Australia 190 Family Violence Protection 2026: Rights of Accompanying Partners
An accompanying partner on a Subclass 190 (Skilled Nominated) application is not automatically cut loose when the relationship with the primary applicant fails because of family violence committed by the primary applicant. Where the primary applicant has committed family violence against the secondary applicant, the Migration Regulations allow that secondary applicant to continue to meet the relevant criteria after the relationship has ended — this is the effect of clauses 190.311(3) and 190.311(4) in Schedule 2 to the Migration Regulations 1994. The legislative text is published by the Federal Register of Legislation on legislation.gov.au, and the visa itself is described by the Australian Department of Home Affairs on its Skilled Nominated visa (subclass 190) page.
What does the family violence provision in Subclass 190 actually say?
Subclass 190 is a permanent residence visa built around a state or territory government nomination. The primary applicant carries the skilled criteria — invitation, skills assessment, English, points, nomination — while accompanying family members are assessed as secondary applicants. Normally, a partner’s place on the application depends on the relationship being genuine, continuing and exclusive, and a dependent child’s place depends on the family unit holding together.
Clauses 190.311(3) and 190.311(4) carve out an exception. Where the primary applicant has committed family violence against the secondary applicant, the ending of the relationship does not, by itself, stop that secondary applicant from meeting the criteria they need to meet. In other words, the protection is targeted: it preserves the secondary applicant’s position in the family-unit requirement, so that the person who caused the harm cannot end the relationship and thereby extinguish the other person’s pathway to the visa.
It is equally important to be clear about what the provision does not do. It is not a waiver of the rest of the criteria, it does not create a new visa, and it does not decide anything on its own — the claim still has to be evidenced, and the application as a whole still has to succeed.
Who counts as an accompanying partner or dependant?
A secondary applicant on a 190 application must be a member of the primary applicant’s family unit: a spouse, a de facto partner, or a dependent child. De facto and spouse relationships are assessed against the regulatory tests in regulations 1.15A and 1.09A, and departmental policy looks at four evidence streams — financial arrangements, the household, social recognition, and the nature of the commitment. A child aged 18 or over who is claimed as dependent has to show substantial financial dependency, not merely a family connection.
Why this matters for family violence: the more a case depends on relationship evidence, the more a separation mid-processing changes the shape of the file. The family violence provisions exist precisely so that a separation caused by violence is not treated as a simple failure of relationship evidence.
Relationship breakdown, separation, and family violence — what is the difference?
A separation on its own and a separation involving family violence are not the same legal situation. The 190 exception is tied to family violence committed by the primary applicant against the secondary applicant; it is not a general rule that any secondary applicant survives any breakup. That distinction is where most of the evidential work happens.
Two practical consequences follow. First, if circumstances change after lodgement — marriage, birth of a child, divorce, separation, or the death of a family member — the change should be notified to the department under section 104 of the Migration Act, rather than left to surface during assessment. Second, the state or territory nomination must remain in force: clause 190.215 requires that the nominating agency has not withdrawn the nomination, and departmental policy treats a withdrawal during processing as fatal to the application, regardless of family circumstances.
What evidence supports a family violence claim?
The 190 documentation set treats family violence material as a conditional item: where it applies, the file needs the court decisions or the documentation from the relevant professional body that substantiates what occurred. Departmental guidance on relationship assessment also recognises that the sufficiency and credibility of evidence involve judgement, so thin or purely narrative claims carry obvious risk.
Procedurally, a case officer cannot refuse on adverse information without giving the applicant a chance to respond — this is the natural justice step usually delivered as an s.56 request or a Natural Justice / NRR letter, with a stated deadline. These are the moments that decide a claim in practice, and the response should be direct and evidence-led.
This article is general information about how the rules are structured, not personalised advice on any individual situation, and it does not predict outcomes; anyone facing an actual family violence situation should rely on the current official provisions and on qualified professional or support services for their own circumstances.
What else must the secondary applicant still satisfy?
The family violence exception does not reduce the rest of the secondary applicant’s load. Under clause 190.312, secondary applicants must satisfy public interest criteria 4001, 4002, 4003, 4004, 4005, 4010, 4020 and 4021, with criterion 4019 added for those aged 18 or over and criteria 4017 and 4018 for those under 18. Clause 190.313 separately requires the special return criteria 5001, 5002 and 5010.
| Who | What still applies |
|---|---|
| All secondary applicants | PIC 4001, 4002, 4003, 4004, 4005, 4010, 4020, 4021 (190.312) |
| Secondary applicants aged 18 or over | PIC 4019 (190.312(2)) |
| Secondary applicants under 18 | PIC 4017 and 4018 (190.312(3)) |
| Everyone in the family unit | Special return criteria 5001, 5002, 5010 (190.313) |
Health and character are the two that most often surprise families. Departmental policy applies a “one fails, all fail” approach to the public interest criteria: if the primary applicant or any family member — including a family member who is not applying for the visa — fails, the whole application is affected. The significant cost threshold used in the health criterion was raised from AUD 51,000 with effect from April 2024, and departmental policy sets it at approximately AUD 86,000 as at 2026; the current threshold and any waiver for non-applying family members should be confirmed on current Department of Home Affairs guidance.
Does the primary applicant’s own case still matter?
Yes. A family violence claim changes nothing about the primary applicant’s criteria, and a strong claim by a secondary applicant cannot rescue a primary case that fails on its own terms. The primary applicant must have been invited in writing to apply (190.211), held a suitable and valid skills assessment for the nominated occupation at the time of invitation (190.212), held competent English at the time of invitation (190.213), scored at least the points stated in the invitation and at least the pass mark (190.214), kept the nomination alive (190.215), and satisfied the special return criteria 5001, 5002 and 5010 (190.217). Holders of Subclass 491 or 494 face an additional requirement of having held that visa for at least three years unless an exception applies (190.215A).
Policy material adds the operational edges: the applicant must be under 45 at invitation, the application must be lodged within 60 days of the invitation, and the nominated occupation is locked in once the application is lodged. Points are recalculated independently by the case officer, and claimed partner points depend on the partner meeting the skills assessment and English requirements.
What should happen if the relationship ends while the application is pending?
The sequence matters more than the sequence feels fair. Notify the change of circumstances, keep the family violence evidence organised and dated, and watch the state or territory nomination — a withdrawal ends the application regardless of who was at fault. Expect the department to test the claim, and treat any s.56 or NRR letter as the decisive window rather than a formality.
Where the relationship was already under evidential scrutiny, the four-stream relationship evidence — finances, household, social recognition, commitment — remains relevant for the period before the separation, because it helps establish what the relationship actually was before it ended.
If the application is refused anyway, is there a review?
Refusal decisions on a 190 application can be reviewed by the Administrative Review Tribunal (the body formerly known as the AAT). An application to the Administrative Review Tribunal must be lodged within 21 days for applicants in Australia and 70 days for applicants outside Australia, and a bridging visa may be available while review is pending; these time limits should be checked against the Tribunal’s and Home Affairs’ current pages. Judicial review in the federal courts is a separate and narrower step, available only on legal error rather than a fresh look at the facts.
Not every failure reaches review. An application that is invalid at the threshold — for example because a Schedule 1 requirement was not met, or because the applicant is caught by the section 48 bar on further onshore applications — is not a refusal on the merits and does not carry the same review rights.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a 190 secondary applicant lose eligibility if the relationship ends?
Not automatically. Clauses 190.311(3) and 190.311(4) provide that where the primary applicant has committed family violence against the secondary applicant, that secondary applicant can still meet the criteria after the relationship has ended. The protection is specific to family violence, not to every separation.
Does the family violence exception cover de facto partners?
The provision is written for secondary applicants generally, and spouse and de facto partners are both members of the family unit on a 190 application. De facto relationships are assessed under regulations 1.15A and 1.09A, so the relationship itself must have been genuine before the claim arises.
Do dependent children get any protection?
Dependent children are secondary applicants in their own right and must meet the criteria in 190.312, including 4017 and 4018 for those under 18 and 4019 for those 18 or over with substantial financial dependency. The family violence clauses operate on the secondary applicant criteria, and a child’s position still depends on the whole application succeeding.
What documents are usually expected for a family violence claim?
The 190 documentation set expects court decisions or documentation from a relevant professional body where family violence is raised. Because the department also weighs the sufficiency and credibility of evidence, contemporaneous and independently sourced material carries far more weight than a later narrative account.
Does the secondary applicant still need health and character checks?
Yes. Every secondary applicant must satisfy the public interest criteria listed in 190.312 and the special return criteria in 190.313, and the “one fails, all fail” approach means a health or character problem anywhere in the family unit can affect the entire application.
Can the state nomination be withdrawn during a relationship breakdown?
Yes, and it is decisive. Clause 190.215 requires that the nominating state or territory agency has not withdrawn the nomination, and departmental policy treats withdrawal during processing as requiring refusal, irrespective of the family circumstances behind it.
If a 190 application is refused, can the decision be reviewed?
Merits refusals can be taken to the Administrative Review Tribunal, with lodgement windows commonly stated as 21 days onshore and 70 days offshore, and a bridging visa may be available while review is pending. These time limits should be verified on the Tribunal’s current pages before acting.