What an Australian Partner Visa Actually Costs in 2026 (Every Fee, Every Hidden Charge)

Most couples budget half of what they actually spend.

The Department of Home Affairs charges from $9,365 for a partner visa application. That figure is what gets quoted everywhere. It is also where most couples stop calculating. By the time they have paid for medicals, police certificates from three countries, NAATI?-certified translations, an agent, an apostille, a relationship registration with their state, and the surprise second instalment charge for a family member with insufficient English, they have spent $13,000 to $20,000 and are halfway through the wait.

This guide is the itemised version. Every component, current 2025-26 figures, honest ranges where the price varies by provider, and the costs most couples forget to budget for. If you are planning a partner visa, run through this once before you lodge so the total does not catch you mid-process.

The headline number.

The government charges from $9,365 for a partner visa application. One fee covers both the temporary stage (820 or 309) and the permanent stage (801 or 100) for the main applicant. You do not pay twice.

The onshore and offshore paths cost the same to the dollar.

The Prospective Marriage 300 has the same fee, but if you marry and then lodge the 820/801 before the 300 expires, the subsequent partner visa fee is reduced to around $1,560.

This fee rose from $9,095 to $9,365 on 1 July 2025 (a 3 percent rise indexed to CPI). The next indexation date is 1 July 2026. Plan for another approximately 3 percent rise after that date.

Adding family members.

Children and other dependants applying with the main applicant carry their own fees.

These are paid at lodgement, alongside the main fee. A couple with one school-age child applying together pays $9,365 + $2,345 = $11,710. A couple with the applicant's adult sibling included as a dependent pays $9,365 + $4,685 = $14,050.

The second instalment trap.

This catches people. The second instalment is an additional charge that applies to any family member 18 or over who does not have functional English? at the time the visa is granted.

Functional English? is a lower standard than the points-test English requirements. You can satisfy it through any of several routes: an English test result, passport (UK, US, Canada, Ireland, NZ), or completion of certain Australian qualifications. If a family member does not meet any of these, the Department asks for $4,890 per person before granting the visa.

You do not pay this at lodgement. It is requested only if the Department intends to grant the visa, so being asked for it is actually a positive sign. But it lands as a surprise for couples who never factored it in, and for families with multiple adult dependants without functional English? it can add $10,000 or more to the total.

The main applicant of the partner visa does not face this charge, because functional English? is required for the visa itself. Only secondary applicants are affected.

Health examination costs.

Every applicant 15 or over needs a health examination for a permanent partner visa. The standard set is medical exam, chest x-ray, and HIV test.

In Australia, this goes through Bupa Medical Visa Services. They are the Department-appointed provider for onshore applicants.

For offshore applicants, the examination goes through a panel physician approved by Home Affairs in your country. Fees vary by country: typically $150 to $400 equivalent in lower-income countries, $300 to $700 in higher-income countries. Most countries bundle the medical, x-ray, and HIV test into a single visit.

There is a hidden travel cost in this. Panel physicians are concentrated in major cities. If you live regionally, factor in transport to wherever your nearest approved physician is. India has around 30 cities with panel physicians. The Philippines has 6. Nepal has one (Kathmandu). For some offshore applicants the travel cost matches the medical cost.

If your application processes for longer than 12 months (which is currently typical), your medicals expire and you may need to redo them at full price. This affects a lot of partner visa applicants and is worth budgeting for as a possible second round.

Police certificates.

You need police certificates from every country where you have spent 12 or more cumulative months in the 10 years before lodgement. For most couples, this means at least one Australian check and at least one overseas check.

The Australian Federal Police NPC is the only Australian check Home Affairs accepts for partner visa applications. State and territory police certificates do not count.

Overseas police certificates vary widely. The certificate itself is usually cheap. The hidden costs are translation, embassy attestation, courier, and apostille or legalisation if required. These regularly multiply the all-in cost three to five times.

Realistic budget per overseas country: $30 to $250 all-in, depending on how many legalisation layers are needed.

Like medicals, police certificates are valid for 12 months. If your processing time exceeds 12 months, you may need to redo them at full price.

Document costs.

Most applications include some documents that need to be translated, witnessed, or authenticated.

For a couple where the applicant is from a non-English-speaking country, translation costs can add up fast. A typical mid-sized application might include 5 to 10 pages of translation: birth certificates, marriage certificate if applicable, education certificates, employment references that need to count for evidence purposes. That is $225 to $1,200 in translation alone.

Migration agent and lawyer fees.

You do not have to use an agent. Partner visas can be self-lodged through ImmiAccount?. Many couples do, especially those with straightforward cases.

If you use an agent or lawyer, here are the typical 2025-26 ranges.

Agent fees are entirely separate from and on top of the government $9,365 application charge. A couple using an agent at the middle of the range is paying $9,365 + $5,000 = $14,365 before any other costs.

Bridging visa costs.

The Bridging A comes free with the 820 lodgement. The Bridging B is the one that costs money, and you only need it if you plan to leave Australia and return while the partner visa is being processed. Each separate trip requires a Bridging B. Some applicants apply for multiple Bridging Bs across the processing period as life events require them.

The Bridging B fee rose from $185 to $190 on 1 July 2025.

State relationship registration (optional but useful).

If you are de facto? and have not yet lived together for 12 months, registering your relationship with a state or territory waives the 12-month rule.

Registration costs $60 to $360 across states depending on whether you choose ceremony options or extra certificates. The minimum is around $159 (Queensland). Registration is not a marriage; it is a state-level recognition of your de facto? relationship. Both partners must sign the application and there is usually a cooling-off period of 10 to 28 days.

If you are in WA or NT, neither state has a registry, which means you cannot use this pathway to skip the 12-month rule. Your options in those states are to marry (which avoids the rule entirely) or to wait until you cross the 12-month threshold.

What is actually free.

Worth knowing because some couples assume there is a charge.

• $0Form 888 (statutory declaration of support): Free PDF. Witnessing is free at police stations, libraries, courts, and JP services.
• $0Form 80 (Personal Particulars for Character Assessment): Free PDF.
• $0Form 1221 (Additional Personal Particulars): Free PDF.
• $0ImmiAccount: Free to create and use.
• $0Bridging Visa A: Free, granted with the onshore application.
• $0Document scanning at home: Free if you have a scanner. A few dollars per page at a service bureau.

The hidden costs nobody calculates.

These are the costs that show up but rarely make it into the budget.

Of these, the re-do of medicals and police certificates is the one most couples forget. Partner visa processing in 2025-26 commonly runs longer than 12 months, especially for the 820. If your medicals were done at lodgement and the visa is granted 14 months later, you may need to repeat them. The Department will ask. The cost is not optional.

Realistic all-in totals.

Putting it together for four common shapes.

The honest spread across most partner visa applications is $10,000 to $20,000. Schedule 3? cases, large families, and complex character or health issues push that toward $25,000 to $40,000.

What changes (and when).

The volatile items in the budget, in order of how often they change.

1. 01Government visa fees ($9,365 main, $4,685 adult, $2,345 child, $4,890 second instalment): Indexed every 1 July. Typical rise around 3 percent CPI. The next indexation is approximately 7 weeks from publication.
2. 02Bridging B fee ($190): Also indexed 1 July.
3. 03AFP NPC fee ($56): Set by AFP?, can change without warning.
4. 04DFAT Apostille ($102): DFAT-controlled, steps up roughly every two years.
5. 05Bupa MVS examination fees: Not publicly indexed; Bupa adjusts on a rolling basis. Always confirm at booking.
6. 06State BDM relationship registration: Each state indexes annually, usually 1 July or 1 January.
7. 07Overseas police certificate fees: Change in foreign currency, then translate to AUD via FX. FX alone causes 5 to 15 percent drift annually.
8. 08NAATI translation rates: Competitive market; can drift 10 to 20 percent annually.
9. 09Migration agent and lawyer fees: Set by each firm; market median has crept up consistently in recent years.

If you are reading this after 1 July 2026, the government charges have almost certainly risen approximately 3 percent. Verify on immi?.homeaffairs.gov.au before paying.

Frequently asked.

The decision frame in one paragraph.

If you are budgeting an Australian partner visa, plan for $10,000 to $20,000 all-in for a standard case, not just the headline government fee. The government fee (from $9,365) is the largest single cost, but medicals, police certificates, translations, and the optional but common migration agent fee together add 30 to 70 percent on top. The second instalment trap can add from $4,890 per affected family member. Complex cases involving Schedule 3?, character concerns, or large families regularly reach $25,000 to $40,000. The cleanest way to budget is to take the main fee, add a 50 percent contingency, then add agent fees separately if you plan to use one. Couples who treat the headline government fee as the total are usually the ones surprised by month three.

This is general information about partner visa costs in the 2025-26 financial year, not advice on what you specifically will pay. For a personalised quote, consult a registered migration agent? directly. Find a registered agent. For more on the choice between onshore and offshore application, see our 820 vs 309 comparison guide. For the related panic-search topic of applying without a valid visa, see our Schedule 3 guide.

More guides.

All figures verified for the 2025-26 Australian financial year (1 July 2025 to 30 June 2026). Visa fees are indexed on 1 July each year. If you are reading this after 1 July 2026, the government charges will likely have risen approximately 3 percent. Always verify current fees on immi.homeaffairs.gov.au before paying. Third-party costs (medicals, police certificates, translations, agents) vary by provider. For advice on your situation, find a registered migration agent at mara.gov.au.