Health and character checks for the 114 visa in 2026: what to expect
How health exams, police certificates and biometrics work for the subclass 114 visa, who needs them, and the order they happen in.
For the Aged Dependent Relative visa (subclass 114), you do not book health examinations or police certificates before you apply. According to the Australian Department of Home Affairs' official Aged Dependent Relative visa (subclass 114) page, as at August 2026, the Department tells you after you apply if health examinations are needed, and it asks you not to arrange police certificates until it requests them. Both requirements cover you and any family members who apply with you, and the Department can extend them further than that. This is general information about how the published rules work rather than an assessment of any individual case, so the criteria and their current wording are worth confirming against the Department's official pages or with a qualified professional.
Who has to meet the health and character requirements?
The eligibility page states the health requirement and the character requirement as two separate criteria you must meet. You and any family members who apply for the visa with you must meet both. The character requirement also covers family members listed as dependants: the document checklist asks for character documents for every dependant aged 18 or over who is applying with you, and for dependants under 18 where they are applicable.
The Department can go beyond the people on the application. It says it might also ask other family members to meet the health requirement, and it might ask non-migrating family members to meet the character requirement. In practice this means a relative who has no intention of moving to Australia can still be drawn into the assessment.
| Person | Health | Character |
|---|---|---|
| Main applicant | Must meet; exams arranged when the Department asks | Must meet; police certificates only when the Department asks |
| Family members applying with you | Must meet | Must meet |
| Family members not migrating | The Department might ask | The Department might ask |
| Family members added after you apply | Must show they meet it | Must show they meet it |
Adding someone later is possible before a decision is made, using Form 1436 (Adding an additional applicant after lodgement). A family member added this way must be in Australia at the time they are added, and must show they meet both the health and character requirements.
What order do the checks happen in?
The subclass 114 application is a paper application, made outside Australia on Form 47OF and sent to the Parent, Child and Other Family Processing Centre in Perth, with the first instalment paid before submission. Health and character checks then sit inside a sequence the Department controls:
- You lodge, and you receive an acknowledgement that the application and documents have arrived.
- If your application was made outside Australia on or after 25 June 2020, you can import it into ImmiAccount, which is where documents are uploaded and messages are viewed.
- The Department tells you if health examinations are needed.
- The Department asks for police certificates when it needs them — not before.
- It may ask for biometrics.
- It asks for the assurance of support when it needs it.
- Once all other requirements are met, it sends an invoice for the second instalment.
- It tells you its decision in writing; you must be outside Australia when the decision is made.
Two things follow from this sequence. Health and character are resolved before the second instalment falls due, because that invoice is only sent after the other requirements are met. And silence is normal: the page states the Department cannot provide progress updates within normal processing times, and will contact you if it needs anything further.
When do I book the health examination?
Only after the Department tells you to. The "after you apply" section of the official page is explicit: the Department will let you know if you need health examinations. There is no step in the pre-application checklist that asks you to arrange them, which is the clearest signal that booking early does not speed anything up.
Where a health examination is required, the relevant criterion sits in the Migration Regulations 1994 as public interest criterion 4005. Criteria numbers, their current wording and how any individual condition is assessed should be confirmed against the official legislation and the Department's health requirement page, as these are the sources that govern the assessment.
When should I arrange police certificates?
Not until the Department asks. The instruction on the subclass 114 page appears under character documents and is worded as a direction: do not arrange for police certificates until asked. The practical reason is timing — a certificate obtained early may no longer be current by the time the decision is made, so the Department asks for it at the point it is actually assessed. Budget for the delay instead of trying to pre-empt it.
The character-related criteria also include, under the Migration Regulations 1994, criterion 4001 (character), and the police certificate criteria 4010 and 4019, the latter applying to applicants who were 18 or over at the time of application. As with the health criterion, confirm the current wording against the official sources.
Will I be asked for biometrics?
Possibly. The Department says it might ask for biometrics — fingerprints and a photo — and that it will let you know if you need to provide them. This is a separate step from the health examination and from police certificates, and it is also triggered by the Department rather than by you. In the Regulations it corresponds to criteria 4009 and 4021.
Do family members who are not migrating also need checks?
They can. The eligibility page warns that the Department might ask non-migrating family members to meet the character requirement, and might ask other family members to meet the health requirement. That is the rule most often missed, because the people affected are not part of the move.
Under the Migration Regulations 1994, clause 114.226(2) provides that a family member who is not applying for the visa must meet criteria 4001 to 4004, and criterion 4005 unless the Minister considers it unreasonable to require them to be assessed. Whether that provision applies in its current form, and how the discretion is exercised, is a matter for the official legislation and the Department's current policy guidance.
What happens if a health or character issue is identified?
The requirements are stated as conditions of eligibility, so an unresolved issue stops the visa from being granted. Beyond that, the published subclass 114 page does not set out exemption arrangements, and any question about how a particular condition or history is assessed needs to be checked against the Department's health and character pages.
What the page does set out is the notification and outcome process. If the Department needs more information, it will ask. If your circumstances change after you apply, you are expected to tell the Department. And if the application is refused, you are told in writing why, and whether you have a right to a review of the decision; the application fee is not refunded.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to book my health examination before lodging the 114 application?
No. The Department of Home Affairs states it will let you know if health examinations are needed, and that happens after you apply. Booking an examination before you are asked does not form part of the published process.
Why does the Department say not to arrange police certificates until asked?
Because it requests them at the point they are assessed. A certificate obtained months earlier may no longer be current when the decision is made, so the official direction is to wait for the request rather than arrange one in advance.
Do my family members need health and character checks too?
Yes, if they apply with you — both requirements cover you and any family members on the application. Character documents are specifically listed for dependants aged 18 or over, and for dependants under 18 where applicable.
Does a relative who is staying behind need a police certificate?
They can be asked. The eligibility page says the Department might ask non-migrating family members to meet the character requirement, and might ask other family members to meet the health requirement, even though those relatives are not migrating.
Will I be asked for biometrics as well?
It is possible. The Department says it might ask for biometrics — fingerprints and a photo — and will tell you if you need to provide them. It is a separate request from the health examination and the police certificate.
What if I add a family member after I have applied?
They must be in Australia at the time they are added, and they must show they meet both the health and character requirements. The addition is made using Form 1436 before a decision is reached.
When does the second visa instalment get paid?
The Department sends the invoice for the second instalment after you have met all other requirements for the visa, which includes health and character. It states that the visa cannot be granted if the instalment is not paid.