What evidence do I need for an Australian partner visa family violence claim in 2026?

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

If you have just decided to make a family violence claim on a Partner visa and have no documents in hand yet, the short answer is this: the Department of Home Affairs accepts either one piece of judicial evidence (a court document) or, if you have none, a minimum of two pieces of non-judicial evidence from different categories plus a Commonwealth statutory declaration. This reflects the Department's "Family violence evidence" page under its family violence provisions, as at the October 2026 version of those official pages. This article explains the published rules only; it is general information, not advice about your own case, and the official pages — or a registered professional who can look at your circumstances — should be your final reference.

Which partner visa claims do these evidence rules apply to?

The rules below are the ones the Department applies when a Partner visa applicant or holder claims the family violence provisions.

You may be eligible to be considered for a permanent visa if you hold or have applied for a Temporary Partner (subclass 820) visa, hold or have applied for a Provisional Partner (subclass 309) visa and entered Australia since applying, or hold or previously held a Prospective Marriage (subclass 300) visa. For the subclass 300 visa you must be in Australia; if that visa has ceased, you must also currently not hold a substantive visa and have applied for the Partner (subclasses 820 and 801) visa. A dependent child of a Partner visa-holding parent who has claimed the provisions may be eligible if they have applied for a Dependent Child (subclass 445) visa.

For a Partner visa claim, the alleged perpetrator must be the former sponsor of the visa application. That link between the perpetrator and the sponsorship is the thread running through every document you later submit.

What must the evidence actually show?

Two things, and neither is optional.

The evidence must show that at least part of the family violence happened while you were in a relationship with your former partner or spouse, and that your former partner or spouse was the alleged perpetrator. For a Partner visa applicant, that means the former sponsor.

Every piece of evidence must be in writing, in English, and in the format and level of detail requested. The Department states that it understands gathering this material can be difficult and that delays are sometimes outside your control, and that it will give you more time to submit documents if you need it.

The Department also assesses in a fixed order: it first assesses whether the relationship was genuine, and only then assesses the family violence claim. Your relationship evidence and your family violence evidence are two separate hurdles.

Do I need court documents, or can I use something else?

You can give either judicial or non-judicial evidence. Judicial evidence means a document from a court of law. Non-judicial evidence is the route most people without any court history end up using.

It helps to think of it as a fork: one satisfactory court document closes the question, while everything else requires two professional documents from different categories plus your own declaration.

What counts as judicial evidence?

Judicial evidence is a document from a court of law, and you only need to give one of the listed options:

a court injunction against your former partner or spouse under the Family Law Act 1975
a court order against your former partner or spouse made under a state or territory law
a record that the court has convicted your former partner or spouse of a family violence offence against you or your dependant(s)
a record that the court has recorded a finding of guilt against your former partner or spouse of family violence offences against you or your dependant(s)

If you hold any one of these, the two-document route does not apply to you.

Can an interim order be enough?

Sometimes. The Department states that in some situations an interim order may meet the threshold for judicial evidence. If the interim order does not meet the threshold, you can give a copy of it while you await a final court outcome. If a final court order is made later, you must give the Department a copy of it.

If I have no court documents, what else works?

Non-judicial evidence takes one of two forms.

The first is a joint undertaking made before the court. The second — the one most applicants rely on — is a minimum of two pieces of evidence from the categories listed below. If you give two pieces, you must also complete a Commonwealth statutory declaration form; the Department's guidance for this is Form 1410i, "Completing a statutory declaration for a family violence claim."

So the combination people most often end up assembling is: two documents from two different professional sources, plus the statutory declaration.

Which categories can I draw the two documents from?

Each type of evidence must be made by a person acting in their professional capacity. For medical evidence, for example, that means a medical practitioner, registered nurse or midwife.

The categories are:

Medical evidence — medical report, hospital report, discharge summary, letter, statutory declaration
Police evidence — report, record of assault or family violence, risk assessment, witness statement, statutory declaration, or a witness statement made by someone other than the alleged victim to a police officer during a police investigation
Child welfare officer evidence — report, letter, statutory declaration
Family violence support service provider evidence — report, letter, risk assessment, statutory declaration
Social worker evidence — report, letter, statutory declaration
Psychologist evidence — report, letter, statutory declaration
Family consultant and family relationship counsellor evidence — report, letter, statutory declaration
Education professional evidence — report, letter, statutory declaration

Assume an applicant has seen a counsellor and attended a hospital once. A psychologist's letter plus a hospital discharge summary would come from two different categories and would satisfy the "two pieces" structure, subject to what each document says.

What does each type of document have to say?

The content rules differ by category, and a document that is otherwise convincing can still fall short if it omits a required element.

Medical evidence must identify the alleged victim and detail the injuries or treatment that may be consistent with family violence.

Police evidence must identify the alleged victim, identify the alleged perpetrator (or give information from which the identity can reasonably be inferred), and detail the incident(s) of family violence.

Child welfare officer evidence must detail fears for the dependent child's safety due to family violence within the household, and identify or allow reasonable inference of the alleged perpetrator.

Family violence support service provider, social worker and psychologist evidence must state that the alleged victim has made a claim of family violence, state in the author's professional opinion whether the claims are consistent with the alleged victim having been subject to family violence, and identify or allow reasonable inference of the alleged perpetrator.

Family consultant and family relationship counsellor evidence must state that the alleged victim has been treated or counselled by that professional, give the same professional opinion on consistency, and identify or allow reasonable inference of the alleged perpetrator.

Education professional evidence must state that they have made, or been made aware of, observations consistent with the alleged victim's claims, give details of those observations, and identify or allow reasonable inference of the alleged perpetrator.

Notice how often "or the identity can reasonably be inferred" appears. A document that describes the incidents and the household without naming the former sponsor is not automatically useless, but it has to contain enough detail for the reader to work out who the perpetrator was.

Why can't I just send two documents from the same service?

Because you can only give one document from each category.

The Department's own illustration is medical documents: a hospital report from a nurse and a statutory declaration from a medical practitioner cannot both be counted, because both sit in the medical category. The same logic applies anywhere else — two letters from the same counselling service, or a report and a letter from the same psychologist, are one category, not two.

This is the single most common structural reason a two-document submission turns out to be a one-document submission. When you are choosing which two items to request, choose across categories, not within one.

Can I submit more than the minimum?

Yes. You can give other evidence as long as the minimum evidentiary requirements are met, and the decision maker may consider your extra evidence as part of a whole assessment. Extra material supplements a complete submission; it does not repair an incomplete one.

What if I have nothing at all right now?

Start with the two categories that are realistically reachable for you, and ask for the document in the format the Department lists.

A useful way to sequence it:

Identify the two professional sources you have already had contact with.
Check they fall into two different categories.
Ask each for a report or letter that contains the required elements for its category.
Complete the Commonwealth statutory declaration under Form 1410i.
Check every document is in writing and in English.

Documents written by people who are not acting in a professional capacity do not fall into any of the categories above. The Department also notes that support is available regardless of your visa status, and that you have a right to a safe environment in Australia whether or not you are eligible for these provisions.

What happens after I send the evidence?

The Department determines whether the violence, or part of it, occurred during your relationship with your former sponsor, and whether your former sponsor was the alleged perpetrator. It may ask you for more information while it decides.

If it is not satisfied that you have experienced family violence, it will refer you to an independent expert. The independent expert will contact you to set up an interview and give the Department their opinion on whether they think you have experienced family violence. The Department must accept that opinion. If the independent expert determines that you have not experienced family violence, the Department will give you an opportunity to comment on that opinion.

If the claim is accepted, the Department may still ask for further information, which can include a health exam or character documents such as an Australian or overseas police certificate.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need a court order to make a family violence claim on a Partner visa?

No. A court document is one of two routes. The other is non-judicial evidence: either a joint undertaking made before the court, or a minimum of two pieces of evidence from different categories plus a Commonwealth statutory declaration.

Can I use two documents from the same doctor or the same counsellor?

No. You can only give one document from each category, so two medical documents or two documents from one counselling service count as one. The two pieces must come from two different categories.

Does the evidence have to be in English?

Yes. All evidence must be in writing, in English, and in the format and level of detail requested by the Department.

What if I cannot get the documents in time?

The Department states that it understands gathering this information can be difficult and that delays are sometimes outside your control, and that it will give you more time to submit documents if you need it.

Does my own statutory declaration count as one of the two pieces of evidence?

No. If you choose the two-piece route, you must complete a Commonwealth statutory declaration form in addition to the two pieces; guidance is given in Form 1410i. It accompanies the two professional documents rather than replacing one of them.

Does the evidence have to cover the whole relationship?

No. The evidence must show that at least part of the family violence happened while you were in a relationship with your former partner or spouse, and that this person was the alleged perpetrator.