Documents You Must Have Notarised for an Australian Partner Visa

For an Australian partner visa, almost nothing has to be notarised. Evidence is uploaded as scans, and friends' Form 888 statements are signed by their writers, with no witness. A notary matters when a document crosses a border, such as proof you are free to marry overseas, or an overseas marriage record that needs certifying where it was issued.

Key takeaways

• Partner applications are among the most document-heavy in the migration program and among the least notarial.
• Supporting statements from friends and family go on Form 888. The person making the statement signs it themselves; the form has no witness section and needs no notary.
• An overseas marriage, divorce or death record is certified, if at all, in the country that issued it.
• Where an Australian notary genuinely helps is the other direction: a declaration of single status or other document for a marriage abroad.
• An Australian marriage certificate going overseas can often go to DFAT directly for an apostille, with no notary. Confirm with DFAT.

Why do people think a partner visa needs a notary?

The confusion comes from one word. Partner applications are full of statements and declarations, and people assume each one needs a notary. It does not. The supporting statements from friends and family are not witnessed at all, and where a Commonwealth statutory declaration is asked for, the list of people who may witness one is broad. A notary is a different tool, used for a different job: making an Australian document acceptable to a foreign authority, or certifying a document abroad for use here.

Paying notarial rates for domestic relationship evidence is the most common avoidable expense in this stream. The Department of Home Affairs does not ask for notarised photographs, bank statements or leases. It asks for evidence, uploaded in the form its checklist describes.

What needs no notary?

• Supporting statements from friends and family, on Form 888. They are signed by the person making the statement and uploaded by the applicant, with no witness.
• Your own statements about the history of the relationship.
• Joint financial, household and social evidence: joint accounts, leases, bills, photographs, travel records and messages.
• Australian marriage certificates from a state or territory registry, uploaded as a scan.
• Australian police checks obtained through the channel Home Affairs names.
• Any copy Home Affairs will accept as certified by an authorised person, where certification is asked for at all.

For an online application, most documents are uploaded as clear colour scans of the original. Where a certified copy is wanted, the Department explains on its certified copy page who may certify one. In Australia the list includes a Justice of the Peace and many professionals. Confirm the current requirements against that guidance rather than assuming a notary is required.

Run each document through those questions before booking anything. A couple who stop at the right question save a notarial fee for every item that did not need one. The ones that reach the last question are usually few: a declaration for a foreign marriage registry, or a power of attorney for a record held abroad. If you are unsure which answer applies, ask the body receiving the document. The body receiving it sets the standard, not the person selling the service.

How does a Form 888 supporting statement work?

Supporting statements from friends and family go on Form 888, the "Supporting statement in relation to a Partner or Prospective Marriage visa application". At our last check of the current form, it was completed and signed by the person making the statement. That person had to be 18 or over and know the couple, and had to attach evidence of their name and age and, where applicable, of their Australian citizenship or permanent residence.

The form has no witness section. Nobody signs it in front of a JP, a pharmacist or a notary. The applicant uploads it in ImmiAccount, and the Department may ask for more than one.

The form carries a warning that giving false or misleading information is an offence under the Migration Act. That is why the statement should be in the writer's own words, about what they have actually seen of the relationship. A notary adds nothing here: there is no signature for a notary to witness, and a notary would not check whether the statement is true in any case. Use the current version of the form the Department names, since forms are revised.

A different document is the Commonwealth statutory declaration. If your checklist or the Department separately asks for one, for example to explain a gap in your evidence, that declaration must be made before an authorised witness. The Attorney-General's Department publishes the list on its statutory declarations page. A notary public is on it, and so are Justices of the Peace and many professionals. For the wider picture, see who can witness a statutory declaration.

Where is a notary genuinely needed?

An overseas marriage certificate. If you married overseas, the certificate is a foreign civil record. Home Affairs usually wants a scan, with an English translation if it is not in English. Where a certified copy is wanted, it is made in the country that issued it or by someone the Department's guidance accepts abroad. An Australian notary cannot vouch for a foreign registry's record. Check what is being asked before building a chain you do not need.

An overseas divorce decree or death certificate. Where a previous marriage ended abroad, the evidence that it ended follows the same route, in the same country.

What about marrying or registering a marriage abroad?

Marrying overseas. This is the reverse direction, and it is where Australian notaries do most real partner-visa work. Many countries will not marry a foreign national without proof that they are free to marry. Depending on the country, that may be a Certificate of No Impediment issued through the Australian Government, or a declaration of single status sworn before an Australian notary. A notarised declaration is then apostilled by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) for a Hague Convention country, or authenticated by DFAT and legalised at the embassy for a non-member. See documents for marrying overseas.

Registering an Australian marriage overseas. Some countries expect a citizen who marries abroad to register the marriage at home. An official registry marriage certificate is on DFAT's list of documents it can legalise directly, so a notary is often not needed for the certificate itself. A commemorative or ceremonial certificate from the celebrant is not accepted by DFAT. Order the official one from the registry. More detail is in marriage certificates and notaries.

A document held in another country. Where a record sits in a registry abroad and neither of you can travel, a power of attorney lets a relative collect it. If you sign it in Australia, it is signed before an Australian notary and then apostilled or authenticated. See powers of attorney and declarations.

Document	Goes to	What it usually needs
Photos, joint accounts, lease, messages	Home Affairs	Clear scans
Form 888 supporting statement	Home Affairs	Signed by its writer, no witness
Commonwealth statutory declaration, if asked for	Home Affairs	An authorised witness
Overseas marriage certificate	Home Affairs	A scan and translation; certified abroad if asked
Declaration of single status	A foreign marriage registry	Notary, then DFAT, sometimes an embassy
Australian registry marriage certificate	A foreign registry	Often DFAT directly; confirm first
Power of attorney to collect a record	A foreign registry	Notary, then DFAT

How are translations handled?

Documents not in English need an English translation. Translations made in Australia for Home Affairs should be by a translator credentialled by NAATI. Translations made overseas should show the translator's full name, address, telephone number and details of their qualifications.

A notary does not translate. A notary can witness a translator's declaration, or certify a copy of the original bound to its translation. Foreign civil registries often want that. Home Affairs generally does not. For Home Affairs work, see document translation.

What order does a marriage-abroad document follow?

1. Ask the marriage authority, or its embassy in Australia, in writing exactly what document, wording and validity period it wants.
2. Draft the declaration in that form. Do not sign it yet.
3. Declare before an Australian notary, with your passport and any divorce or death record the declaration refers to.
4. Send it to DFAT for an apostille, or for authentication if the country is not a Hague member. Check the HCCH status table on the day.
5. Finish locally: embassy legalisation for a non-member, and a translation if the authority requires one, often by a translator it recognises.

Some countries want the proof of single status to be recent when it is presented. If that applies, do not start too early. Check each body's current published timeframe, rather than relying on anyone's rule of thumb.

What if one of you is overseas?

A declaration is made where the person declaring is. If your partner is overseas and must sign something, they sign before whoever the receiving body accepts in their country. An Australian notary cannot witness a signature made somewhere else. Whether a video appointment is accepted is decided by the receiving authority, and many marriage and consular processes still want personal attendance and a wet-ink signature. Ask before committing to a date.

Here is an illustration, not a real case

A Sydney nurse plans to marry her partner in a European country, then apply for his partner visa. The local registry asks for proof that she is free to marry. She asks the registry in writing what it accepts, obtains that document through the Australian Government, and completes the steps the registry named. Back in Australia, the couple upload scans of their marriage certificate, a NAATI translation and their joint lease. Two friends each complete and sign a Form 888 supporting statement, attach proof of their identity and citizenship, and give it to the couple to upload. No one witnessed anything, and no notary was needed for the Home Affairs file at all.

In short

A partner visa is heavy on evidence and light on notarisation. Scans and Form 888 statements signed by the people who know you cover almost all of it. Overseas records are certified, if at all, where they were issued. An Australian notary earns a place when a document leaves Australia, most often a declaration of single status for a marriage abroad. Even then, a registry marriage certificate may go to DFAT directly.

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Planning a partner visa or a marriage abroad? Send us what you have been asked for, and we will explain each step before you book.