South African police clearance for Australia

Who needs a South African police certificate

The Department of Home Affairs applies a character requirement to most permanent and many temporary visas, including skilled (subclass 189, 190, 491), partner and parent visas. Its standard rule is a police certificate from every country where you have spent a total of 12 months or more in the last 10 years since turning 16. For most South African applicants, that includes South Africa. Each family member included in the application who meets the rule needs their own.

Your visa's document checklist in ImmiAccount is the final word on what you must provide and when — some applicants are asked for police certificates at lodgement, others only when the case officer requests them.

Do you need an apostille for Australia?

For the visa character requirement, applicants upload a copy of the SAPS certificate to ImmiAccount, and Home Affairs does not generally ask for an apostille on the police certificate. An apostille is sometimes requested by other bodies — a state authority, a skills-assessment body or an employer — and if so it is R1,650 and we add it in the same run. Note that DIRCO will only apostille a police clearance that is less than six months old.

Getting fingerprinted in Australia

SAPS accepts fingerprints taken at a police station in the country where you live or at the South African embassy. In Australia, not every police service still fingerprints members of the public, so many people use an accredited private fingerprinting service. The South African High Commission in Canberra works by appointment only. Ink prints on paper — SAPS does not process scanned or electronic prints. Full detail: the SAPS fingerprint form.

Timing

SAPS states about 15 working days once your application reaches Pretoria, and has noted a current backlog — so allow two to four weeks or more, plus courier time each way. If your visa requires certificates at lodgement, start well before you plan to lodge.

How we do it

1. We send you the formThe fingerprint form, the application form and a short note for whoever takes your prints.
2. You get fingerprinted in AustraliaInk prints, fully rolled — see where to get prints taken.
3. You courier the originals to usFingerprint form, application form and a certified copy of your ID or passport.
4. We submit, track and collectWe pay the SAPS fee at cost (R190), lodge the application in Pretoria, track it and collect it.
5. We courier it to youZone 4 (Asia, Australia and rest of world) courier to Australia is R1,300.

You can also post an application to SAPS yourself — SAPS accepts applications directly from abroad. People use us so that someone in Pretoria checks the file before it goes in, follows it up, and collects it before the three-month collection deadline.

Sources: Australian Department of Home Affairs, character and police certificate requirements; South African High Commission, Canberra; SAPS, Applying for a Police Clearance Certificate. Checked 23 October 2026. Rules change — confirm with the authority handling your application.

Frequently asked questions