Do Subclass 100 Documents Need NAATI Translation or Certification in 2026?
No — Subclass 100 documents do not need to be certified, and certification does not replace translation. The Department of Home Affairs' Partner (Migrant) visa (Subclass 100) step-by-step page states, as of the October 2026 official page, that all documents must be translated into English, that translators in Australia must be accredited by the National Accreditation Authority for Translators and Interpreters (NAATI), that translators outside Australia do not have to be accredited but must include their details in English, and that "You do not need to have any documents certified."
This is general information about published requirements rather than personalised advice for your circumstances, so where your situation is unusual, treat the official page as the authority.
Do all Subclass 100 documents have to be translated?
Yes. The instruction on the official page is to have all documents translated into English, and to provide both the original and the translated documents in your application.
That covers the non-English material that typically makes up a permanent-stage submission: identity pages, police certificates issued overseas, household and financial records, and letters or statements written in another language. An English document still has to be scanned or photographed in colour — the translation requirement and the scanning requirement are separate.
Does the translator have to be NAATI accredited?
It depends on where the translator is, not on who they are.
Translators in Australia must be accredited by NAATI. There is no alternative listed on the official page for a translation produced inside Australia.
Translators outside Australia do not have to be accredited. Instead, each translation must carry the translator's details in English:
- full name
- address and telephone number
- qualifications and experience in the language they are translating
The practical consequence is that an overseas translation is not judged by a logo or a membership number, but by whether those three items appear on the document itself in English. A translation with no translator details is incomplete even if the wording is accurate.
What if the translator is bilingual but has no formal credentials?
The rule is written by location, so the outcome differs.
Assume an applicant's relative translates a household registration record while living in the applicant's home country. Under the published rule, that translation does not need accreditation, but it must show the relative's full name, address, telephone number, and their qualifications and experience in that language, in English.
Assume instead that the same relative lives in Australia and does the translation here. The same document now has to come from a NAATI-accredited translator, because the requirement attaches to translators in Australia.
Do you need to certify, notarise or stamp anything?
No. The official page says directly that you do not need to have any documents certified.
That applies to the English documents and the non-English documents alike. It also means a certified copy is not a fix for a missing translation: the translation requirement stands on its own, and so does the scanning requirement.
How should the scans and photos be prepared?
The formatting rules are short and specific:
- Scan or photograph all documents, English and non-English, in colour.
- The scans and photos must be clear enough to read.
- If a document is more than one page, save it all as one file.
A multi-page document saved as ten separate images is the most common way these instructions get broken, and it also consumes attachment slots.
When do these documents actually get uploaded?
Timing matters as much as format. You become eligible for consideration of the permanent Partner visa two years after you applied for the temporary and permanent Partner visas together, and the official page tells you to submit the permanent-stage documents once those two years have passed and not to attach them before that time.
You can check the date you submitted your application in ImmiAccount. If the permanent visa was granted immediately after your Subclass 309, you do not have to provide these documents at all.
What else affects the document set at this stage?
Three other published points shape what you upload.
First, police certificates have their own clock. Australian police certificates are valid for 12 months from the issue date, and only complete disclosure National Police Certificates issued by the Australian Federal Police are accepted — not standard disclosure certificates or state and territory police certificates. You also need an overseas police certificate from any country, including your home country, where you spent a total of 12 months or more since your Subclass 309 was granted.
Second, attachments are capped. You can attach up to 100 documents for each person on the application, the limit cannot be increased, and you should attach a document only once even if it supports more than one thing. Clearly labelling each document makes the set usable.
Third, partner applications can take a long time, and the official page recommends updating your documents and relationship evidence regularly through ImmiAccount while you wait.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a translation if only part of the document is in another language?
The published instruction is to have all documents translated into English, without a partial-document exception. Providing the original alongside the translation is required in any case, so a fully translated version attached with the original is the safer reading of the rule.
Does NAATI accreditation have to be at a particular level?
The Subclass 100 page states only that translators in Australia must be accredited by NAATI and does not set out a specific credential level for this purpose. If the distinction matters to you, check the official page and NAATI's own published information.
Can my partner or a family member translate my documents?
The rule turns on the translator's location. A translator outside Australia need not be accredited but must include their full name, address, telephone number, and qualifications and experience in that language, in English. Inside Australia, the translation must come from a NAATI-accredited translator.
Are certified copies needed if I upload a scanned original?
No. The official page says you do not need to have any documents certified. What it requires instead is a colour scan or photograph that is clear enough to read, with multi-page documents saved as one file.
Do I send the permanent-stage documents straight after my Subclass 309 is granted?
Only if you were not already granted the Subclass 100 at the same time, and only once two years have passed since you first applied. The official page says not to attach them before that time.
Does a refused application get the fee back?
No. The official page states that the application fee will not be refunded if the application is refused, and that a refusal notice will explain why and whether you have a right to review the decision.