What Documents Do I Upload for Partner Visa 801 Stage 2 in 2026?

Updated 2026-10-10 · General information, not migration advice · Run by the Arrivau team

For the permanent, or Stage 2, assessment of the Partner visa (subclass 801), you upload four groups of documents: your current passport identity pages, police certificates, evidence that you are still in the relationship with the person who sponsored your temporary Partner visa (subclass 820), and the papers for any family member who holds a subclass 820 or 445 visa. According to the Department of Home Affairs' Partner visa (Permanent) (Subclass 801) step-by-step page, as of the October 2026 official page, these are the document groups the Department lists for the permanent stage. This article is general information only, not advice tailored to your circumstances; where your case has anything unusual in it, check the current official page or get help from a qualified professional before you lodge.

Do you need to upload anything at all for Stage 2?

Check which visa you hold before you prepare a single file. If the Department granted you the subclass 801 at the same time as your subclass 820, you do not have to do anything else. You can confirm your current visa using VEVO.

If the 801 was not granted at the same time, you need to provide further documents, and this guide applies to you.

When can you send the second-stage documents?

You become eligible for consideration of the permanent Partner visa two years after you applied for the temporary and permanent Partner visas. The two years run from the date you submitted that combined application, not from the date your 820 was granted. You can check the submission date in ImmiAccount.

Once two years have passed since you first applied, you can submit your documents. Do not send them before that time. Submitting a complete set helps: the Department states that applications with all required information can be processed faster, and that as an applicant you must prove your identity and provide true information.

Which identity pages does the Department ask for?

Provide a copy of the pages of your most recent passport showing your photo, personal details, signature, and the passport issue and expiry dates.

If your passport has changed, the Department also asks you to notify changes to your passport details, along with changes to your contact details and address.

Which police certificates apply at the permanent stage?

Two kinds of police certificate can be in play: an Australian one and overseas ones.

For Australia, you may need to provide a current Australian police certificate. You usually need it at the permanent stage if you did not attach one with your subclass 820 application. The Department may also ask for a new certificate if your previous one has expired — for immigration purposes, police certificates are valid for 12 months from the issue date. Only complete disclosure National Police Certificates issued by the Australian Federal Police are accepted; standard disclosure certificates and national police certificates issued by Australian state or territory police are not.

For overseas, you need a police certificate from any country — including your home country — where you spent a total of 12 months or more since the grant of your 820 visa.

Family members matter here too: for dependents aged 16 or older, provide police certificates where they apply.

What relationship evidence still has to go in?

You must provide evidence that you continue to be the spouse or de facto partner of the same person who sponsored you for the temporary Partner visa. The Department describes this as relationship documents plus supporting evidence of your relationship.

Because Partner visa processing can be long, the Department advises updating your documents and relationship evidence regularly through ImmiAccount rather than uploading once and waiting. If you lodged something at the 820 stage, the permanent stage still turns on whether the relationship is continuing now, so current evidence is what carries the decision.

What do you upload for family members?

For every family member who currently holds a subclass 820 or 445 visa, provide copies of:

their passport
documents that show changes to their situation
police certificates, if applicable, for dependents 16 years old or older

You can add a dependent child to your application before the Department decides your permanent visa. The child must be in Australia, hold a Dependent Child visa (subclass 445), meet the health requirement, and meet the character requirement if they are 16 or older. Once the child holds the 445 visa, you complete Form 1002 (Application by a subclass 445 dependent child for a permanent partner visa) and attach it in ImmiAccount, then notify the Department using the Partner Processing Enquiry Form. A newborn child is also something you must report.

How should the files be translated, scanned and packaged?

Non-English documents need an English translation, and you provide both the original and the translated document.

Translators in Australia must be accredited by the National Accreditation Authority for Translators and Interpreters (NAATI). Translators outside Australia do not have to be accredited, but each translation must carry, in English, the translator's full name, their address and telephone number, and their qualifications and experience in the language they are translating.

Then the mechanics of the files themselves:

Scan or photograph every document, English and non-English, in colour.
Make sure the scans and photos are clear enough to read.
If a document runs to more than one page, save it all as one file.
You do not need to have any documents certified.

How do you lodge the Stage 2 documents?

In ImmiAccount, select "New application", then "Family", then "Stage 2 – Permanent Partner Visa Assessment", then attach your documents.

Three rules govern the attachments. Attach a document only once, even if you are using it to show more than one thing. Clearly label your documents. And you can attach up to 100 documents for each person on the application — a limit that cannot be increased. If you reach the limit for one applicant, you can attach further documents to other clients on the application.

After you lodge, you track and manage the application in ImmiAccount. If you cannot upload the relevant documents there, the Department's page says you need to use the Partner Processing Enquiry Form.

What if your situation changes while you wait?

Tell the Department about changes after you lodge but before a decision is made. The listed changes include changes to your marital or de facto status, the birth of a child, any other change relevant to your application, and a request to withdraw your application.

If your relationship ends, you may need to complete the Notification of Relationship Cessation form in ImmiAccount. You might still be eligible for the permanent visa if your relationship ends or your partner dies, and all information you provide is confidential. Family violence provisions may also apply; the Department points applicants experiencing domestic and family violence to its family violence provisions page.

Protect your own access while you wait: give your own contact details, keep them updated, and do not share your ImmiAccount or email passwords. The Department may contact you directly even if you have nominated your sponsor's email, appointed an authorised recipient, or appointed someone to give immigration assistance.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to give relationship evidence again if I already gave it for the 820?

Yes, in the sense that the permanent stage requires evidence that you are still the spouse or de facto partner of the same sponsor. The Department asks for relationship documents and supporting evidence for this stage, and recommends updating relationship evidence regularly because processing can take a long time.

Do I need a new Australian police certificate for Stage 2?

You usually need a current Australian police certificate at the permanent stage if you did not attach one with your subclass 820 application. The Department may also ask for a new one if your previous certificate has expired, since certificates are valid for 12 months from the issue date.

Can I submit the Stage 2 documents before the two-year mark?

No. You are eligible for consideration two years after you applied for the temporary and permanent Partner visas, and the Department says to submit only once two years have passed since you first applied. The date you submitted your application can be checked in ImmiAccount.

Is there a limit on how many documents I can attach?

Yes. You can attach up to 100 documents for each person on the application, and that limit cannot be increased. If you hit the limit for one applicant, the Department says you can attach more documents to other clients on the application.

Do my documents need to be certified or notarised?

No. The Department states that you do not need to have any documents certified. The requirements that do apply are English translation where needed, colour scans or photographs that are clear enough to read, and multi-page documents saved as a single file.

Will I get the application fee back if the 801 is refused?

No. The Department states that it will not refund the application fee if it refuses your application. If refused, it will tell you why and whether you have a right to a review of the decision; if granted, it will tell you your visa grant number, the date your visa starts, and your visa conditions.