Character Requirements on 190 Visas in 2026: Police Checks and Character Documents
How the subclass 190 character test works, when police certificates are triggered, and what false information can cost you.
Yes — every applicant for a Skilled Nominated visa (subclass 190) has to meet the character requirement, and for most people the evidence is one or more police certificates plus two personal particulars forms. According to the Department of Home Affairs' Skilled Nominated visa (subclass 190) page, as at the July 2026 version, the trigger is time-based rather than suspicion-based: you provide an Australian police certificate if you have spent a total of 12 months or more in Australia in the last 10 years since you turned 16, and an overseas police certificate from every country — including your home country — where you spent a total of 12 months or more in the last 10 years since you turned 16. Where applicants get into trouble is rarely the certificate itself; it is the paperwork around it, because the same page tells you to provide accurate information and points you to what can happen when you do not provide true information.
What "meeting the character requirement" actually involves
The subclass 190 is a points-tested, state-nominated visa, and character sits alongside health, English, skills assessment and the Australian values statement as a separate criterion you must satisfy. The Department's eligibility page states that you and family members aged 16 years and over who apply with you must meet the character requirement, and that family members who are not coming to Australia must also meet it.
The character requirement is a standalone criterion you must satisfy for this visa, and the Department publishes the documents you need to provide to show you meet it. In practice the assessment turns on your criminal and conduct history, and the Department collects that history through three channels: police certificates, the two personal particulars forms, and any further information it decides to seek. Nothing in the published guidance suggests you can opt out of the assessment because you have an invitation — an invitation means you can apply, not that you will be granted the visa.
When is an Australian police check required?
You need an Australian police certificate if you have spent a total of 12 months or more in Australia in the last 10 years, counted from when you turned 16. Two details catch people out:
- Only complete disclosure counts. The Department accepts only 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.
- It has a shelf life. For immigration purposes, Australian police certificates are valid for 12 months from the date of issue.
That 12-month window matters for timing. Once you are invited you have 60 calendar days to apply, and the Department states it cannot extend this time — so a certificate obtained too early may expire, and one applied for too late may not arrive in time.
What about overseas countries and military service?
The overseas rule mirrors the Australian one: a police certificate from every country, including your home country, where you spent a total of 12 months or more in the last 10 years since turning 16. Separate short trips to the same country can add up to the 12-month total, because the test is on cumulative time rather than on a single stay.
If you served in the armed forces of any country, you also provide military service records or discharge papers. This is a standalone requirement — it is not replaced by a police certificate from that country.
| If this applies to you | What you provide | Notes from the official page |
|---|---|---|
| Total of 12 months or more in Australia in the last 10 years since turning 16 | Australian Federal Police complete disclosure National Police Certificate | Standard disclosure and state/territory certificates are not accepted; valid for 12 months from issue |
| Total of 12 months or more in any other country in the last 10 years since turning 16 | Overseas police certificate from that country | Includes your home country; required per country, not in total |
| Service in the armed forces of any country | Military service records or discharge papers | Required in addition to police certificates |
| Applying for a subclass 190 | Form 80 and Form 1221 | Both form part of the character documents |
Which forms are part of the character package?
The official page lists two forms under character documents, and both must be completed and provided:
- Form 80 — Personal particulars for assessment including character assessment
- Form 1221 — Additional personal particulars information
These forms cover addresses, travel, employment and relationship history over a long period. Their purpose is to give the decision maker a continuous account you can be tested against. An inconsistency between a form, a police certificate and your EOI claims is exactly the kind of mismatch that invites closer scrutiny, because after you apply you must show you can meet the points score on your invitation as well as all other eligibility criteria.
Who else in your application has to pass?
Character is not assessed only for the main applicant. The Department requires identity and character documents for your partner, and states that family members aged 16 and over who apply with you must meet the character requirement. Family members who are not accompanying you to Australia still have to meet it.
Family can also be added after lodgement. If you use Form 1436 to add an additional applicant before a decision is made, those family members must meet the health and character requirements as well.
What happens if you give false or incomplete information?
This is the part with the longest shadow. The Department's own instruction on the subclass 190 page is to provide accurate information, and it directs applicants to its guidance on what may happen if you cannot prove your identity or do not provide true information.
Three consequences follow directly from the published rules:
- The visa can be refused, and the fee is gone. If the application is refused, the Department tells you why and whether you have a right to review. It does not refund the application charge on refusal.
- You may not get a second chance to fill the gap. The Department might ask for more information, but it states it is not obliged to do so and may make a decision on your application without requesting more documents. The burden of putting a complete, accurate case in front of the decision maker sits with you.
- Treat an omission as seriously as a wrong answer. The Department's instruction is to provide accurate information, and it directs applicants to its guidance on what may happen if you cannot prove your identity or do not provide true information — so leaving a country or a previous name off your forms is not a safe way to leave an answer open.
Because the Department also requires proof of change of name — marriage or divorce certificates, registry documents, or documents showing other names you have been known by — identity and character are assessed together rather than in isolation.
Assume, for example, an applicant who spent two separate six-month stretches in one country across a decade and lists neither, on the view that no single stay lasted a year. The 12-month test is cumulative, so that country should have appeared on Form 80 and a certificate should have been provided. The risk is not that the stay was unlawful; it is that the record now shows an incomplete disclosure.
This article is general information about how the published requirements work and is not advice on your own circumstances, nor an assessment of your chances; check the official requirements as currently published, or have your situation assessed by someone qualified to do so, before you rely on any of it.
Can you fix a mistake after you lodge?
Yes, and you should do it promptly. The Department instructs applicants to tell it as soon as possible if they made a mistake on their application, by completing Form 1023 — Notification of incorrect answers and attaching it to the application in ImmiAccount.
Volunteering a correction is treated differently from waiting to be found out. A correction that arrives before a decision gives the decision maker an accurate record to work from; a discrepancy discovered afterwards is assessed as part of whether the information you provided was true.
Does a character issue mean automatic refusal?
Not automatically. The requirement is that you satisfy the decision maker that you meet the character requirement, which means the assessment looks at the whole of your history and the evidence you provide, including any explanation and supporting material. What the official page makes clear is the mechanical side: you must provide the certificates, records and forms that the criteria call for, and inaccurate or incomplete information puts the application itself at risk regardless of the underlying issue.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need an AFP check if I have been in Australia for less than 12 months?
The trigger is a total of 12 months or more in Australia in the last 10 years since you turned 16, so shorter cumulative stays do not trigger it on that basis. Count the total across all stays, not the length of any single visit. The Form 80 and Form 1221 requirements still apply in any event.
Will a state police certificate be accepted instead of an AFP one?
No. The Department accepts only complete disclosure National Police Certificates issued by the Australian Federal Police, and states that it does not accept standard disclosure certificates or national police certificates issued by Australian state or territory police. Applying for the wrong type can cost you time you cannot get back, since the 60-day invitation period cannot be extended.
How long do police certificates remain valid for a 190 application?
Australian police certificates are valid for 12 months from the date of issue for immigration purposes. That is long enough to cover most application periods, but short enough that a certificate obtained well before your invitation may lapse before a decision is made.
Does my partner or child need to meet the character requirement too?
Family members aged 16 years and over who apply with you must meet the character requirement, and family members not accompanying you to Australia must also meet it. You are asked to provide identity documents and character documents for your partner as part of the application.
What if I realise after lodging that I forgot to declare a country?
Tell the Department as soon as possible using Form 1023 — Notification of incorrect answers, and attach it to your application in ImmiAccount. Correcting the record yourself is safer than leaving the omission in place, because the Department may decide the application without asking you for anything further.
Can my application be refused without being asked for more documents?
Yes. The Department might ask for more information, but it states it is not obliged to do so and may make a decision on your application without requesting more documents. If the visa is refused, the decision notice tells you why and whether you have a right to review, and the application charge is not refunded.