Do I Need a Police Certificate for the 117 Visa in 2026 If I'm Over 16?

Plain-language guide · general information, not immigration advice

Yes. On the Orphan Relative visa (subclass 117), a child who is 16 or older must meet the character requirement, and that means lodging police certificates from every country where they have spent 12 months or more in the last 10 years since turning 16. According to the Australian Department of Home Affairs official page for the Orphan Relative visa (subclass 117), as of the August 2026 version of that page, certificates are part of the documents gathered before the paper application is posted, they must be issued under a specific Australian Federal Police code if any of that time was spent in Australia, and they expire for immigration purposes 12 months after the issue date.

This article describes published requirements only and is general information, not an assessment of any one child's situation or a substitute for advice from a qualified professional. Where a case is unusual — a country that will not issue certificates, gaps in travel history, a record that may need explanation — the official page and current legal or migration advice are the final reference.

Which countries do I actually need a certificate from?

The rule is built on time spent, not on citizenship or on where the child lives now. Count every country where the child has spent 12 months or more in total over the last 10 years, counting only from their 16th birthday, and get a certificate from each one.

Two details catch people out. The 12 months is cumulative, so several shorter stays in the same country can add up to a full year even if no single visit lasted that long. And the 10-year clock runs from the date of application, not from the date the child turned 16 — the "since turning 16" qualifier limits which years count, it does not push the window open-endedly into childhood.

Where the time was spent	What to lodge
Australia	National Police Certificate applied for under Code 33 – Immigration/Citizenship, issued by the Australian Federal Police
Any other country	A police certificate from that country's national or relevant authority, covering the period spent there

Why does Australia reject some Australian police certificates?

Because the subclass 117 page names one accepted document. For time spent in Australia, the Department accepts only National Police Certificates applied for under Code 33 – Immigration/Citizenship, issued by the Australian Federal Police. Standard disclosure certificates are not accepted, and neither are certificates issued by Australian state or territory police.

The practical consequence is that the cheapest or fastest check available locally is often the wrong one. A certificate ordered for employment or volunteering purposes is usually a different product from the one the Department will read, so the application code matters as much as the document itself.

How long does a certificate stay valid?

For immigration purposes, a police certificate is valid for 12 months from its issue date. After that it is treated as expired, and a fresh one is needed.

This makes timing a real constraint on a paper application. If a certificate is obtained early and the application is held up, the 12 months can run out while the case is still being prepared; if any certificate expires, the replacement has to be issued under the same rules, including Code 33 for Australian time.

What else comes with the police certificates?

Two companion items appear in the same character documents section of the official page.

Children over 16 must complete and provide Form 80 (Personal particulars for assessment including character assessment). This is a separate document from the police certificates and does not replace them.

If anyone in the application served in the armed forces of any country, military service records or discharge papers must be provided. This applies to the applicant and to other people included in the application, not only to the child.

Do I wait for the Department to ask before getting certificates?

No. Police certificates and Form 80 are listed among the documents to gather and send with the application, alongside identity documents, photographs and evidence about the child's parents. The Department's step-by-step guide treats them as lodgement material.

Health examinations work the other way around: after the application is lodged, the Department advises when to arrange the child's health examinations. So the two tracks are not synchronised — the character documents go in with the application, and the medical appointments are scheduled later on the Department's instruction.

A useful way to read this is as a sequence rather than a checklist to clear at once: gather the character documents early enough that nothing expires, lodge, then wait for the Department's notice on health exams and any request for further information.

Does this apply to other children in the application?

The character requirement is triggered by age 16. The eligibility page states that a child aged 16 or older must meet the character requirement, and that the Department might also ask other dependent children who apply for the visa to meet it. For each dependent child under 18 included in the application, the document list asks for identity documents, proof of relationship, and character documents if applicable.

So a dependent child under 18 who is included in the same application is not automatically inside the police certificate rule — the dependent-child list only asks for character documents "if applicable", and siblings of the child cannot be included here because each sibling must lodge a separate application. The safe reading is that anyone 16 or over who is part of the application should be prepared to provide the same set of documents.

Behind the document list sits the legal test: the character requirement for this visa is rooted in Public Interest Criterion 4001 in the Migration Regulations 1994, published on legislation.gov.au. The consolidated regulation text can be amended over time, and the Department's official visa page is what governs which documents to lodge, so treat the document list as the operative instruction and the regulations as the underlying test.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need a certificate for a country I only visited on short holidays?

Only if the total time there reaches 12 months. The threshold is 12 months or more in the last 10 years since turning 16, and short visits can accumulate toward it, so tally stays per country rather than judging each trip on its own.

When does the 10-year period start?

The window covers the last 10 years, but only time accumulated from the child's 16th birthday onward counts toward the 12-month threshold. Years lived abroad before turning 16 are not counted under this rule.

Can I use a state police certificate instead of the AFP one?

No. For time spent in Australia the Department states it does not accept certificates issued by Australian state or territory police, nor standard disclosure certificates. Only a National Police Certificate applied for under Code 33 – Immigration/Citizenship and issued by the Australian Federal Police is accepted.

My certificate is 14 months old. Is it still usable?

No. Police certificates are valid for 12 months from the issue date for immigration purposes. A certificate older than that needs to be replaced, and any Australian replacement must again be obtained under Code 33.

Does a 16-year-old also need Form 80?

Yes. Children over 16 must complete and provide Form 80, Personal particulars for assessment including character assessment. It sits alongside the police certificates rather than substituting for them.

What if the child served in the military?

If anyone in the application served in the armed forces of any country, military service records or discharge papers must be provided. This is a separate requirement from the police certificate and applies regardless of the child's age.

What happens if a country will not issue a certificate?

The official page sets out which documents to provide, not how to handle a refusal by an overseas authority. Since outcomes depend on the individual case, the published requirement should be checked against the Department's current guidance and, where the situation is complex, against professional advice.