How to Lodge the Subclass 100 Stage in ImmiAccount in 2026 (Step by Step)

Updated 2026-10-12 · General information, not migration advice · Run by the Arrivau team

To lodge the permanent stage of your Partner visa yourself, log in to ImmiAccount, choose New application, choose Family, choose Stage 2 – Permanent Partner Visa Assessment, and attach your documents for assessment. That pathway is set out on the Australian Department of Home Affairs Partner (Migrant) visa (Subclass 100) official page, read as at October 2026, and the steps below follow it. Everything here is general information about how the online process works rather than advice about what your own case needs, so the department's published requirements stay the final reference for your circumstances.

Do you need to lodge the Subclass 100 stage at all?

Some applicants never reach this point. If the department granted you the permanent Partner visa (subclass 100) immediately after it granted your temporary Partner visa (subclass 309), there is nothing further to send and nothing further to do. Check which visa you currently hold through VEVO before you start.

If the permanent visa was not granted at the same time as your 309, this second stage is yours to progress. The applicant — the partner who was sponsored — is the person whose documents are assessed.

When are you allowed to submit your documents?

You become eligible for consideration of the permanent Partner visa two years after you lodged the combined application for the temporary and permanent Partner visas. Check the date you submitted that original application in ImmiAccount.

Do not submit your permanent-stage documents before the two years have passed. Submitting complete information once you are eligible can help your application move faster.

Assume, for illustration only, that an applicant lodged the combined 309/100 application in March 2024. That applicant's two-year point falls in March 2026, and anything uploaded before that date has been sent too early.

Which documents does the permanent stage ask for?

The department groups what it wants into identity, character, relationship and family-member evidence. Each group is assessed separately, so gaps in one group are not covered by strength in another.

Identity documents

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

Character documents

You may need a current Australian police certificate to meet the character requirements. You usually need to provide one at this stage if you did not attach one with your subclass 309 application, and the department may ask for a new one if your earlier certificate has expired.

For immigration purposes, a police certificate is valid for 12 months from its issue date. Only complete disclosure National Police Certificates issued by the Australian Federal Police are accepted; standard disclosure certificates and certificates issued by Australian state or territory police are not.

You also need an overseas police certificate from any country where you spent a total of 12 months or more since your subclass 309 visa was granted. Your home country counts, even if you have already left it.

Relationship evidence

You must show that you continue to be the spouse or de facto partner of the same person who sponsored you for the temporary Partner visa. The page describes this as two kinds of material you can supply: relationship documents and supporting evidence of your relationship.

Family members already holding a subclass 309 or 445 visa

For every family member who currently holds a subclass 309 or 445 visa, provide copies of their passport, documents showing any change to their situation, and police certificates for dependents aged 16 or older where applicable.

How should you prepare documents before uploading them?

Have every non-English document translated into English, and include both the original and the translation. Translators working in Australia must be accredited by the National Accreditation Authority for Translators and Interpreters (NAATI).

Translators outside Australia do not need to be accredited. On each translation they must show their full name, their address and telephone number, and their qualifications and experience in the language they are translating — in English.

Scan or photograph every document, English and non-English, in colour. Keep each scan clear enough to read, and save any multi-page document as one single file. You do not need to have documents certified.

How do you lodge it in ImmiAccount, step by step?

The department's how-to-apply instructions are short, and each line is one action:

Log in to ImmiAccount.
Select New application.
Select Family.
Select Stage 2 – Permanent Partner Visa Assessment.
Attach your documents.

On some screens this menu item appears with the spelling used on the official page, including its typographical error, so read the menu rather than skimming for a phrase.

Attach each document only once, even when you rely on it to show more than one thing. Label your documents clearly so a case officer can see what each file is meant to prove.

What is the attachment limit, and what happens if you reach it?

You can attach up to 100 documents for each person on the application. The limit cannot be increased.

If one applicant reaches their limit, attach further documents under another client on the same application. Planning which files go under which person is easier before you open the upload screen than after you hit the ceiling.

What changes must you report after you lodge?

Tell the department about changes to your contact details, address or passport details as they happen. Also report changes to your marital or de facto status, the birth of a child, any other change relevant to your application, and any request to withdraw.

If your relationship ends, you may need to complete the Notification of Relationship Cessation form in ImmiAccount, and separate information is published about relationship change. You might still be eligible for the permanent visa if your relationship ends or your partner dies, and information you provide is treated as confidential.

Can you add family members at this stage?

You can add a dependent child before the department decides your permanent visa application. The child can be in or outside Australia.

To be added, the child must hold a Dependent Child visa (subclass 445), be a member of the family unit, meet the health requirement, and meet the character requirement if they are 16 or older. Once the child holds the subclass 445 visa, complete Form 1002 – Application by a subclass 445 dependent child for a permanent partner visa and attach it in ImmiAccount.

What happens after your documents are in?

Track and manage the application through ImmiAccount. The department asks you not to contact it while your application sits within the current standard processing time, because no further progress updates can be given at that stage.

Published processing times describe how long recently decided applications took, and they do not guarantee that yours will be decided within that timeframe. Because Partner applications can take a long time, keep your documents and your relationship evidence updated through ImmiAccount while you wait.

The same applies if you did not attach everything at the start: add outstanding documents as soon as you can, rather than waiting to be asked.

How will you receive the decision?

You can be in or outside Australia when the permanent visa is decided, and you will be told the outcome in writing. A grant notice sets out your visa grant number, the date your visa starts, and your visa conditions — keep a copy of it.

A refusal notice explains why the visa was refused and whether you have a right to seek review of the decision. The application fee is not refunded if your application is refused.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I have to lodge anything if I already hold permanent residency?

No. If the department granted you the subclass 100 visa at the same time it granted your subclass 309, no further documents are required and there is nothing else to do. VEVO will show which visa you currently hold, so check it before starting a new application in ImmiAccount.

Can I submit my permanent-stage documents early?

No — documents should be submitted once two years have passed since you first applied for the temporary and permanent Partner visas. The two-year eligibility point is calculated from the combined application date, which you can check in ImmiAccount. The specific date is not a suggestion; the department's instruction is not to send them before that time.

How many documents can each person attach?

Each person on the application can have up to 100 documents attached. That limit cannot be increased under any circumstance described on the official page. If one applicant reaches it, remaining documents can be attached to another client on the same application instead.

Which Australian police certificate does the department accept?

Only complete disclosure National Police Certificates issued by the Australian Federal Police are accepted. Standard disclosure certificates, and national police certificates issued by state or territory police, are not accepted. For immigration purposes a certificate is valid for 12 months from its issue date, so an expired one may need to be replaced.

Do I need overseas police certificates as well?

Yes, if you spent a total of 12 months or more in another country since your subclass 309 visa was granted. This includes your home country, and the total is counted across the whole period since grant rather than per trip. Guidance on obtaining them is published through Australian offices outside Australia.

Do my documents need to be certified copies?

No. The department states that you do not need to have any documents certified. Colour scans or photographs are enough as long as they are clear enough to read, and every non-English document needs an English translation supplied alongside the original.

Can I still get the permanent visa if my relationship has ended?

Possibly. You may need to complete the Notification of Relationship Cessation form in ImmiAccount, and you might still be eligible for the grant of the permanent visa if your relationship ends or your partner dies. Specific provisions also exist for applicants experiencing domestic and family violence.

Will I get my application fee back if the visa is refused?

No. If your application is refused, the application fee is not refunded. The refusal notice must tell you why the visa was refused and whether you have a right to have the decision reviewed.