Change in minimum age for Australian visa biometric

Change in minimum age for Australian visa biometric collection

Australia’s Migration Amendment (Strengthening Biometrics) Act 2015 will come into effect on 16 February 2016. This will result in a number of reforms, including the broadening of the Australian Government’s offshore biometric collection policy to include the collection of fingerprints from minors aged five years and above.

This latest change effectively lowers the age for applicants requiring fingerprint collection from the existing minimum of 16 years of age to five. It follows the implementation of changes by the Australian Government on 29 September 2015 requiring most people lodging a visa application for Australia in New Zealand to attend an Australian Visa Application Centre (AVAC) in person to provide biometrics.

New Zealand citizens are excluded from providing biometrics.

Biometrics collection is done using a quick, discreet and non-intrusive process that captures a facial image with a digital camera and a 10-digit fingerprint scan with a digital finger scanner. All applicants – regardless of age – are required to have their facial image captured. The presence of a parent or guardian during biometric collection is required for applicants less than 16 years of age.

We encourage applicants to submit their visa applications electronically or in person at an AVAC. To avoid incurring two service fee charges, TTS encourages all applicants who may ordinarily mail in/courier their applications to attend an AVAC in person to submit their visa application and have their biometrics collected at the same time. You will need to make an appointment with either Auckland or Queenstown AVAC to submit your application and have your biometrics collected at the same time.

Please note, all applicants included in the visa application must attend the AVAC for biometrics collection and all applicants must bring their passports with them to the appointment.

ENDS

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