Australia visa fees for including a spouse vary by subclass and include application charges, health checks, police certificates and possible medical or translation expenses; you should budget several thousand AUD and consult the Department of Home Affairs for exact current fees.
You qualify as a spouse if you're legally married, and as a de facto partner if you can prove a genuine domestic relationship of at least 12 months; provide joint financial, social and household evidence to satisfy the Department.
Eligible visa subclasses 189, 190 and 491 allow you to include a spouse as a secondary applicant, with each subclass imposing specific criteria and evidence requirements for skills, health and character that apply to both primary and secondary applicants.
Subclass-specific differences affect visa costs, state nomination (190) obligations and regional residence requirements (491); you must meet state criteria for 190 and commit to regional conditions for 491, while 189 relies on your points, invitation and meeting health and character checks for both you and your spouse.
You pay the Department's VAC for each secondary applicant over 18 at lodgement; rates follow the principal visa class and are charged per adult, so you should budget the standard adult VAC plus any dependent fees.
Surcharges from banks, card issuers, or payment gateways can raise the final AUD you pay; you should include international transaction fees, foreign-exchange margins, and platform charges when estimating the total VAC in your currency.
Exchange rates used by the Department and those applied by your payment provider often differ, so you should verify whether payments are processed in AUD, keep receipts for proof of payment, and consider lower-fee transfer options to reduce extra costs.
Meeting English requirements affects whether you pay the second installment and how much; you should check your spouse's test scores early to avoid unexpected fees or delays.
You need to show functional English via approved tests (IELTS, PTE, TOEFL) or claimed exemptions tied to nationality and visa subclass, with minimum scores determining acceptance without additional charges.
Failure to meet the functional English threshold may trigger the spouse second installment fee, increase overall visa costs, or require paid English training before grant.
Depending on your spouse's scores and chosen visa stream, the second installment fee might be fixed or variable, and you could also face processing delays, costs for certified translations, private courses, and repeated testing until the required level is reached.
You will pay for designated panel physician exams, chest X-rays and blood tests; costs vary by country and provider, often AUD 300-700 per person, with extra charges for specialist referrals or additional investigations.
Expect fees for police certificates from each country you have lived in; charges range from free to over AUD 100, and you may pay for translations or expedited services.
Obtaining police clearances often requires fingerprinting, online applications or in-person visits, and processing times can stretch from days to months depending on the issuing country. You may need certified translations, apostilles or embassy verification, which add costs. If a country restricts access, you should provide official evidence of attempts and any local alternatives accepted by the Department of Home Affairs.
Costs for optional measures to boost your points can include partner skills assessments, language testing, and paid preparation or review services you might choose to pursue.
Assessments by relevant authorities can allow you to claim partner points, with fees typically ranging from AUD 300 to AUD 1,500 depending on the assessing body and occupation, plus possible translation or document handling charges.
Testing for partners (IELTS or PTE) usually costs between AUD 300 and AUD 450 per attempt; you should budget for potential retakes and basic preparation materials to meet the required score thresholds.
You should verify which tests and minimum band scores the Department accepts for partner points; commonly accepted options include IELTS Academic and PTE Academic, and total costs can rise to AUD 600-1,200 if you factor in test fees, multiple attempts, coached preparation, and official replacements for lost results.
Translations for relationship documents typically cost between AUD 20-80 per page, and you should factor additional fees for certified statements and expedited service when translations are required for partner visas.
Agents commonly charge a fixed fee or hourly rate for combined applications, often ranging from AUD 2,000 to 8,000 depending on complexity, and you may incur extra costs for legal opinions or specialist reports.
Fees vary by agent and can include an initial assessment, document checks, form preparation, lodgement, and correspondence with the Department of Home Affairs; you should confirm whether the quote covers skills assessments, appeals or post‑lodgement requests, and clarify payment schedules, refund terms and any additional disbursements such as police checks, medicals or international courier costs.
Biometrics typically cost AUD 60-120 per person at visa application centres, while certified copies or solicitor certifications commonly add AUD 10-50 per document, so you should budget accordingly.
Expect variation by country and provider: VAC fees, appointment surcharges, service centre levies and courier charges for returning originals can increase total costs, and some documents require notarisation or an apostille, which may attract extra fees and time that you should factor into your application budget.
The cost to include your spouse in an Australia skilled migration application includes extra visa application charges, health and police check fees, and any migration agent fees; expect to pay several hundred to a few thousand AUD depending on visa subclass and circumstances, so you should budget and verify current Department of Home Affairs fees.
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