VisaAustralia expands visa biometrics in India for applications lodged from 26 October
Applicants should follow their Home Affairs request letter to determine whether to attend a collection centre or use the Australian Immi App.
Official source date: 2026-10-26
Edited and checked by the VisaWand editorial team
New applications in India come within the expanded process
Australia’s High Commission in New Delhi says biometric collection requirements expanded in India from 26 October 2026. People lodging new Australian visa applications there from that date may be asked for fingerprints and a facial image. The notice expressly says applications already submitted are unaffected by this new requirement. The relevant distinction is therefore the application’s lodgement date and the department’s instructions, not simply whether someone plans to travel after October.
The High Commission describes the change as part of expansion to nearly sixty countries. It says Home Affairs will advise applicants who must provide biometrics and explain whether they need an Australian Biometrics Collection Centre or can use the Australian Immi App. Eligible previous collection-centre users with a valid passport may have the digital option at no cost. This does not mean that every applicant in India automatically qualifies for the app or must book a centre without receiving instructions.
The request letter determines the digital option
Home Affairs’ Australian Immi App guidance requires a biometric request letter carrying a Visa Lodgement Number beginning with AUI, together with a valid passport. If the number does not begin with AUI, the guidance directs the applicant to attend a collection centre. Use that official app page to check the letter and device requirements before downloading software or assuming that a prior visa grant removes the new identity step.
The device needs internet access, camera permission, near-field communication capability and location services available to the app. The sequence is to enter the individual lodgement number, scan passport information, check the captured details, take the applicant photograph and submit the identity check. Each family member has a separate number. An illustrative family application could therefore involve different instructions for different people; entering one parent’s number for everyone would not complete each person’s required identity submission.
Collection-centre attendance has separate document and service costs
The department’s general Biometrics guidance says collection centres charge a service fee. It instructs applicants to bring the valid travel document linked to their visa application; without it, the service provider generally cannot collect the biometrics. Follow the appointment instructions in the actual request, and establish the local service charge before attending. No single India-wide collection price was verified in the government resources reviewed for this report.
The same guidance makes clear that the collection provider does not answer visa-application questions. A question about eligibility, an unresolved request or the decision belongs with Home Affairs, rather than being inferred from a booked biometric appointment. If a person applied offshore and is now in Australia, the department says to tell the relevant office in the country of application. A change of location should therefore be reported instead of assuming an overseas collection request has disappeared.
Check the application messages and outstanding actions
The official After you apply instructions explain how to use ImmiAccount to check messages, application status and required actions. Expand the application, open its details and review the correspondence. The actions area can identify biometric collection alongside other requests such as supporting documents or health examinations. Use this page to locate the request that determines the next step, rather than rely solely on an agent’s verbal summary.
Where more documents or statements are requested, the same guidance explains uploading them through Attach documents under the relevant application. Keep the request and submission records together so it is clear which requirement has been answered. A biometric check establishes identity information; it does not itself answer an unrelated document request or prove that the visa has been granted. Check the deadline written in the individual correspondence, because the India announcement does not set one universal response date for every applicant.
Completion is distinct from a visa decision
The High Commission says processing times are not expected to be affected where applicants complete requested biometrics promptly. That is an operational expectation, not a guaranteed decision date or approval. A traveller with a fixed departure should therefore identify the outstanding request early and complete the authorised method rather than assume the biometrics expansion changes the underlying visa eligibility rules.
If the app or appointment route cannot be completed, use the instructions in the request letter and the relevant departmental support channel before the response period expires. Retain the passport used for the application, the letter, any appointment record and confirmation of the completed step. The immediate task is to satisfy the specific identity requirement and check remaining application actions; paying a visa charge or completing one biometric appointment is not evidence of permission to board or enter Australia.
