Moving to Australia with your family
visas, schools, childcare and pets

The three forces that recruit UK officers, WA Police, SAPOL and the Queensland Police Service, all nominate you for the subclass 186 permanent visa. Your partner and children can be on the same application. That makes the family move much simpler than most skilled migration, where families start on a temporary visa and wait years for permanent residency.

On a 186, your family arrives permanent. That one fact decides Medicare, childcare and school fees.

We also cover the 482 temporary visa below. It isn't the route police forces describe, but it matters if your partner is the one being sponsored, or if you're weighing a police job against another offer. For the visa itself, see our visa guide for police officers, and for the force-by-force overview, the UK officers flagship guide.

Who counts as family is set by Home Affairs. The QPS FAQ lists your partner, your dependent child or stepchild, your partner's child or dependent stepchild, and their dependent children. Everyone on the application must meet health and character requirements. The QPS warns that significant healthcare or community service costs can lead to a visa refusal, so disclose conditions early.

Home Affairs charges each applicant separately. For a 186 visa it's A$6,140 for the main applicant, A$3,070 for each extra applicant aged 18 or over and A$1,535 for each child under 18. Adults with less than functional English pay a second instalment of A$4,890 each, which UK passport holders usually won't face.

For comparison, the same family on a 482 would pay A$10,040 in charges, by our calculation, and still be temporary. SAPOL is the stand-out for families: it reimburses the visa application charge, physical assessments and pre-medicals, and police clearances for you and dependent family members. See UK police to SAPOL for the detail.

Once your 186 is granted, every family member can enrol in Medicare, which covers public hospital treatment and subsidises GP visits. Before you're enrolled, the UK reciprocal health care agreement covers medically necessary care for people who lived in the UK before arriving. Whether that agreement covers a family moving on a 482 isn't something we could confirm, so 482 families should hold full private cover from day one.

On a police salary you'll often be near or above the surcharge threshold, so price hospital cover once you know your income. Ask your force and police association about member schemes: SAPOL, for example, mentions health and life cover for dependants through the Police Dependants' Fund.

The Child Care Subsidy has no newly arrived resident's waiting period for permanent visa holders. From 6 July 2026 it pays 90% of fees for families earning up to $88,520, falling by 1% for each $5,000 above that and reaching 0% at $538,520. It's paid on the lower of your actual hourly fee and the hourly cap, which is $15.19 for centre-based day care.

A worked example

With a WA Constable 5th year salary ($102,263) and a partner earning $55,000, family income is $157,263, which by our calculation gives a Child Care Subsidy of 76%. If your centre charged $14 an hour (an example, not a quoted fee) for a 10-hour day, that's $140 a day, the subsidy would be about $106 and you'd pay about $34 a day before any withholding. Services Australia's estimator is the definitive figure; our rounding rule may differ slightly from theirs.

Family Tax Benefit is different. Part A has a 1-year newly arrived resident's waiting period for new permanent residents (with some exemptions); Part B and the Child Care Subsidy don't. Family Tax Benefit is income tested, so a police household may get little Part A anyway. A WA Constable 5th year takes home about $3,039 a fortnight after tax, by our calculation, before shift allowances.

Children on a 186 visa enrol in government schools as permanent residents, the same as Australian children, and pay only the usual voluntary contributions and levies. Fees only become an issue for children on a temporary visa such as the 482, and every state handles them differently.

Enrolment works by catchment in most states, so where you rent decides your school. Because postings come late in the process (see below), many families rent short-term near the academy and choose a school once they know the station. Ask the school about uniform, device and excursion costs, which aren't covered by any fee exemption.

A partner included on your 186 can work in any job from arrival. SAPOL's FAQ says the visa "will allow your spouse and / or dependents to work". That's a big advantage over many temporary visas, where work rights can be limited or tied to conditions.

Postings are the practical constraint. Your partner may find work in Perth, Adelaide or Brisbane only to learn you've been posted three hours away. Our practical first steps guide covers tax file numbers, super and banking for both of you.

The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) classes the UK as a Group 3 country for cats and dogs. The rules are designed around rabies, and the 180-day wait after the blood test is fixed. If you start pet preparations after your visa is granted, your pet may arrive months after you.

1. 1

   Microchip

   Month 0

   Your pet needs a readable microchip before the rabies vaccination and blood test, so every record links to the same animal.

2. 2

   Rabies vaccination

   Month 0–1

   A current rabies vaccination given by a UK vet, after microchipping.

3. 3

   Identity check and RNATT blood test

   Month 1

   A government-authorised vet takes the Rabies Neutralising Antibody Titre Test sample. If a government vet verified your pet's identity first, quarantine can be 10 days instead of 30.

4. 4

   Wait 180 days in the UK

   Months 1–7

   Your pet must stay in an approved country for 180 days after the RNATT sample date before export.

5. 5

   Import permit and quarantine booking

   During the wait

   Apply for the import permit and book a place at the Mickleham post-entry quarantine facility. Places can be tight, so book as early as the rules allow.

6. 6

   Pre-export treatments and fly to Melbourne

   Month 7+

   Final vet checks, parasite treatments and paperwork. Cats and dogs must arrive at Melbourne airport, whichever state you're moving to.

7. 7

   Quarantine at Mickleham

   On arrival

   At least 10 days (or 30 days without the identity check). You then collect your pet or arrange onward transport to your state.

Check DAFF's list of banned dog breeds before you plan anything. Remember the rental market too: WA allows a pet bond of up to $350, and you'll need a landlord who accepts pets.

Most families rent near the academy while you train, then again once you know your posting. Vacancy rates are tight: Cotality put the national rate at 2.0% in September 2026, with Adelaide at 1.4% and Perth and Brisbane at 2.1%. We haven't found an official source for weekly rents by city, so check listings for the suburbs you're considering.

As an example only, on a $650 a week rental you'd pay a bond of $2,600 plus rent in advance. Do it twice in the first year and that's a significant outlay, so keep a buffer. WA doesn't provide accommodation for international officers during its 13-week course. Our cost of living guide compares house prices and bills by city.

Regional postings can suit families well. WA offers fully subsidised housing in 56 remote "Schedule G" towns, and the QPS and SAPOL pay regional and remote allowances. But regional schools, childcare places and partner jobs are thinner, so ask about them before you accept. Our guides to the WA, SA and Queensland salary scales list the regional allowances.

You'll know shift work already. What changes is that grandparents, friends and the babysitter you trusted are on the other side of the world. Your partner may be on their own with the children during nights and weekends, in a new city, while you're learning a new job.

Ask your force about its employee wellbeing services from day one. The general support lines are open to anyone: Lifeline 13 11 14, Beyond Blue 1300 22 4636, and 000 in an emergency. Read our guides to shift work and health, police parental leave and budgeting on shift work.

For the month-by-month plan, use our UK to Australia timeline. If you're still deciding where to apply, our guide to UK rank and service recognition shows what each force will pay you.