From proposal to grant: the 2026 Subclass 202 application sequence

How the 2026 Subclass 202 sequence runs: proposal and TRN, the 60-day lodgement window, assessment and grant.

Published: 10 July 2026 Reading time 12 min

The Global Special Humanitarian visa (Subclass 202) runs in a fixed order in 2026: a proposer in Australia lodges a proposal, you receive a transaction reference number (TRN), you lodge your own online application, the Department of Home Affairs assesses it, and only then do you receive a written decision and travel. According to the Australian Department of Home Affairs page for the Global Special Humanitarian visa (Subclass 202), the application step is bound to the proposal by a 60-day window, and a lapse cannot be repaired by reusing the old TRN. What follows is that sequence set out in the order you will meet it. It is general information about how the process is published, not personalised advice on your own circumstances, and where your situation turns on evidence, the official page as most recently published should govern.

How does the 2026 Subclass 202 sequence actually run?

At its simplest, the sequence has five gates, and each one is a precondition for the next.

Stage	Who acts	What the stage produces
Proposal	The proposer, in ImmiAccount	A TRN handed to you
Application	You, online, within 60 days of the proposal	A lodged application and documents
Assessment	The Department	Requests for health exams, biometrics, information or interview
Decision	The Department, while you are outside Australia	Written grant or refusal
Entry	You	Travel by the date on your visa

Two structural features shape everything else: you must be outside Australia when the decision is made, and you must not arrange travel to Australia until the Department has told you in writing that the visa has been granted. The entry date itself then comes from the grant.

Who can propose you, and what must the proposal cover?

You must be proposed for this visa by a person or organisation in Australia. Under the official criteria, your proposer must be one of an Australian citizen, an Australian permanent resident, an eligible New Zealand citizen, or an organisation in Australia. Where you are applying as an immediate family member of a person who was granted this visa, that person must be your proposer.

The eligibility side is narrow. Either you are living outside Australia and outside your country of origin, are subject to substantial discrimination in your home country, and that discrimination would amount to a gross violation of your human rights; or you are living outside Australia and are a member of the immediate family of a person granted this visa in the last five years. You, and any family members who apply for the visa with you, must also meet the health and character requirements — family members who do not apply with you might also have to meet them, and the health requirement might be waived if you have compassionate and compelling circumstances — you must sign or accept the Australian Values Statement if you are 18 or over, and you must have repaid, or have a formal arrangement to repay, any debt to the Australian Government.

The Department frames the proposal route as the normal path, with one exception.

How is the proposal lodged, and when does the TRN matter?

Your proposer lodges the proposal in ImmiAccount and passes the resulting TRN to you. The TRN is the link between the two halves of the sequence, which is why the 60-day rule bites.

Route	How it starts	What you lodge with
Standard proposer	Proposal in ImmiAccount	The TRN the proposer gives you
Community Support Program (CSP)	Form 842 Application for an Offshore Humanitarian Visa plus a proposal form specific to the Approved Proposing Organisation (APO)	Whatever the APO sets out for submitting application forms under CSP

For the CSP route, your APO explains the full submission process, so the practical sequence there is defined by the APO rather than by the standard ImmiAccount proposal.

What are the actual steps to lodge the application?

Once you hold the TRN, the official sequence is short and mechanical:

Log in to ImmiAccount, creating an account if you do not already have one.
Select 'New application'.
Select 'Refugee & Humanitarian'.
Select 'Offshore Humanitarian Visa (200, 201, 202, 203, 204)'.
Complete the application.
Submit the application.

You must submit within 60 days of the proposal. If you have not submitted within that period, the proposal expires after 60 days, and — this is the part worth recording in writing before you start — the proposer must submit a new proposal and you must use the new TRN for the application.

What happens if the 60-day window has already lapsed?

The remedy is a fresh proposal, not an extension. Per the official page, an expired proposal requires the proposer to submit a new proposal, and the application then takes its TRN from that new proposal. Nothing in the published sequence allows you to lodge against the lapsed one.

Consider the common shape of the problem: suppose an applicant receives a TRN, spends several months gathering identity papers and a statement about why they left their home country, and then tries to lodge. Because the linkage is to the proposal rather than to the applicant, the late application cannot key into expired reference data. The safe administrative habit is to treat the date the TRN was issued as a deadline, and to complete documents against that date rather than after it.

What documents does the application expect from you?

The official page distinguishes the main applicant from partners and dependants, and expects documents for family members even where they are not joining you in Australia.

Identity: the pages of your current passport showing photo, personal details and issue and expiry dates; also a national identity card if you have one, and proof of change of name where relevant. If you cannot provide these, provide a statement explaining why you have no travel or identity documents.
Humanitarian circumstances: proof of registration with any international organisation dealing with refugees, such as the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), if you have registered with one, and a detailed statement in English about why you left your home country.
Visas or residence permits: certified copies of any you hold, and certified copies of marriage certificates or relationship registrations for you and anyone included in the application, even if they are not joining you in Australia.
Photograph: one scanned photograph per applicant for online applications, showing the whole face against a plain background.
Character: military service records or discharge papers if you served in the armed forces of any country.

For a partner, provide identity documents, character documents, documents about other relationships where applicable, any visas or residence permits held, and a photograph; then either a current marriage certificate or documents showing a de facto relationship of at least 12 months before you apply — joint bank account statements, billing accounts in joint names, joint leases or mortgages, or documents showing shared address. For each dependant under 18, provide identity documents or an explanatory statement, proof of your relationship such as a birth or marriage certificate, any visas or residence permits, any marriage certificates or relationship registrations, character documents where applicable and a photograph. Dependants aged 18 or over supply identity documents, documents about other relationships where applicable, character documents, visas or residence permits held, and a photograph.

If someone is receiving your correspondence or providing immigration assistance, the page nominates Form 956A Appointment or withdrawal of an authorised recipient and Form 956 Appointment of a registered migration agent, legal practitioner or exempt person respectively.

What happens between lodgement and decision?

The Department confirms receipt to you and to your proposer where you have authorised them. Beyond that point, it states that it cannot give updates on applications; you wait to be contacted. Several things may then occur.

Further requests: health examinations if required, biometrics such as fingerprints and a photo if requested, or additional information. Documents not attached at lodgement are sent to the office where you lodged, quoting the file number you were given.
Interview: you may be asked to attend one, bringing your passport or other identification and requested documents, and answering about your situation and why you are seeking a humanitarian visa, about your family, and about information you provided. If the Department receives information that could lead to a refusal, it will usually ask you to comment. It may also contact your proposer to clarify details in the proposal and to assess what help they can give you.
Changes and corrections: mistakes made on the application should be notified as soon as possible using Form 1023 Notification of incorrect answers. Changes to phone number, email, address or passport, changes to marital or de facto status, the birth of a child, or a wish to withdraw must all be notified after applying.
Adding family: in some circumstances certain family members can be added before a decision, using Form 1436 Adding an additional applicant after lodgement.

On payment in this phase, the page is specific: where a second instalment applies, the Department sends an invoice after all other requirements for the visa have been met, and you pay after receiving it rather than requesting the invoice.

Notice too that the no-travel rule operates through the whole waiting period. You do not arrange travel to Australia until written notice of grant arrives.

How do travel, entry and settlement fit into the timeline?

Travel is arranged after grant, and the cost falls to you or your proposer. Toll is described on the official page as the department's Assisted Passage service provider, able to help organise booking flights, obtaining exit permits, and issuing your Australian Migration Status (AMS) ImmiCard; a Toll case manager makes contact to offer that help. The AMS ImmiCard is an official ICAO-compliant travel document and an identity document usable in Australia to prove eligibility for government services and to check visa details. The International Organization for Migration (IOM) is also listed as able to assist.

Because you or your proposer are asked to tell the Department about travel bookings, the invitation to the Australian Cultural Orientation (AUSCO) program can be sent before travel and settlement assistance arranged on arrival. Your proposer also carries broader settlement responsibilities. Once granted, the expectations attached to the visa are to enter Australia by the date on your visa, stay permanently, and obey all Australian laws.

Where does family sit in the sequence?

Family applications are meant to move together. The Department asks that family applying for their own visas submit at the same time, and requires that your own application list all family who are also applying. This allows the Department to see everyone who is applying. Later additions, where permitted, go through Form 1436 before a decision is made.

What will the decision say?

The decision is given in writing. You must be outside Australia when it is made. If granted, you are told your visa grant number, the date the visa starts, and any visa conditions; keep a copy of the decision. If refused, you are told why, and whether you have a right to review of the decision.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I apply for Subclass 202 without a proposal?

No. You must be proposed by a person or organisation in Australia, and outside the Community Support Program the proposal is lodged by the proposer in ImmiAccount. The TRN generated by that proposal is what your application keys into.

How long is a proposal valid for?

You must submit your application within 60 days of the proposal. If you have not submitted by then, the proposal expires, the proposer must lodge a new proposal, and your application must use the new TRN.

Can I travel to Australia while my application is being assessed?

No. The Department advises not to arrange travel to Australia until it has told you in writing that the visa has been granted. Travel is then arranged by the date shown on your visa, with costs borne by you or your proposer.

When do I pay the second instalment?

Only after the Department sends you an invoice, which it issues once all other requirements for the visa have been met. The official guidance is explicit that you should pay after you receive the invoice and should not ask for it.

Can family members be added after I lodge?

Yes, in some circumstances and before a decision is made, by completing Form 1436 Adding an additional applicant after lodgement. Where family are applying for their own visas, you should lodge at the same time and list all such family in your application.

What should I do if there is a mistake on my application?

Notify the Department as soon as you can using Form 1023 Notification of incorrect answers. Separately, certain later changes — contact details, passport, marital or de facto status, the birth of a child, or withdrawing the application — must also be notified after you have applied.