Health checks, police certificates and biometrics for subclass 887 in 2026
What subclass 887 applicants must organise for health exams, AFP police checks and biometrics — and when the Department asks.
Most people lodging a Skilled Regional visa (subclass 887) application do not need to redo their health examination. The Department of Home Affairs says on its Skilled Regional visa (subclass 887) official page that, because you already undertook a health examination for your eligible visa, in most circumstances you will not need to undertake another one. Police certificates work the other way around: they are documents you gather before you lodge. Biometrics sit in a third category — the Department may ask for them, and it tells you if it does. This reflects the July 2026 version of that official page.
The practical split is between what you prepare upfront and what you wait to be asked for.
| Requirement | Where it sits in the 887 process | What the official page says |
|---|---|---|
| Health examinations | After you apply | You and any family members applying with you must meet the health requirement. Because you had an examination for your eligible visa, in most circumstances you will not need another one. The Department will let you know if you do. |
| Police certificates | Before you apply | An Australian Federal Police complete-disclosure National Police Certificate if you have spent 12 months or more in Australia in the last 10 years since you turned 16, plus overseas certificates on the same test. Valid for 12 months from issue. |
| Biometrics | Only if requested | The Department might ask for fingerprints and a photo, and will let you know if you need to provide them. |
Do I need another health examination for subclass 887?
Usually no. The health requirement applies to you and to any family members who apply with you, but the official page states the baseline directly: as you undertook a health examination for your eligible visa, in most circumstances you will not need to undertake another one.
The eligible visa in this context is the provisional visa that leads to 887 — a subclass 489, 495, 496, 475 or 487 visa. The examination you did for that visa is the one the Department is referring to.
What the page does not publish is a list of triggers for a fresh examination. It places the decision with the Department: under "After you apply", the health exams section reads simply that the Department will let you know if you need health examinations. So the correct posture is not to book anything pre-emptively, and not to assume silence means a problem.
When would a family member still be asked for a health exam?
The "most circumstances" wording covers people whose examination results the Department already holds. It does not cover someone who never had one for the eligible visa.
The clearest documented example is a child born after you lodge. The official page allows you to add a newborn child after submission, and requires you to tell the Department as soon as possible. A child in that position has no earlier examination on file, so a request is a live possibility rather than a surprise.
Assume a household where the main applicant and partner already hold results from their subclass 489 stage: the default expectation is that no new examination is organised for them, while the outcome for anyone new to the application is decided by the Department and communicated to you.
Which police certificate does Australia accept, and how recent must it be?
Only one type, from one issuer. The Department 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.
You provide one if you have spent a total of 12 months or more in Australia in the last 10 years, counted from when you turned 16. The 10-year window and the 12-month total are cumulative, not continuous — short periods add up.
For immigration purposes, Australian police certificates are valid for 12 months from the date of issue. That date-of-issue rule, not your lodgement date, is what determines whether a certificate you already hold is still usable.
Do I need overseas police certificates as well?
Yes, on the same time test. The page requires 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.
If you served in the armed forces of any country, military service records or discharge papers are also listed as character documents.
Two forms complete the character picture: Form 80 – Personal particulars for character assessment, and Form 1221 – Additional personal particulars information. Both are part of the document-gathering stage, not the post-lodgement stage.
Who in the family has to meet the character requirement?
The character requirement applies to you and to family members aged 16 years and over who apply for the visa with you. Dependants over 18 are also listed as needing character documents, alongside identity and relationship evidence.
Non-accompanying family members are not exempt: the official page states that family members not accompanying you to Australia must also meet the requirement. A partner or child who is not included in the application still falls within the character assessment.
Will I have to give biometrics?
Only if asked. Biometrics appears in the "After you apply" section of the official page, not in the pre-lodgement document list: the Department might ask for biometrics — fingerprints and photo — and will let you know if you need to provide them.
There is no step in the published 887 process where you arrange biometrics yourself in advance. Treat it as a request-driven item, in the same category as health examinations rather than in the category of police certificates.
How do requests reach you, and what should you do while waiting?
Requests and document uploads run through ImmiAccount. The Department states it does not give updates on applications under assessment, and that you can check whether it needs more information from you in ImmiAccount.
One sentence in the official page deserves attention: if you did not attach all documents when you applied, attach them as soon as you can, because the Department is not obliged to ask for more information and may make a decision without doing so. That is why police certificates, Form 80 and Form 1221 belong in the lodgement package rather than in a "wait and see" pile.
The same logic does not apply to health examinations and biometrics, which the Department raises itself. Nothing in the published process requires you to guess at those.
This is general information about published requirements, not advice on your own circumstances; where a family's history is unusual — long periods overseas, a recent change in household composition, a health condition that has developed since the provisional visa stage — the current official page and, if needed, a registered migration agent or legal practitioner are the proper reference points.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to book a health examination before lodging my 887 application?
No. The Department of Home Affairs states that because you undertook a health examination for your eligible visa, in most circumstances you will not need another one, and that it will let you know if you do. Nothing in the published process puts health examinations in the pre-lodgement document list.
Does my partner or child need a separate health check?
The health requirement applies to you and any family members who apply with you, and those who were examined for the eligible visa are covered by the same "most circumstances" position. Anyone joining the application without a prior examination result, such as a child born after lodgement, is in a different position and the Department decides what is needed.
Why was my state police check rejected?
The Department only accepts complete-disclosure National Police Certificates issued by the Australian Federal Police. Standard disclosure certificates and certificates issued by Australian state or territory police are not accepted, so a state-issued document will not satisfy the requirement even where it covers the same period.
How long is an AFP police certificate valid for a visa application?
For immigration purposes, Australian police certificates are valid for 12 months from the date of issue. The 12 months runs from issue, so a certificate obtained well before you lodge may have expired by the time it is assessed.
I lived in another country for eight months ten years ago — do I need that country's certificate?
The overseas certificate test is a total of 12 months or more in the last 10 years since you turned 16, counted cumulatively across stays. A stay below 12 months does not meet the threshold, though periods in the same country add together rather than being assessed visit by visit.
Will my fingerprints definitely be collected for 887?
Not necessarily. Biometrics is discretionary: the Department might ask for fingerprints and a photo, and will let you know if you need to provide them. There is no published step requiring applicants to arrange biometrics before lodging.
Do family members who are not migrating with me need to meet these requirements?
For character, yes — the official page says family members not accompanying you to Australia must also meet the character requirement. Health is framed around you and family members who apply for the visa with you, so the two requirements are not scoped identically.