers to New Zealanders who were already living in Australia on or before February 26, 2001. If your partner falls into this "protected" category, you are ineligible for the 461 visa and must apply for a standard Partner Visa (Subclass 801/100) instead.
Your Relationship Status
You must be a "member of the family unit" of the New Zealand citizen. This includes:
- Partners: You are the legal spouse or de facto partner (including same-sex relationships).
- Dependent Children: You are under 23 years old. If you are 23 or older, you must prove you are financially dependent on the New Zealand citizen due to physical or cognitive limitations that prevent you from working.
- Step-family: Step-children are treated the same as biological children under the dependency rules.
Relationship Breakdowns
A unique protection of the Subclass 461 is that you may be eligible to renew the visa even if your relationship with the New Zealand citizen ends. To qualify for a subsequent visa after a breakup, you must generally be in Australia, have not started a new relationship with another person, and have held a 461 visa previously.
Conditions & Warnings
If your New Zealand partner is an 'Eligible New Zealand Citizen' (protected SCV holder), you are ineligible for this visa and must apply for a standard Partner Visa (Subclass 801/100) instead.
This visa does not lead directly to permanent residency or citizenship, even though New Zealand citizens now have a direct citizenship pathway.
Initial application is paper-based via mail to the Sydney office, though it can be imported to ImmiAccount after submission for digital management.
Qualifications
No English language requirement for this visa subclass.
Fees
Fee for primary applicant. Additional applicants 18+ are AUD 225, under 18 are AUD 115.
Program Details
Australia is on our roadmap
We can notify you when we're ready to support Australia.
Key Developments
The application fee for the Subclass 461 visa increased to $445 for primary applicants and $225 for secondary applicants aged 18 and over.
greenwingsmigration.com.au ↗A new direct pathway to Australian citizenship was introduced for New Zealand citizens holding a Special Category (subclass 444) visa, though this change does not extend to their non-NZ family members on the 461 visa.
immi.homeaffairs.gov.au ↗