Do You Need a New Police Certificate for Partner Visa 100 in 2026?
If you already supplied police certificates for your temporary Partner visa (subclass 309), you are not automatically required to get new ones for the permanent Partner (Migrant) visa (subclass 100). You may be asked for a fresh Australian certificate if the one you gave has expired, and you will need overseas certificates for any country where you have spent a total of 12 months or more since your 309 was granted. This follows the Department of Home Affairs' official Partner (Migrant) visa (subclass 100) step-by-step page, as of the October 2026 official page.
Who has to provide documents at the 100 stage at all?
If the department granted you the permanent subclass 100 immediately after your subclass 309, you do not have to provide these documents or do anything else. If it did not, you need to provide further documents for the permanent stage.
You become eligible for consideration of the permanent visa two years after you lodged the combined temporary and permanent Partner visa application. Once two years have passed since you first applied, you can submit your documents for the permanent stage — and you should not send them before that time. Your application date can be checked in ImmiAccount.
When does the department ask for a new Australian police certificate?
You usually need a current Australian police certificate for the permanent stage if you did not attach one with your subclass 309 application. The department may also ask you for a new Australian police certificate if your previous certificate has expired.
For immigration purposes, police certificates are valid for 12 months from the issue date — not from the date you uploaded them, and not from the date the department looks at your file. Partner applications can have long processing times, which is why the official page advises updating your documents and relationship evidence regularly through ImmiAccount.
Suppose an applicant lodged the combined 309/100 application with an AFP certificate issued in March, and the department only reaches the permanent stage assessment more than 12 months later. That certificate has expired on its own terms, and a new one would be requested.
Why is a standard disclosure or state police check not accepted?
The department only accepts complete disclosure National Police Certificates issued by the Australian Federal Police. It does not accept standard disclosure certificates, and it does not accept national police certificates issued by Australian state or territory police.
This is a common reason a document comes back as unusable: the check looks valid and covers Australia, but the disclosure level or the issuing body is wrong. The official page directs applicants to the Australian Federal Police's National Police Checks service for the Australian certificate.
Do you need overseas police certificates, and how is the 12 months counted?
Yes. You also need to provide an overseas police certificate from any country, including your home country, where you spent a total of 12 months or more since the grant of your 309 visa.
Two details matter here. The count starts from when your 309 was granted, not from when you applied and not from when you left that country. And the threshold is a cumulative total of 12 months, so several shorter stays in the same country can add up to the requirement. The official page points to the department's offices outside Australia for how to obtain an overseas police certificate.
Assume an applicant returned to their home country for two months each year across three separate trips after the 309 grant. Those stays total six months, so no certificate from that country is required on the 12-month rule — but if a fourth trip pushed the total past 12 months, it would be.
What about family members on your application?
For every family member who currently holds a subclass 309 or 445 visa, you provide copies of their passport, documents that show changes to their situation, and police certificates where applicable for dependents aged 16 years or older.
A dependent child added before the permanent visa decision must also meet the character requirement if they are 16 or older.
How should the documents be prepared?
Have all documents translated into English, and provide both the original and the translated document. Translators in Australia must be accredited by the National Accreditation Authority for Translators and Interpreters; translators outside Australia do not have to be accredited, but must include their full name, address and telephone number, and their qualifications and experience in the language they are translating, in English.
Scan or photograph all documents in colour, clearly enough to read, saving multi-page documents as one file. You do not need to have any documents certified. Each document only needs to be attached once, even if you are using it to show more than one thing, and there is a limit of 100 attached documents per person on the application — a limit that cannot be increased.
This article is general information about how the published rules work, not advice on your individual situation, and the way it applies to your travel history and family members should be checked against the current official wording or with a qualified professional before you rely on it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a new police check for the subclass 100 partner visa if I gave one for my 309?
Not automatically. You usually need a current Australian police certificate for the permanent stage only if you did not attach one with your subclass 309 application, and the department may ask for a new one if your previous certificate has expired. Police certificates are valid for 12 months from the issue date.
How long is an Australian police certificate valid for immigration purposes?
It is valid for 12 months from the date of issue. Because Partner visa processing can take a long time, a certificate that was current when you uploaded it may have expired by the time the permanent stage is assessed, which is when a new one is requested.
Can I use a state police check instead of an AFP certificate?
No. The department only accepts complete disclosure National Police Certificates issued by the Australian Federal Police. Standard disclosure certificates and national police certificates issued by Australian state or territory police are not accepted.
How is the 12 months counted for overseas police certificates?
You need an overseas police certificate from any country, including your home country, where you spent a total of 12 months or more since the grant of your 309 visa. The 12 months is a cumulative total from the 309 grant date, not a single continuous stay.
Does my dependent child need a police certificate for the 100 stage?
Police certificates are required for dependents aged 16 years or older where applicable. For every family member holding a subclass 309 or 445 visa you also provide passport copies and documents showing changes to their situation.
When can I submit my documents for the permanent stage?
You are eligible for consideration of the permanent Partner visa two years after you applied for the temporary and permanent Partner visas. Once two years have passed since you first applied, you can submit your documents through ImmiAccount, and you should not send them before this time.