New Australian Requirement for Biometrics

[TeacherBen]

Hi all, I haven't posted here for a while but find myself in a complicated situation!!

 

My friend is coming to Sydney - she is South African but has applied for and lodged her visa application from Indonesia where she is currently working as a Dive Instructor. She has received a letter on her Immi account asking her to have her biometrics collected. The letter states that individuals applying from certain countries will need their biometrics collected - however Indonesia isn't on the list but South Africa is. The nearest Visa centres that do Biometrics are Malaysia or Singapore.

 

We're assuming that she has been asked to get her biometrics because she is South African - can she attend any Australian Biometrics Centre or does she have to attend one in South Africa? We'll be ringing DIBP tomorrow but would appreciate any input if anyone knows anything about this.

 

Thanks in advance,

 

TeacherBen

[Grecia]

Hi all, I haven't posted here for a while but find myself in a complicated situation!!

 

My friend is coming to Sydney - she is South African but has applied for and lodged her visa application from Indonesia where she is currently working as a Dive Instructor. She has received a letter on her Immi account asking her to have her biometrics collected. The letter states that individuals applying from certain countries will need their biometrics collected - however Indonesia isn't on the list but South Africa is. The nearest Visa centres that do Biometrics are Malaysia or Singapore.

 

We're assuming that she has been asked to get her biometrics because she is South African - can she attend any Australian Biometrics Centre or does she have to attend one in South Africa? We'll be ringing DIBP tomorrow but would appreciate any input if anyone knows anything about this.

 

Thanks in advance,

 

TeacherBen

 

I thought (and the DIBP website seems to confirm this) that it was where you lived, rather than your nationality. So, my British father living in France had to do the biometric checks for his partner visa; my British partner living in the UK didn't. Unless she put a South African address on the application, the DIBP may have made a mistake: my OH was asked by his case officer to do a police check for Australia when he had only been on holiday there for 3 months. The CO was quite nice about it when he pointed out the error. Good luck!

[TeacherBen]

I thought (and the DIBP website seems to confirm this) that it was where you lived, rather than your nationality. So, my British father living in France had to do the biometric checks for his partner visa; my British partner living in the UK didn't. Unless she put a South African address on the application, the DIBP may have made a mistake: my OH was asked by his case officer to do a police check for Australia when he had only been on holiday there for 3 months. The CO was quite nice about it when he pointed out the error. Good luck!

 

Thanks Grecia!That's what we thought - it should be where you lodge the application. I'm pretty sure she put her residential address as her parents address for ease - although looking back it hasn't made it easy at all. Do you know if it's possible to get DIBP to allow an edit to adjust this?

 

Thanks

 

Ben

[Grecia]

Thanks Grecia!That's what we thought - it should be where you lodge the application. I'm pretty sure she put her residential address as her parents address for ease - although looking back it hasn't made it easy at all. Do you know if it's possible to get DIBP to allow an edit to adjust this?

 

Thanks

 

Ben

 

You can change your address for correspondence with a Form 929 (or do it online). Not sure if that would help - maybe that and an explanatory letter...? I'm sure the idea of the biometrics is not for people to have to fly halfway around the world to get them done.

[JoseLopez]

Hi! Did you manage to solve this issue? I'm in the same situation, currently in Bali applying for a visa, but if I'm asked for biometric collection there's no AVAC in Indonesia or any other office that collect them. I'mean afraid that if a put my address in Bali I'll be asked for police check from Indonesia even if I'm only for a week.

Any ideas?

Hope you can reply. Thanks

Jose