What Photo and Identity Documents Does a Subclass 101 Child Visa Need in 2026?
A Subclass 101 application needs four recent passport-size photographs of the child, each 45mm x 35mm, taken within the last six months, printed in good-quality colour, showing the full face against a plain light-coloured background — plus the pages of the child's current passport that carry the photo, personal details, and the issue and expiry dates. These are the requirements published on the Australian Department of Home Affairs Child visa (Subclass 101) page as of August 2026, and they apply to the child and to any dependent child included in the same application.
That pairing is the thing worth noticing before anything else: the photos and the passport identity pages are checked against each other. A photo that is technically 45mm x 35mm still causes trouble if it no longer looks like the child on the passport page submitted with it, or if the passport pages copy omits the issue and expiry dates.
What size and format must a Subclass 101 photo be?
The published specification is short, and every line of it is checkable with a ruler and a date.
| Requirement | What the Department asks for |
|---|---|
| Number of photos | 4 recent passport-size photos |
| Size | 45mm x 35mm |
| Age of the photo | Less than 6 months old |
| Print quality | Good quality colour; laser copies are not accepted |
| Framing | A view of the full face |
| Background | Plain light-coloured |
| Who needs them | The child, and any dependent child included in the application |
Four is the number per child, not per application. If a dependent child is included in the same lodgement, that child needs a set of four as well. Where families run into difficulty is usually not the size itself but one of the surrounding conditions: a photo reprinted from an older digital file, a home print on thin paper, or a crop that cuts the top of the head. "Good quality colour" and "a view of your full face" are the two lines that give case officers the most room to ask again.
Can the child wear glasses or a head covering?
Untinted prescription glasses are acceptable. The allowance is written narrowly — untinted, prescription — so tinted lenses or fashion frames that darken the eyes fall outside what the page accepts, and a photo taken with them risks not meeting the requirement.
A head covering worn for religious reasons is permitted, but the photo must still show the face: the covering cannot obscure or shadow the features that identify the child. In practice the face carries the whole identification job, so anything that crosses the face — a fringe, a scarf edge, a hand, a toy held up by a parent — undoes the purpose of the full-face rule.
Which identity pages does the Department want?
Provide the pages of the child's current passport showing the photo, personal details, and the passport issue and expiry dates. Alongside those pages, the page also asks for a national identity card if the child has one, and proof of a change of name if the child's name has changed.
Subclass 101 is a paper application lodged by post or courier, and the instruction on originals is explicit: do not send original documents, send certified copies, and keep a copy of the completed application and supporting documents for your own records.
What counts as proof of a change of name?
Two kinds of documents are listed. One is a change of name document issued by an Australian Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages, or by the relevant overseas authority. The other is any document that shows other names the child has been known by.
Assume a child whose birth certificate carries one surname and whose current passport carries another, because the mother remarried and the child took the stepfather's name. The identity pages alone would show only the later name. The gap is closed by the registry-issued change of name record, or, where no such record exists, by documents showing the earlier name — school records, a previous passport, a family book — that connect the two versions of the name to the same child.
What if the child was adopted?
Provide certified copies of the adoption papers or the adoption compliance certificate. This sits in the identity section rather than the relationship section, so it is easy to overlook when the rest of the identity paperwork looks complete.
Do other children in the application need their own documents?
Yes. For every dependant under 18 who applies with the child, the Department asks for identity documents, travel documents, proof of the relationship with the child such as a birth certificate, and character documents where they apply. Dependants included in the application also need their own four photographs.
Children over 16 carry an additional layer. They must provide police certificates from every country where they have spent 12 months or more in the last 10 years, since turning 16. For Australia, only National Police Certificates applied for under Code 33 – Immigration/Citizenship are accepted; standard disclosure certificates and certificates issued by state or territory police are not. Police certificates are valid for 12 months from the issue date for immigration purposes. Anyone in the application who has served in the armed forces of any country must provide military service records or discharge papers, and children over 16 must complete Form 80.
How should the documents be put together before posting?
The application is made on paper, using Form 47CH and Form 40CH, sent together by post with correct prepaid postage, or by courier, to the Child and Other Family Processing Centre in Perth. The forms must be completed in English. The application charge must be paid before the application is posted, and evidence of payment should be included with the supporting documentation; the Department does not process the application until the charge is paid. If any of the steps are incomplete, the application may be invalid, and invalid applications are not processed.
The travel document requirement is separate from the identity pages: provide a certified copy of the passport or travel document the child will use to enter Australia, and of any passports the child has held since then.
What happens if something is missing after lodgement?
The Department's position is that documents not included at lodgement should be provided as soon as possible, and it may also ask for more information. Once an acknowledgement letter arrives, a paper application can be imported into ImmiAccount, and additional documents can be uploaded there. Applications lodged outside Australia before 1 April 2020 that cannot use ImmiAccount go through the Child and Orphan Relative Visa Processing Centre online form instead. A dependent child can be added to the application at any time before a decision is made, and no travel should be arranged until the visa grant is received in writing.
This article describes published document requirements for general reference and is not advice tailored to any one family's circumstances; where a child's situation is unusual, or identity is contested, the official page and a qualified professional are the safer authority to rely on.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many photos does a Subclass 101 application need?
Four recent passport-size photos are required for the child, and four more for any dependent child included in the application. The number is set per child rather than per family, so a lodgement covering two children needs eight.
How recent do the photos have to be?
They must be less than six months old at the time the application is lodged. Photos taken earlier than that do not meet the published requirement even if the child looks the same, so it is safer to take new photos close to the posting date.
Are digital files or laser copies acceptable?
No. The requirement is for good-quality colour photographs, and the Department states that laser copies are not accepted. A print made from a digital file is fine as long as the physical print is a good-quality colour photograph of the right size.
Can the child wear glasses in the visa photo?
Untinted prescription glasses can be worn. Tinted lenses sit outside that allowance, and a religious head covering is permitted only if the photo still shows the face clearly.
Do I need to send the child's original passport?
No. Only certified copies should be sent with a paper application; the Department asks applicants not to send original documents and to keep a copy of the completed application and supporting documents for their own records.
What if the child's name has changed since birth?
Provide a change of name document from an Australian Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages or the relevant overseas authority, or documents showing other names the child has been known by. Without one of these, the passport identity pages and the birth certificate may appear to describe two different people.
Does an adopted child need extra identity documents?
Yes. Certified copies of the adoption papers or the adoption compliance certificate are required in addition to the passport identity pages. If the child's name changed through the adoption, name-change evidence is needed as well.