Visa processing has shifted from near-standstill to full speed ahead — and while that’s great news, it has also brought some ‘side effects’. One of them is a growing number of cases where visas are overwritten (see our earlier article: A wave of migration invitations and approvals — do this step right after lodging or receiving your visa, or all your efforts could be wasted…).

Today’s reminder is about another issue you need to know:‘Criminal’ records

Because recently, the Newstars migration agent and lawyer team has received multiple similar requests for help:Applicants who did not truthfullydeclare family or domestic violence order (DVO) or any other orders,when lodging their visa application — and the case officer found the relevant records during processing and requested a response.

After understanding the background of these cases, we found that many of these peoplegenuinely forgotrather than deliberately concealing the information.

If you did declare, you’ll need to be prepared to provide follow-up explanations —

and will almost certainly be asked to respond, especially for migration visas —including the full circumstances at the time, along with an explanation and evidence demonstrating you meet the character test under PIC 4001 public interest criterion

character test

If you didn’t declare and it’s discovered, the severity and complexity doubles

If you did not declare at the time of lodgementand it is later discovered, you’ll still need to provide an explanation —but the severity and complexity of the situation doubles, and mishandling it could result in a visa refusal plus a PIC 4020 finding.

The image below shows the request received in one such case

So, a split-second tick of a box

could have very serious consequences

This deserves a strong reminder

Why

Australia — domestic violence — strict enforcement

Over the past few years, Australia hasadopted an increasingly strict approach to domestic violence,with a wide range of laws and regulations designed to protect and prevent victims.

On the migration side —

for example, the spousal migration reform that was nearly finalised a year or two agorequired sponsors to first obtain sponsorship approval before a visa could be lodged,and although that reform has not been implemented to date, its core focus wasscrutinising whether sponsors had a criminal or domestic violence history,to help protect sponsored applicants in advance.

The Form 80, which is required for most visa applications, and the online application formhave also been updated to specifically list domestic-violence-related questions as a separate section.

So if

Convicted

you have been involved in a family or domestic violence offence in Australia,and were convicted, there will definitely be a record on file —it will be noted in your AFP check, and deliberately failing to declare it is simply burying your head in the sand.Regardless of what visa you held at the time, or what visa you apply for in the future,there will be very serious consequences, and the chance of being granted another visa is low.

Those who have recently come to us for help are people whowere not convicted — some were not even charged —yet records still exist and were uncovered,which is exactly what we want to explain in detail today.

Scenario 1

A couple gets into a minor argument and calls the police.The officer issues a domestic violence order on the spot —they realise things have escalated too far,make a request and apply to have it withdrawn; or it seems to just fade away with no further consequences. Do I still need to declare it?

Yes —an order has already been issued.

Scenario 2

Police arrive and issue a Domestic Violence Order (DVO) on the spot, and the applicant is also required to attend court.With professional assistance, they are not convictedand there appear to be no other consequences. Do I still need to declare it?

Yes —the record will remain permanently.

Scenario 3

I vaguely remember something involving domestic violence, but my most recent AFP checkdid not show anything— it still says ‘no criminal record’. Do I still need to declare it?

Yes —if you were not charged or convicted, the AFP may not show it, but the case officer can still access the records.

Scenario 4

This happened7 or 8 years ago. I subsequently applied fora student visa and didn’t declare it on the Form 80 — and the visa was granted. Do I need to declare it for this migration visa application?

Yes —the record remains permanently on file, and the old Form 80 did not specifically list domestic violence as a separate question — the new Form 80 does.

Scenario 5

I’m applying for a student visa / Subclass 485, not a migration visa — will they scrutinise it this closely? Do I need to declare it?

We recommend declaring.When processing temporary visas,the case officer may not pull detailed records,but that doesn’t mean the review standard is more lenient,nor does it mean there is no record.For migration visas, we won’t say 100% — but more than 99% of cases will be investigated with a subsequent request for explanation.

As mentioned above,if you fail to declare and it is later discovered, the consequences will be significantly worse— your application may be specifically assigned to a character team for review. So no matter the visa type, please declare truthfully.

Scenario 6

My visaapplication has already been lodged, and I only saw your article now. What do I do?Do I need to add a declaration?

You’ll not only need toadd the declaration— you’ll also need toprepare a thorough response. Do not treat this casually.

You can contact the Newstars professional migration agents and lawyer team —we already have several cases where we’ve successfully explained the situation.

Impulsiveness is the enemy — but forgetting that impulsive moment can cost you even more

Today’s article covers aseemingly trivial detail in a visa application — the kind of tick-box that takes only a second.

As some clients have told us: ‘I honestly forgot — it was just a few words exchanged, and it was over quickly, so it didn’t even cross my mind when filling in the form.’

Just because you think ‘it’s fine’ doesn’t mean it didn’t happen. If it happened, there’s a record —even if you weren’t convicted, or even charged; even if you didn’t pay attention to it, or thought it was resolved and done with at the time — as long as a DVO was issued, you will need to explain it and prepare the relevant materials and statement.

Take this seriously, or the long-term consequences can be severe.

If you’re unsure, need to rectify the situation, need to provide an explanation, or have concerns about other ‘criminal’ matters, we recommend reaching out to our customer service team below — we’ll arrange a professional to assist you!

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