189 Visa Health Check and Police Clearance Requirements: What You Need and When

Health examinations and police clearances are not optional extras in a 189 visa application — they are mandatory requirements that can close the gap between invitation and lodgement if you have not prepared them in advance. You have exactly 60 calendar days from the date of your Invitation to Apply to lodge your complete application. There are no extensions. If police clearances from certain countries take six to eight weeks to arrive, and you have not ordered them before invitation, you will be lodging late or with gaps.

The 189 Visa Health Requirement

To satisfy Public Interest Criterion 4005, every person included in a 189 visa application — primary applicant and all dependants — must undergo a medical examination. The purpose is to confirm that your health condition does not present a "significant healthcare and community service cost" to Australia or prejudice access to scarce medical resources.

The current Significant Cost Threshold (SCT) for 2025–2026 is set at $86,000 AUD, estimated over a standard five-year projection period. A Medical Officer of the Commonwealth assesses the hypothetical cost of managing any existing health conditions, including medications, hospital care, disability services, and special education services.

Two facts about the 189 visa health requirement that differ from some other visa categories:

The 189 visa has no health waiver provision. If a dependent fails the health test — including a child with a disability or chronic condition — the visa is refused for the entire family. This is known as the "One Fails, All Fail" rule for permanent visas. There is no discretion and no appeal on health grounds.

Non-migrating dependants must also be examined. If you have a child or spouse who will not be listed on the visa but is a member of your family unit, they may still need to complete a health examination before the grant, depending on the specific circumstances. Check this against your exact situation — the rules around non-migrating family members are complex.

Where Health Examinations Are Conducted

In Australia (onshore applicants): Health examinations must be conducted at Bupa Medical Visa Services. Bupa is the sole designated provider for Department of Home Affairs medical examinations in Australia. Appointments are required and can be booked online. Processing times for results vary from a few days to several weeks, depending on whether additional investigation is required.

Outside Australia (offshore applicants): You must attend a panel clinic approved by the Department of Home Affairs in your country of residence. The Department maintains a searchable list of approved clinics on its website. Not all countries have approved clinics in every city — in some regions, you may need to travel to the nearest major city.

What the examination includes: Standard components are a medical history review, physical examination, chest X-ray (for applicants over 11 years old), blood tests (for HIV and, for certain applicants, additional testing based on country of origin), and for some applicants, specialist referrals. Results are submitted directly to the Department by the examining clinic — you do not manage the report yourself.

Preparing for the Medical in Advance

Health examination results remain valid for 12 months from the date of examination. This means you can complete your medical before receiving an invitation, provided you expect to lodge within 12 months of the examination date.

For most applicants in Tier 1 or Tier 2 occupations where invitation timelines are shorter, completing the medical after invitation (before the 60-day deadline) is workable. For applicants in Tier 4 occupations with longer wait times, completing the medical proactively is inadvisable — if your wait exceeds 12 months, you will need to be re-examined.

The safest approach for most applicants: book the medical appointment at the same time as you receive your invitation. Given the 60-day window, a Bupa appointment booked within the first week should return results well before the deadline.

Police Clearance Requirements

The 189 visa requires a National Police Certificate (or equivalent) for every country where you have lived for a total of 12 months or more in the past 10 years. This applies both to your country of origin and to any third countries where you have lived or worked.

"Lived" is interpreted broadly. It includes periods of study, employment, or residency — not just permanent residence. If you spent 14 months on a student visa in the UK before moving to Australia, you need a UK Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check as well as police certificates from your home country.

Overseas Police Certificates: Country-by-Country Overview

Processing times vary enormously by country. Here are typical ranges for common applicant nationalities:

India: The National Police Certificate is issued by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) or state police authorities. Timelines vary from 2 to 8 weeks. Many applicants use an authorized agent to navigate the application process.

Philippines: The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) clearance is required. Processing typically takes 2 to 4 weeks. If you are applying from Australia, you can apply through the NBI's online portal.

UK: The Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) Enhanced Certificate is required. Standard DBS checks take 2 to 8 weeks depending on the application method and volume at the time.

China: Police records are obtained through the local Public Security Bureau (PSB). Processing times are highly variable — 4 to 12 weeks in some cases. Applicants often rely on family members or authorized agents in China to obtain the document.

Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Pakistan: Each requires coordination with the national police authority. Timelines range from 4 to 12 weeks.

All police certificates must be in English or accompanied by a NAATI-accredited translation (for onshore documents) or an equivalent official translation (for offshore documents).

When Overseas Police Certificates Expire

Police certificates have a validity period for immigration purposes. The Department of Home Affairs typically requires that police clearances be issued within 12 months of the date of the visa application lodgement. If you obtain a police certificate early and your lodgement date falls outside this 12-month window, you may need to obtain a fresh certificate.

For applicants in highly competitive occupation tiers who may wait 12+ months between EOI submission and invitation, there is little value in ordering police certificates before the invitation arrives. Order them immediately on invitation and have them expedited where possible.

Building a Pre-Invitation Document Checklist

The 60-day lodgement window is fixed. Applicants who have prepared their documentation portfolio before receiving an invitation can typically lodge within 7 to 14 days of the ITA — leaving no risk of a deadline miss. The essential documents to prepare in parallel with your EOI:

• Skills assessment letter (already required before EOI submission)
• English test results (confirm expiry date)
• Employment reference letters for every period claimed for points (on official letterhead, with exact dates, hours, duties, and authorized signatory)
• Academic transcripts and degree certificates
• Identification documents (passport bio-data pages, name change documents)
• Partnership/relationship evidence (if claiming partner points or including a partner on the application)

Then, upon invitation:

• Book medical examination immediately
• Order overseas police certificates immediately from every relevant country
• Begin NAATI translation of any non-English documents

The complete document checklist — organized by occupation, country of origin, and family composition — is included in the Australia Skilled Independent Visa (189) Guide.