190 ImmiAccount Monitoring 2026: Handling Requests for More Information

A request for more information on a Skilled Nominated visa (subclass 190) application shows up in ImmiAccount, and checking it is a shared job between the applicant and whoever has been appointed to receive correspondence. According to the Australian Department of Home Affairs' official Skilled Nominated visa (subclass 190) page, the Department does not give updates on applications within the standard processing time, and applicants can check whether more information is needed by logging in to ImmiAccount.

What follows is general information about how that channel works, not an assessment of any individual case; the current official page is the authority on the requirements themselves, and anything that turns on your own record should be checked against that page and, where it matters, against advice from someone who is lawfully able to give it.

Where does a 190 request for more information actually appear?

It appears in ImmiAccount. The Department's own wording on the subclass 190 page is blunt about this: it does not provide updates while an application sits inside the standard processing time, and the way to find out whether it needs anything further from you is to look in ImmiAccount.

The same applies to health examinations. If you did not complete them before applying, the Department says it will let you know if you need them and directs you to check ImmiAccount. Biometrics work slightly differently in phrasing — "we might ask for biometrics. We will let you know if you need to provide them" — and the official page does not say how that request will reach you.

One practical trap worth naming: your ImmiAccount login and password are not the same as your SkillSelect login and password. A 190 application starts in SkillSelect with an EOI and an invitation, but the visa application itself is lodged and then managed in ImmiAccount, which is a separate account.

Does the Department have to ask you for missing documents?

No. This is the single most important sentence on the page for anyone waiting on a 190:

We might also ask you to provide more information; however; we are not obliged to do so and may make a decision on your application without requesting more documents.

Two things follow from it. First, silence is not a safe signal — the absence of a request does not mean the file is complete in the Department's view. Second, if you know you lodged without everything attached, the responsibility to fix that sits with you: the page tells applicants to attach outstanding documents as soon as they can in ImmiAccount, rather than waiting to be prompted.

For an authorised recipient or a registered migration agent, this is the reason monitoring cannot be passive. There is no obligation on the Department to chase, so the risk of an unresponded request rests entirely on the applicant's side of the file.

Who should be watching ImmiAccount — the applicant or the authorised recipient?

Both, and the official page draws a clear line between the two roles.

Role	Form used	What they can do	Who can hold it
Authorised recipient (receives correspondence)	Form 956A Appointment or withdrawal of an authorised recipient	Receive documents and correspondence about the visa matter	Anyone you appoint
Migration agent / legal practitioner / exempt person (gives immigration assistance)	Form 956 Appointment of a registered migration agent, legal practitioner or exempt person	Give immigration assistance	Only a registered migration agent, a legal practitioner, or an exempt person

The Department states plainly that you can appoint anyone to receive documents on your behalf, but that only those three categories of person may give immigration assistance. Both forms are uploaded to ImmiAccount, and if you later want someone to stop receiving correspondence or stop providing advice, the same forms are used again to withdraw the appointment.

In practice the split is simple: the appointed recipient monitors the account and correspondence as a matter of course, while the applicant keeps their own login working and their contact details current. The page lists changes of phone number, email, address or passport as things you must tell the Department about after you apply — an expired email address or an old passport number can break the chain even when someone else is watching the account.

What else can arrive while a 190 application is pending?

Different items reach you in different ways, and mixing them up is how deadlines get missed.

Item	How it reaches you, per the official page
Request for more information or documents	Check ImmiAccount; no updates are given within standard processing time
Health examinations	The Department will let you know if you need them; check ImmiAccount
Biometrics	The Department will let you know if you need to provide them
Second instalment	Pay it when the Department sends you the invoice
Decision	Given in writing — grant number, start date and conditions, or the reasons for refusal and whether you have a right to review

What should happen the moment a request appears?

Assume an applicant whose ImmiAccount shows a request for further documents. The sequence that matters is: read what is actually being asked for, gather exactly that, and attach it to the application in ImmiAccount within any timeframe the request itself sets out. Note your transaction reference number (TRN) at lodgement, as the official page instructs, so that you can identify your application.

Two related situations are handled through specific forms rather than a plain upload. If you discover you gave an incorrect answer, the page directs you to complete Form 1023 Notification of incorrect answers and attach it in ImmiAccount, as soon as possible. If you want to add a member of the family unit after lodgement but before a decision, use Form 1436, pay through ImmiAccount, and attach the form plus supporting documents — those family members must meet the health and character requirements.

What happens if the request is missed?

The Department may simply decide the application on the material it already holds. If the outcome is a refusal, the page says you will be told why the visa was refused and whether you have a right to a review of the decision — and that the application charge is not refunded if the application is refused.

That is the whole reason monitoring is treated as a substantive task rather than an administrative one. A request that nobody reads does not pause the application; it just leaves the decision-maker with an incomplete record.

Frequently asked questions

Will the Department email me when it needs more documents?

The official subclass 190 page does not promise an email notification. It says the Department does not give updates within standard processing time and that you can check whether more information is needed in ImmiAccount, so the account is the channel to rely on.

If I have appointed a migration agent, do I still need to check ImmiAccount myself?

Yes. Form 956A appoints someone to receive correspondence and Form 956 appoints someone to give immigration assistance, but the applicant still has to keep their own contact details — phone, email, address and passport — up to date with the Department after lodging.

Is the Department required to ask for missing documents before it refuses?

No. The page states the Department is not obliged to request more information and may make a decision on the application without requesting more documents.

What if I did not attach everything when I lodged?

Attach the outstanding documents as soon as you can in ImmiAccount. Do not wait for a request, because the Department might never send one.

Can anyone receive my visa correspondence on my behalf?

Yes — the Department says you can appoint anyone to receive documents relating to your visa matter, using Form 956A. Only a registered migration agent, a legal practitioner or an exempt person can give immigration assistance, appointed with Form 956.

What happens to my money if the application is refused?

The Department states it will not refund the application charge if your application is refused, and it will tell you the reasons for refusal and whether you have a right to a review.

References

• Australian Department of Home Affairs — Skilled Nominated visa (Subclass 190)