3.1.2.40 Newly arrived resident's waiting period (NARWP)

Summary

Most migrants do not have immediate access to social security payments when they first arrive in Australia. However, the provisions restricting migrants' access to payments are not identical across payment types. Most social security payments have a NARWP. Some pensions have a qualifying residence period (QRP) instead of a NARWP (Age, DSP) and PP has a QRP as well as a NARWP. A NARWP operates differently from a QRP. In addition, the length of a NARWP, how it is calculated and who it applies to can vary from payment to payment.

Note: This means it is very important to check the specific legislation for the payment being claimed, and not to assume that the provisions of one payment will apply to another.

On this page

• Payments and concession cards with a NARWP
• Visas subject to a NARWP
• Exemptions from the NARWP
• Duration of the NARWP
  • Duration of the NARWP based on visa grant date and payment or card type
  • Duration of the NARWP for SCV holders (New Zealand citizens)
  • Duration of the NARWP for temporary partner visa holders
  • Duration of the NARWP for orphan and remaining relative visa holders
  • Duration of the NARWP for PALM scheme temporary visa holders
• Interaction of the NARWP with the QRP for PP
• Date of commencement & completion of the NARWP
• Date of commencement of NARWP where a visa rejection decision is overturned
• Temporary exemption from the NARWP - Coronavirus (COVID-19)

Payments & concession cards with a NARWP

A NARWP applies to the following social security payments and concession cards:

• jobseeker payment
• youth allowance
• austudy payment
• carer payment
• carer allowance
• mobility allowance
• pensioner education supplement
• parenting payment
• special benefit
• health care card (low income), and
• Commonwealth seniors health card.

Note: The NARWP for CA and PP only applies to people granted a permanent visa on or after 1 January 2019.

Note: People granted a relevant visa on or after 1 January 2019 are also subject to a NARWP for FTB Part A, PLP and (up to 30 June 2023) DAPP. More information is available at FA Guide 2.2.1.10 and PPL Guide 2.4.3.

Note: A NARWP also applies to the farm household allowance (FHA). FHA is paid under the Farm Household Support Act 2014 on behalf of the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry. The NARWP for FHA operates similarly to the NARWP for JSP. Please refer to JSP for policy guidance.

Visas subject to a NARWP

Holders of the following visa types may be subject to a NARWP (see 9.2 for information on visa types):

• a permanent visa
• a temporary partner visa*
  • subclass 309 Partner (Provisional), or
  • subclass 820 Partner
• an SCV (subclass 444)*
• a Temporary Work (International Relations) (subclass 403) visa in the Pacific Australia Labour Mobility (PALM) stream who are workers approved to bring family members to Australia, or a family member.*

*Note: Generally, holders of these temporary visas are only eligible for certain payments and concession cards and therefore are only subject to a NARWP for those payments and cards.

Exemptions from the NARWP

There are exemptions from the NARWP for certain visa holders and for people receiving certain payments. There are also circumstances where the NARWP does not apply. Details of the types of NARWP exemptions are provided in 3.1.2.43.

Duration of the NARWP

The length of a NARWP, how it is calculated and who it applies to depends on the payment they apply for and when the person was granted the relevant visa.

Prior to 1 January 2019, the NARWP was 104 weeks and only applied to certain working age payments and concession cards. People who were granted a relevant visa before 1 January 2019 remain subject to the 104 week NARWP for these payments and cards.

From 1 January 2019, the NARWP was extended to 208 weeks (4 years) for various working age payments and concession cards; and new waiting periods of 208 weeks, 104 weeks (2 years) and 52 weeks (one year) were introduced for a range of other payments. These changes apply to people who are granted a relevant visa on or after 1 January 2019.

Only time a visa holder is physically present in Australia will count towards the NARWP.

Duration of the NARWP based on visa grant date and payment or card type

* While PP did not have a NARWP prior to 1 January 2019, it did (and continues to) have a 104 week qualifying residence period.

Note: Certain visa types have different rules. Please refer to the information below about SCV holders, temporary partner visa holders and orphan and remaining relative visa holders below.

Note: For more information on the NARWP for FTB Part A and PLP refer to FA Guide 2.2.1.10 and PPL Guide 2.4.3.

NARWP duration for SCV holders (New Zealand citizens)

The SCV is a temporary visa, which allows New Zealand citizens to enter Australia to visit, work or live indefinitely. The NARWP rules for SCV holders vary depending whether the holder is a protected SCV holder (generally those who were in Australia on 26 February 2001 and met certain conditions, and can access the full range of social security payments) or non-protected SCV holder (those who arrived in Australia after 2001 and who have restricted access to certain payments only). For more information on SCV holders and their access to social security and family assistance payments, see 9.1.3.

*A 104 week qualifying residence period applies for PP.

Note: A former SCV holder is a person who has held an SCV in the past but now holds a different visa type (for example, a permanent visa). Depending on their new visa type and associated payment eligibility, a NARWP of 2 years or 4 years may apply (see 9.2 for information on visa types and payment eligibility).

Note: Non-protected SCV holders are not eligible for most social security payments so the NARWP for those payments is not applicable. In limited circumstances, non-protected SCV holders can access JSP or YA for up to 6 months. In these instances a NARWP does not apply. For more information refer to 9.1.3.

NARWP duration for temporary partner visa holders

Temporary partner visa holders (subclass 309 or 820) only have access to certain payments and concession cards, including SpB, LIC, PLP and FTB.

Those who applied for their temporary partner visa before 1 January 2019 are subject to a 104 week NARWP for SpB and LIC. Temporary partner visa holders who apply for their visa on or after 1 January 2019 are subject to a 208 week NARWP for SpB and a 104 week NARWP for LIC.

Those who were granted their temporary partner visa before 1 January 2019 are not subject to a NARWP for PLP or FTB.

Temporary partner visa holders who are granted their visa on or after 1 January 2019 are subject to a 104 week NARWP for PLP and a 52 week NARWP for FTB Part A.

NARWP duration for orphan & remaining relative visa holders

Orphan Relative (subclass 117 or 837) or a Remaining Relative (subclass 115 or 835) visa holders are subject to a 104 week NARWP for the following working age payments and concession cards: JSP, YA, Austudy, FHA, SpB, MOB, PES, CP, CSHC, LIC, irrespective of when the visa is granted.

These visa holders are not subject to a NARWP for CA, FTB Part A and PLP, irrespective of when the visa is granted.

NARWP duration for PALM scheme temporary visa holders

Holders of a subclass 403 visa who are either a PALM scheme worker approved to bring family members to Australia, or the family member of an approved PALM worker, only have access to certain payments and concession cards, including FTB, CCS, and the automatic issue HCC. Eligible PALM workers and their family members are subject to a 52 week NARWP for FTB Part A.

Note: For more information on FTB eligibility, refer to FA Guide 2.1.1.10. For more information on the NARWP for FTB Part A refer to FA Guide 2.2.1.10.

Interaction of the NARWP with the QRP for PP

The 104 week QRP is served concurrently with the NARWP where both apply (PP only).

Generally, the same exemptions apply to the 104 week QRP and the NARWP.

The exception is Australian citizens. People who are granted Australian citizenship during the NARWP will become exempt from any remaining NARWP. However, there is no equivalent exemption from the QRP. This means a person may still be subject to a QRP if they have been an Australian resident for less than 104 weeks, even if they are a citizen and exempt from the NARWP.

Date of commencement & completion of the NARWP

A NARWP generally commences on the latest of the following dates:

• the date the person arrived in Australia, or
• the date the person became an Australian resident (this is usually the day they first started residing in Australia as a permanent visa holder).

Generally the NARWP ends when a person has been an Australian resident and in Australia for the relevant number of weeks.

There are exceptions to the above general rules for SpB, FTB Part A and PLP. The NARWP for SpB, FTB Part A and PLP does not require the person to be an Australian resident. The commencement and completion of the NARWP for these payments is outlined in the table below.

Note: The NARWP for FTB Part A, PLP or DAPP does not apply to temporary partner visa holders whose visa was granted before 1 January 2019. If they subsequently move to a permanent partner visa on or after 1 January 2019, they continue to have no NARWP for these payments.

Date of commencement of NARWP where a visa rejection decision is overturned

The 'day on which a permanent visa is granted to a person or a person becomes the holder of a permanent visa' for the purpose of calculating the NARWP will be:

• the date the initial decision maker (Department of Home Affairs) decides to grant a visa to the person, or
• if the Department of Home Affairs decides not to grant a visa and on a review of the decision, that original decision is set aside (however described) by a tribunal and a visa is granted to the person: the date on which the Department of Home Affairs originally decided not to grant the visa to the person.

The above situation could occur when a person applies for a permanent residence visa in Australia and the application is rejected by the Department of Home Affairs, but the AAT later sets aside that decision and decides instead to grant the visa.

Temporary exemption from the NARWP - Coronavirus (COVID-19)

As part of the response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the NARWP did not apply during the period from 25 March 2020 to 31 March 2021 for the following payments: JSP, PP, SpB, YA and Austudy.

At the end of this period, the NARWP resumed. People subject to a NARWP continued to serve any remaining NARWP. The period for which the NARWP did not apply counts towards the NARWP.