Check the method and deadline before booking
Do not assume every visa applicant needs biometrics. If Home Affairs asks, read the “Requirement to provide personal identifiers” letter in ImmiAccount or the email it sends. Check the due date, your visa lodgement number (VLN), the passport linked to the application and any location instructions. Follow that letter over a generic country guide.
Look at the start of your VLN
Home Affairs lists the Australian Immi App for eligible applicants in specified countries. To use it, you need a valid passport and a biometrics letter with a VLN beginning AUI. The app asks you to scan passport details and take a live facial image. Check the official country list and phone requirements before trying it.
Check qualifiers beside the location. The current Home Affairs list limits New Zealand and Somalia entries to third-country nationals. Being in a listed country is not enough if its qualifier does not fit you; follow your own letter and the official instructions. Location qualifiers checked 9 October 2026.
If your VLN does not begin with AUI, Home Affairs says to attend an Australian Biometrics Collection Centre (ABCC). An app-eligible applicant who cannot complete the app should follow the letter’s centre instructions. Do not substitute a phone photo or another app for the official process.
Official Australian Immi App requirements · Official centre instructions
Check the scan and photo before submitting
First confirm that your letter and current location allow the Australian Immi App. Home Affairs asks you to enable the required camera, NFC and location settings. For the passport scan, remove the cover or wallet from your mobile device and capture the entire personal-data page, including both machine-readable lines. Review the displayed details and rescan if they do not match your passport.
The official guide says that passports without a chip skip the chip-reading step. For the live facial photo, use a light-coloured wall, face forward and avoid shadows or other people in the frame. You can review and retake the photo. If several attempts fail, read your biometrics letter's instructions for providing biometrics at an ABCC. Do not send identity images or your VLN to this website.
Check that the identity information was sent
Look for the app's final successful-submission screen. Home Affairs says an error that prevents transmission means you need to capture the information again; finishing a scan alone is not proof of submission. You can request an email confirmation in the app. Its guidance says ImmiAccount updates within 24 hours after submission. A completed identity check is not a visa decision; follow any later instructions from Home Affairs.
Keep the deadline, method and follow-up together
Use a separate blank record for each applicant. Keep completed notes on your device and follow the deadline and instructions in the actual letter. No email or document upload is required.
Check the current local service details
Home Affairs contracts VFS Global to operate many overseas ABCCs. Its general guidance says to make an appointment, bring the valid travel document linked to your application and expect a collection service fee. Centre locations and appointment arrangements can change; a local mission page may give a different current procedure, such as walk-in collection in Pakistan. Read your letter and the current service page for where you live before travelling.
At the centre, staff take a facial image and scan fingerprints. VFS staff collect biometrics but do not answer questions about the merits or status of a visa application.
Home Affairs appointment and document advice · Find services outside Australia
Explain the problem through the official channel
Do not silently miss the deadline in your letter. Home Affairs explains that applicants with temporary injuries affecting collection can upload a written request for more time with reasons in ImmiAccount. If you cannot reach a centre or complete the method in your letter, explain the circumstances through ImmiAccount and follow any response; do not assume the requirement is waived. If your location changes during an overseas application, tell Home Affairs.
Where you live changes the next step
- Pakistan: the High Commission currently says no appointment is needed for collection at a centre in Pakistan; check the app option if your letter allows it.
- Philippines: the Embassy describes biometrics for most applicants lodging there; use the app if your letter and current Home Affairs rules make you eligible, otherwise follow centre booking instructions.
- Thailand: Home Affairs lists the Australian Immi App for eligible AUI-numbered requests; other letters direct applicants to a collection centre.
- Nigeria: Home Affairs currently lists centres in Lagos and Abuja. Nigeria is not on its current Australian Immi App country list; check your letter and the live centre directory.
- United Kingdom: the High Commission says there is no Australian Biometrics Collection Centre in the UK; follow your letter and the overseas-services directory.
These are local starting points, not a substitute for your own request letter. Residence matters even if your passport was issued elsewhere. Health examinations are a separate step →
Choose your passport and residence
The planner adds available local follow-up notes and a downloadable preparation checklist.