Subclass 445 lodgement in 2026: validity, payment before posting and certified copies

A Subclass 445 (Dependent Child) lodgement is valid only if it is made on paper with Form 918, completed in English, paid for in full before it goes in the post, and sent by post or courier — with correct prepaid postage — to the Child and Other Family Processing Centre in Perth. Submitting it in person, at any other office, or by any other method makes it invalid, and the Department of Home Affairs does not consider invalid applications further. Certified copies, not original documents, go in the envelope. These are the rules set out on the Department of Home Affairs Dependent Child visa (subclass 445) page; it is general information rather than advice tailored to one family's circumstances, so the current official page should be treated as the controlling version.

What does a valid paper lodgement actually require?

Validity here is not a single test but a short chain of conditions that all have to hold at the moment of lodgement. The form must be Form 918 (Application for a subclass 445 (temporary) visa by a dependent child), it must be filled in in English, and the package must contain proof that the application charge has been paid plus the relevant supporting documents. The Department states plainly that if any of these steps are incomplete, the application may be invalid; invalid applications are not processed, the applicant is notified, and the application can be returned on request.

The practical reading is straightforward: an otherwise complete package that is unpaid, underpaid, untranslated, or sent through the wrong channel does not become valid later by fixing it quietly. The Department says it will not process the application until the charge is paid, and that it will notify the applicant and, if requested, return the application.

Where do you send it — and what counts as the wrong channel?

The Perth centre has one address for post and a different one for courier. Using the right one for your method is part of a valid lodgement, and prepaid postage must be correct.

Method	Address
By post	Department of Home Affairs, Child and Other Family Processing Centre, Locked Bag 7, NORTHBRIDGE WA 6865, AUSTRALIA
By courier	Department of Home Affairs, Child and Other Family Processing Centre, Wellington Central, 836 Wellington Street, WEST PERTH WA 6005, AUSTRALIA

Two negative rules sit alongside those addresses. Applications cannot be submitted in person, and an application submitted at any other office or in any other way will not be valid. There is no online lodgement route for this visa to fall back on if the paper package goes astray.

Must payment be made before posting, not after?

Yes. The Department requires you to pay the application charge before you post the application, and it will not process the application until that charge is paid. The envelope should contain proof of payment alongside the supporting documents.

A related point appears in the processing section of the same page: applications take longer where the applicant does not make full payment at the time of initial lodgement, and the Department cannot process the application at all if the correct visa application charge is not paid — it will let you know and may return the application. So part-payment is not a holding position that buys time; it is a defect.

Assume an applicant pays the main applicant's charge but omits the charge for a dependent child included in the same form, and posts the package anyway. On the face of the official wording, the lodgement is exposed both to being treated as invalid and to being returned unpaid, and the Department says it will not process the application until the correct charge is paid.

Originals or certified copies?

Certified copies only. The Department's instruction is not to send original documents with the application; only certified copies should be sent. Because the package is travelling by post and may be returned, the same guidance says to keep a copy of the completed application for your own records, including any supporting documents. That self-copy is what lets you reconstruct the lodgement if the Department notifies you that it was invalid.

Certification itself has its own requirements on the Department's certified copy page, and those should be checked against that page before documents are copied for lodgement.

Which documents travel with the paper form?

The form and payment are necessary but not sufficient. The documents listed on the official page include:

the pages of the child's current passport showing photo, personal details, and issue and expiry dates, plus a national identity card if the child has one, and proof of any change of name
four recent passport-size photographs (45mm x 35mm) of the child and of any other dependent child in the application: under six months old, good quality colour, full face, plain light background, no laser copies
relationship evidence for the child and the parent, such as a birth certificate, marriage certificate, adoption certificate, or an officially issued and maintained family status certificate or family book
for children over 16: police certificates from every country where they spent 12 months or more in the last 10 years since turning 16, issued as National Police Certificates applied for under Code 33 – Immigration/Citizenship by the Australian Federal Police, valid 12 months from issue; and Form 80 (Personal particulars for assessment including character assessment)
for anyone included in the application who served in the armed forces of any country: military service records or discharge papers
for a child over 18 at the time of application: evidence of dependence on the parent holding the temporary Partner or Dependent Child visa for food, shelter and clothing, and how long the support has been provided — bank statements, money transfers, rent receipts
for an applicant over 18 with a disability: evidence from a qualified medical practitioner of total or partial loss of mental or bodily function preventing work
for each dependent under 18 applying with the child: identity documents, proof of relationship, and character documents if applicable

If someone is helping, the paperwork has to be declared. Form 956A nominates an authorised recipient for correspondence; Form 956 appoints a registered migration agent, legal practitioner or exempt person to give immigration assistance. Only those three categories may lawfully give immigration assistance for a fee or reward, though anyone may be appointed to receive documents.

What happens once it has been posted?

The Department says an acknowledgement of the application, and advice about any associated bridging visa, should arrive within approximately one month of lodgement. After that acknowledgement letter, the paper application can be imported into ImmiAccount using the application ID, the child's date of birth, and the identity document number (passport, ImmiCard or Titre de Voyage). Importing unlocks online services: attaching documents, viewing messages and status, updating details, applying for a bridging visa, and withdrawing.

Where the child was in Australia when the application was submitted, a bridging visa is granted on application; if the current visa expires before the decision, the bridging visa starts and the child can remain lawfully while the Subclass 445 is processed. If the child applied onshore and needs to travel during processing, a valid visa is needed to return. The Department also notes it cannot provide progress updates within global visa processing times, and will make contact only if something further is needed or when the decision is made.

What does it cost, and is the fee refundable?

The official page does not state an amount for the main applicant and directs applicants to the Visa Pricing Estimator to work out the visa cost; there is also a charge for each dependent child applying with the main applicant, plus possible separate costs for health checks, police certificates and biometrics, which the estimator does not include. No specific amount should be assumed from anything other than the estimator or the Department's current published charges.

From 1 July 2026, a lower visa application cost applies to eligible Pacific Island and Timor-Leste citizens who lodge a valid visa application, recognised by a valid passport from a specified country — the Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Republic of the Marshall Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Timor-Leste, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu. Family members are eligible too, based on the primary applicant's passport. If the application is refused, the fee is not refunded.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is a Subclass 445 application valid if it is lodged online?

No. This visa must be applied for on paper using Form 918, and the Department states that an application submitted in any other way, or at any other office, will not be valid. Invalid applications are not considered further.

Can I post the application first and pay the visa application charge later?

No. The charge must be paid before you post the application, and the Department will not process it until payment is made. Proof of payment is one of the items the package itself should contain.

Should I send original birth certificates and passports with the Form 918 package?

No. Send certified copies only, and keep originals. The Department also advises keeping a copy of the completed application and supporting documents for your own records, which matters if the lodgement is later found invalid and returned.

Where exactly is the Perth processing centre address?

By post: Locked Bag 7, NORTHBRIDGE WA 6865, Australia. By courier: Wellington Central, 836 Wellington Street, WEST PERTH WA 6005, Australia. Both are addressed to the Department of Home Affairs, Child and Other Family Processing Centre, and correct prepaid postage is required.

Can the application be handed in at a Department office in person?

No. Applications for this visa cannot be submitted in person, and delivery to any other office makes the lodgement invalid rather than merely delayed.

How long until I hear something after posting?

The Department says an acknowledgement of the application, and advice on any associated bridging visa, should arrive within approximately one month of lodgement. Progress updates within global visa processing times are not provided; the Department contacts you if it needs more information or when it decides.

What if I paid less than the full charge at lodgement?

The Department cannot process the application if the correct visa application charge is not paid. It will let you know and may return the application, and incomplete payment at initial lodgement is also listed as a reason processing takes longer.