Health, Debts and Best Interests of the Child: Extra Conditions for Partner Visa 100 in 2026

Updated 2026-10-15 · General information, not migration advice · Run by the Arrivau team

You do not re-book medical examinations for the Partner (Migrant) visa (subclass 100) on your own initiative. According to the Australian Department of Home Affairs official page Partner (Migrant) visa (Subclass 100), if you had health examinations for your subclass 309 visa, the Department will let you know if you need to undertake them again or if more health checks are needed; this reflects the page as at October 2026. That page also sets two further conditions that sit alongside the relationship requirements — having no debts to the Australian Government, and the best interests of any applicant under 18. What follows is general information drawn from that page, not personalised advice for your circumstances, so treat the official page and any qualified professional you consult as the authority on your own case.

Do I need a new health examination after my 309 medicals?

Only if the Department tells you to. The eligibility page states the health requirement in continuing terms: you and any members of the family unit, including dependent children who apply for the visa with you, must continue to meet the health requirement. The subclass 309 examinations you already did do not automatically carry over, but they also do not automatically expire on a date you can calculate yourself.

The mechanism is notification, not self-service. Home Affairs says it will let you know if you need to undertake the examinations again or if more health checks are needed. Until such a request arrives, there is no step for you to take on the health ground beyond responding to one.

Who else has to meet the health requirement?

More people than the main applicant. The requirement covers you and any members of the family unit, including dependent children who apply for the visa with you. It may also reach family members who do not come with you to Australia — the page says such family members might also need to meet the health requirement.

That trailing group is the one most applicants overlook. A person can stay behind, never enter Australia, and still be part of the health assessment for your permanent visa. Health related risks to the Australian community, including polio, are covered in the Department's separate Threats to public health material under the health requirement section.

What counts as a debt to the Australian Government?

The condition is stated broadly. If you or any family members owe the Australian Government money, you or they must pay it back, or arrange to pay it back. There are two ways to satisfy it — repayment, or an arrangement to repay — and the page does not rank one above the other.

The obligation is not limited to the people travelling. The page adds that this may include family members who do not come with you to Australia. So the same non-migrating relatives who can be pulled into the health requirement can also be pulled into the debt requirement.

How does the best interests of the child condition work?

It is a ground on which the visa can be withheld. Home Affairs states that it might not grant this visa if granting it is not in the best interests of an applicant under 18. The assessment attaches to the child applicant, not to the sponsoring partner's circumstances as such.

Suppose an applicant under 18 is included in the subclass 100 application. The decision-maker can decline to grant the visa where doing so would not serve that child's best interests — this sits as a separate test from health, debts and the relationship requirements, and passing the other tests does not settle it.

What else has to remain true before the 100 can be granted?

The basics come first. You must hold either a Partner (Provisional) visa (subclass 309) or a Dependent Child (subclass 445) visa. Two years must have passed since you applied for the subclass 309 and 100 visas before you can be assessed for the permanent subclass 100 — the date you submitted the application can be checked in ImmiAccount.

Two exceptions shorten that waiting period. The Department may grant the permanent visa in less than two years if you were in a long-term partner relationship with your sponsor when you applied for the 309 and 100, or if your sponsor is or was the holder of a permanent humanitarian visa and, before that permanent visa was granted, was in a married or de facto relationship with you that you had informed the Department about in time.

The relationship itself must also still hold. You must continue to be the spouse or de facto partner of the same person who sponsored you for the temporary Partner visa. You might still be eligible if the relationship ends or your partner dies before the permanent visa is granted, and if you are experiencing domestic and family violence, the family violence provisions may allow the permanent visa to be granted. Health, debts and the best interests of the child are the additional conditions layered on top of all of this, not alternatives to it.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to book another medical exam for subclass 100?

No, not unless the Department asks you to. Home Affairs states that if you had health examinations for your subclass 309 visa, it will let you know if you need to undertake them again or if more health checks are needed.

Are health checks required for family members who are not migrating?

They might be. The eligibility page says family members who do not come with you to Australia might also need to meet the health requirement, alongside you and any members of the family unit who apply with you.

What happens if I still owe money to the Australian Government?

You or the family member who owes the money must pay it back or arrange to pay it back. The condition applies to you and to any family members, and may include family members who do not come with you to Australia.

Does the debt have to be repaid in full first?

The page allows either outcome. It requires that the money be paid back or that repayment be arranged, so an arrangement to repay is stated as an alternative to full repayment.

Can subclass 100 be refused over a child's interests?

Yes. Home Affairs states it might not grant this visa if it is not in the best interests of an applicant under 18. This is a separate condition from the health and debt requirements.

Am I guaranteed the 100 visa once two years have passed?

No. Two years having passed since you applied for the 309 and 100 makes you eligible to be assessed, not entitled to a grant. You must also continue to meet the relationship requirements and the health, debt and best interests conditions described on the Department's page.