Do I need a lawyer or a migration agent?

Many visa applications are lodged directly. A registered migration agent or immigration lawyer helps with complex or refused matters.

What is a Section 48 bar?

It limits the visas you can apply for while unlawfully in Australia after a refusal or cancellation. A professional can map your options.

Can I appeal a refused visa?

Often yes — the Administrative Appeals Tribunal reviews many decisions, but strict time limits apply.

Character and police certificate problems in an 887 application: AFP checks and Form 80 (2026)

What the subclass 887 character requirement asks for, which police certificates count, and what follows if it is not met.

For a Skilled Regional visa (subclass 887), you need 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 it has to be a complete disclosure National Police Certificate from the Australian Federal Police — not a standard disclosure certificate and not one issued by a state or territory police force. You also need an overseas police certificate from every country, including your home country, where you have spent a total of 12 months or more in that same 10-year window, plus Form 80 and Form 1221. If you or a family member covered by the requirement does not meet it, or if information in the application is untrue, the application can be refused and the application charge is not refunded. This reflects the Department of Home Affairs' official Skilled Regional visa (Subclass 887) page as at the July 2026 version.

What does the character requirement cover, and who has to meet it?

The requirement is not limited to the main applicant. The Department's page states that you and family members aged 16 years and over who apply for the visa with you must meet the character requirement, and that family members who are not accompanying you to Australia must also meet it.

That second point catches people out. A relative who has no intention of travelling can still be part of the assessment, so their record is relevant to your application.

Character documents are also listed separately for partners and for dependants over 18, alongside identity and relationship evidence. In practice, expect each person in the application who is old enough to be assessed to need their own police certificates and their own declarations.

When does Australia require a police certificate from you?

The trigger is cumulative time, not continuous residence: 12 months or more in Australia in the last 10 years, counted from when you turned 16.

Because the test is a total, several shorter stays can add up to the threshold. If you came and went over a number of years on earlier visas, add the periods together before deciding you do not need one.

Why does the type of AFP certificate matter?

The Department accepts only complete disclosure National Police Certificates issued by the Australian Federal Police. Standard disclosure certificates are not accepted, and neither are national police certificates issued by Australian state or territory police.

This is a document-validity problem rather than a character problem: a certificate that looks perfectly legitimate can still be the wrong document. For immigration purposes, Australian police certificates are valid for 12 months from the date of issue, so the issue date matters when you are timing your lodgement.

Which overseas countries need a police certificate?

Every country where you spent a total of 12 months or more in the last 10 years since turning 16 — including your home country.

Again, the 12 months is a cumulative total across that country, not one unbroken stay. You also need to provide military service records or discharge papers if you served in the armed forces of any country.

Document	When it is required	Source or type accepted
Australian police certificate	12 months or more total in Australia in the last 10 years since turning 16	Complete disclosure National Police Certificate from the Australian Federal Police only
Overseas police certificate	12 months or more total in a country in the last 10 years since turning 16	From every such country, including your home country
Military service records	Service in the armed forces of any country	Service records or discharge papers

What are Form 80 and Form 1221 for?

Form 80 is the Department's "Personal particulars for character assessment" form and Form 1221 is the "Additional personal particulars information" form. Both are listed in the character documents for this visa.

Their presence in that list is the clearest indication of how far the disclosure obligation reaches. The assessment does not run only off a police certificate; it also runs off what you declare about yourself. Every question on these forms is answered on the basis that the answer will be relied on, so the safe approach is to complete them in full and check the answers before the application goes in.

What happens if the character requirement is not met?

The Department's page sets out the consequences in plain terms. If the visa is refused, you are told why and whether you have a right to a review of the decision, and the application charge is not refunded.

Two things make a refusal more likely than applicants expect. First, your immigration history is considered, so a visa that was cancelled or an application that was refused earlier can affect eligibility. Second, the Department may ask for more information but is not obliged to, and it can decide the application without asking for further documents — so a gap you were hoping to be reminded about may simply become the reason for refusal.

What if something is untrue or incomplete?

The Department requires accurate information, both before you apply and when you apply. If you discover a mistake after lodging, the stated mechanism is Form 1023 Notification of incorrect answers, attached in ImmiAccount.

False or missing information is treated as a separate and more serious problem than an incomplete document. The Migration Regulations 1994 set out the public interest criteria that apply to this visa, including PIC 4020, which concerns bogus documents and false or misleading information. Those criteria are amended from time to time, so the current official text of the regulations and the Department's character requirement page are what apply at the time of decision.

This article explains published requirements in general terms. It is not advice about your own circumstances and does not predict an outcome; a matter that turns on your personal record turns on the official criteria applied by the decision-maker.

What order should you do the paperwork in?

List every country where you have spent a total of 12 months or more in the last 10 years since turning 16.
Count your Australian time over the last 10 years in the same way.
Apply for the AFP complete disclosure National Police Certificate.
Start the overseas police certificates early, because they come from authorities in other countries.
Gather military service records or discharge papers if you served.
Download Form 80 and Form 1221.
Complete every question on both forms.
Check the answers against your passport, employment and address history.
Upload everything in ImmiAccount.
Correct any error later with Form 1023.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need an AFP certificate if my time in Australia was split across several visits?

Yes, if the total comes to 12 months or more in the last 10 years since you turned 16. The test counts accumulated time, not a single continuous stay, so several shorter periods can add up to the threshold.

Can I use a police check from my state or territory police?

No. The Department accepts only complete disclosure National Police Certificates issued by the Australian Federal Police, and it does not accept standard disclosure certificates or certificates issued by state or territory police.

How long does the Australian police certificate stay valid?

Australian police certificates are valid for 12 months from the date of issue for immigration purposes. The 12 months runs from the issue date, so a certificate obtained early in the process may be close to expiry by the time you are ready.

Does my partner or adult child need these documents too?

The Department's document lists require character documents for partners and for dependants over 18, and the character requirement covers family members aged 16 and over who apply with you. Assume each person being assessed needs their own certificates and declarations unless the official checklist for your case says otherwise.

Does a family member who is not coming to Australia matter?

Yes. The Department's page states that family members not accompanying you to Australia must also meet the character requirement. Their position is therefore part of the assessment even though they are not travelling.

Will the Department tell me if something is missing?

It might, but it does not have to. The Department may ask for more information and may also make a decision on the application without requesting further documents, so lodging a complete set of character documents matters more than waiting to be asked.