Partner Visa Evidence Checklist Australia (2026)

What identity documents do I need for a partner visa?

Passports, national identity cards, birth certificates and marriage certificates can provide identity evidence. The relevant visa requirements and your ImmiAccount checklist determine which documents to upload. To prepare for your appointment, gather:

• Both partners’ existing passports, national identity cards and birth certificates.
• Your marriage certificate and any relationship registration documents.
• Certificates and court documents relating to former names or previous relationships.
• Your ImmiAccount checklist and any requests for further information.

NS Legal identifies differences in names, dates of birth and relationship history across your documents and prepares accurate explanations with the supporting attachments.

What are the four types of relationship evidence?

Home Affairs must consider the circumstances of your relationship as a whole, including four areas. Organise your records to explain:

• How you own assets, share liabilities, pool funds and meet everyday household expenses.
• Your living arrangements, division of housework and any shared responsibility for children.
• How friends and acquaintances understand your relationship and the social activities you undertake together.
• How long your relationship and shared household have lasted, the emotional support you give each other and your long-term plans.

Anyone completing Form 888 must be at least 18 and know both partners and the history of their relationship. Every person completing it must provide evidence of their current name and age, together with evidence of Australian citizenship or permanent residency where applicable.

Pooling funds is one consideration within an assessment of all the circumstances. NS Legal sorts your existing records into the four areas and identifies the events or documents you need to explain or add.

What should a partner visa relationship statement include?

Prepare a relationship history that connects your timeline with your shared household records. For your appointment, note when you met, moved in together, became engaged or married. Include time spent apart, significant events and future plans, and identify the documents you already hold for each event.

De facto partners usually need to establish that their de facto relationship existed for at least the 12 months immediately before applying. A legally recognised relationship registration, compelling and compassionate circumstances, or specified circumstances involving permanent humanitarian visas can provide exceptions to that duration requirement. NS Legal can help you write a statement consistent with your documents and assess whether registration or another exception applies.

How do I translate and upload documents?

Every document not in English must be translated, and you submit both the original-language document and the translation. Translators in Australia must be NAATI-accredited. For translations prepared overseas, follow the document preparation requirements for your visa subclass.

Keep your own copies before uploading. Home Affairs says you cannot retrieve supporting documents from ImmiAccount after uploading them, or attach further documents to a finalised application. NS Legal can arrange translations and organise and label your uploads by evidence type.

Do I need to keep updating evidence after lodging?

You can attach further information through ImmiAccount while your application is being processed. You must notify Home Affairs of relationship or other changes that affect an answer in your application. Keep saving records of your shared life and tell your lawyer about new documents and changes.

Home Affairs may request police certificates. Health assessment results are valid for 12 months from completion, and you may need new examinations if the results expire before a decision. If you hold a temporary Partner visa, subclass 820 or 309, and two years have passed since your original application, you can generally submit permanent-stage assessment information through ImmiAccount. NS Legal plans your updates and responses and resolves differences between your earlier statements and new material.

What happens if partner visa documents are false or altered?

You must provide genuine, verifiable and unaltered documents and information, including photographs and videos. Do not use editing tools or artificial intelligence to falsify evidence or create bogus material for your visa application.

Bogus documents or false and misleading information may lead to refusal, visa cancellation, restrictions on future applications and possible legal action. Section 234 of the Migration Act 1958 covers conduct including presenting false or forged documents to immigration officers in visa-related matters, with a maximum penalty of 10 years’ imprisonment or 1,000 penalty units, or both. Section 137.1 of the Criminal Code covers knowingly giving information that is false or misleading in a material particular to a Commonwealth entity, with a maximum penalty of 12 months’ imprisonment; liability depends on the statutory elements and exceptions. The related visa criterion is PIC 4020. NS Legal reviews the source of your material and helps you correct inconsistencies or errors accurately.

Compiled from official sources; updated 30 October 2026.