Form 888, Supporting statement for a Partner or Prospective Marriage visa: who completes it and where it fits

Form 888 is the Department of Home Affairs form a witness who knows you both can use to give a supporting statement for your Partner (subclass 820/801 or 309/100) or Prospective Marriage (subclass 300) visa application. This guide summarises what the form asks, what the visa pages say about witness statements, and why Form 888 is not a statutory declaration.

Last reviewed: 2026-10-14

At a glance

Form: 888, Supporting statement in relation to a Partner or Prospective Marriage visa application
Agency: Department of Home Affairs (DHA)
Edition: Design date 08/26 (checked 2026-10-14) — Printed at the foot of each page as “888 (Design date 08/26)”. Check the design date on the Home Affairs PDF before your witness fills it in.
Filing fee: Form 888 does not show a fee of its own; it is a supporting document attached to a Partner or Prospective Marriage visa application. The subclass 820, 309 and 300 visa pages point to the Home Affairs Visa Pricing Estimator to work out what the visa will cost. Official fee schedule.

What the form is for

Home Affairs says that when it assesses a Partner or Prospective Marriage visa application it must consider the social aspects of the claimed relationship, and that it uses the statements on Form 888, among other things, to assess them.
The form records a third party’s account of your relationship: how long the witness has known each of you, how they know you and how often they have been in contact with you, and whether they believe your relationship is genuine and continuing, with their reasons. There is also space for any other matters the witness wants to add in support of the application.
The pages for the Partner visa (temporary, subclass 820), Partner visa (permanent, subclass 801), Partner (Provisional) visa (subclass 309), Partner (Migrant) visa (subclass 100) and Prospective Marriage visa (subclass 300) all link to the same Form 888.
Form 888 is a supporting statement, not a statutory declaration. Home Affairs states this on the subclass 820 visa page.

Who can file it

Form 888 is completed by a supporting witness. The form says that person must know the visa applicant and their partner or fiancé(e), know the history of their relationship, and be at least 18 years of age.
The visa pages for subclasses 820, 801, 309, 100 and 300 say you must provide statements from 2 witnesses who are 18 or older, know you and your partner (or prospective spouse), and know about your relationship, and that these statements can be done on Form 888.
Those are the only two conditions the form lists for the witness: age and knowledge of the couple and their relationship. If the witness is an Australian citizen or permanent resident, the form and the visa pages ask for evidence of that status, such as a passport or birth certificate.
The form tells the witness that they may be asked to submit up to 3 separate statements while the visa application is processed, and that they may be contacted for further comment or an interview about the information they give.

How and where it is filed

The witness completes the form in English, either by typing into the fields (Home Affairs asks you to open the PDF in Adobe Acrobat Reader) or by printing it and writing with a pen in BLOCK LETTERS.
The witness signs and dates the declaration at question 6. The form has no section for a Justice of the Peace or other authorised witness.
How to submit: the form says the visa applicant or their appointed representative can attach the completed form to the Partner or Prospective Marriage visa application in ImmiAccount.
The visa pages ask you to scan or photograph documents in colour, clearly enough to read, and to save a document of more than one page as one file. They say you do not need to have any documents certified.
Attach each document only once and label it clearly. The visa pages say you can attach up to 100 documents for each person on the application.
If you did not attach everything when you applied, the visa pages ask you to attach it in ImmiAccount as soon as you can. Because Partner visa applications can have long processing times, they also say to update your documents and relationship evidence regularly through ImmiAccount.
The form advises the witness to keep a copy of the statement and all attachments.

Evidence the instructions ask for

Documentary evidence of the witness’s current name, age and, where applicable, Australian citizenship or Australian permanent residency. The form gives examples: a copy of their birth certificate, an Australian passport, or a passport containing a permanent visa.
Question 5 asks the witness to confirm whether they have attached evidence of their identity.
Additional pages if the witness runs out of space; the form says to attach additional details.
For any attached document that is not in English, the visa pages ask for an English translation provided with the original. Translators in Australia must be accredited by the National Accreditation Authority for Translators and Interpreters (NAATI); translators outside Australia do not have to be accredited, but must include, in English, their full name, address and telephone number, and their qualifications and experience in the language.

Where relationship evidence fits

The Partner visa pages (subclasses 820, 801, 309 and 100) group supporting evidence of the relationship under four headings: finances, your household, social matters and commitment. Form 888 belongs under social matters, which Home Affairs describes as evidence that others know about your relationship.
Under social matters, those pages say you must provide statements from 2 witnesses, and list other evidence such as joint invitations or evidence you go out together, friends in common, telling government, public or commercial bodies about your relationship, joint sporting, cultural or social activities, and travelling together.
Commitment is a separate heading. Evidence there must show that you know each other’s background, family situation or other personal details, have combined your personal matters, stay in touch when apart, and are not related by family.
Prospective Marriage visa (subclass 300): alongside the 2 witness statements, the page lists other evidence such as proof that you have met face-to-face as adults since turning 18 and know each other personally, evidence (such as a letter from the person who will officiate) that you will marry within 9 months of the visa grant, evidence that you genuinely intend to live as spouses, and written statements about the history of your relationship.
Permanent stage (subclasses 801 and 100): those pages also list statements from 2 witnesses under social matters, which can be done on Form 888, and ask you to attach a Commonwealth statutory declaration completed by your sponsor about your relationship.
Your own account is a different document. The subclass 820 page asks you to tell Home Affairs in writing how, when and where you first met, how the relationship developed, time you spent apart, significant events, and your plans for the future.

What chat history can help show

Staying in touch when apart: the Partner visa pages list this under commitment. Your own message history can support that part of your evidence, as a separate document from the Form 888 statements.
Events a witness mentions: if a witness describes a visit, a celebration or a trip with you, dated messages in your own evidence that mention the same event can sit alongside their statement.
Shared social life: messages planning gatherings, trips or events with friends and family can sit alongside the other social evidence the pages list, such as going out together and joint social activities.
The witness’s own contact with you: question 3 asks how often the witness has been in contact with you. If that contact is mostly by message or video call, the witness can say so in their own words.

Before you include chat history

Chat history does not replace Form 888. The visa pages ask for statements from 2 witnesses; messages between the two of you are your own evidence, not a third party’s.
Form 888 records the witness’s own statements, and they sign a declaration that they believe the statements in the form are true in every particular. Attach your chat history to your application as your own evidence rather than adding it to their form.
Messages that are not in English need an English translation that meets the Home Affairs translator requirements.
Upload colour scans or images that are clear enough to read, keep a multi-page document as one file, label it clearly, and attach it only once.

Common mistakes

Using Form 888 where a statutory declaration is required. If you apply for a subclass 820 visa while not holding a substantive visa, the 820 page asks for at least two statutory declarations, each made within the last six weeks by an Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen, confirming that you and your sponsor are in a married or de facto relationship. Home Affairs says the current and any previous versions of Form 888 do not satisfy this requirement, and that if this information is not included when you lodge, the application may be deemed invalid.
Providing fewer than the 2 witness statements the visa pages ask for.
Choosing a witness who is under 18, or who does not know both of you and the history of your relationship.
Leaving out the witness’s identity evidence, or, for a witness who is an Australian citizen or permanent resident, evidence of that status.
Completing the form in a language other than English.
Statements the witness does not believe to be true. The form warns that giving false or misleading information is a serious offence; the 08/26 edition states Migration Act 1958 penalties of 10 years’ imprisonment or a fine of AUD313,000, or both.
Splitting a multi-page document into several files, or uploading scans that are hard to read.
Not updating relationship evidence during a long application. The Partner visa pages say to update your documents and relationship evidence regularly through ImmiAccount.

Frequently asked questions

Is Form 888 a statutory declaration?

No. The current form is titled “Supporting statement in relation to a Partner or Prospective Marriage visa application”, and Home Affairs states on the subclass 820 page that Form 888 is not a statutory declaration. The witness signs a declaration on the form itself, and the form has no section for a Justice of the Peace or other authorised witness. Where the 820 page asks for statutory declarations, it points to the Commonwealth Statutory Declaration form from the Attorney-General’s Department.

How many Form 888 statements do we need?

The visa pages for subclasses 820, 801, 309, 100 and 300 say you must provide statements from 2 witnesses, and that these can be done on Form 888. The form also tells each witness that they may be asked to submit up to 3 separate statements while the visa application is processed.

Does a Form 888 witness have to be an Australian citizen or permanent resident?

The conditions printed on the form are that the witness is at least 18 and knows you both and the history of your relationship. If the witness is an Australian citizen or permanent resident, the form and the visa pages ask for evidence of that status, such as a passport or birth certificate. This is different from the statutory declarations some subclass 820 applicants need, which must be made by Australian citizens, Australian permanent residents or eligible New Zealand citizens.

Who submits Form 888 to Home Affairs?

The form says the visa applicant or their appointed representative can attach the completed form to the Partner or Prospective Marriage visa application in ImmiAccount. The visa pages ask for colour scans or photos that are clear enough to read, with a multi-page document saved as one file.

Can our WhatsApp messages replace a Form 888?

No. The visa pages ask for statements from 2 witnesses, and messages between the two of you are not a third party’s statement. Your messages are your own evidence; on the Partner visa pages they can support the commitment evidence, which includes evidence that you stay in touch when apart. Messages that are not in English need an English translation.

Is Form 888 needed again for the permanent Partner visa stage?

The subclass 801 and subclass 100 pages also list statements from 2 witnesses under social matters, and say these can be done on Form 888. Those pages also ask you to attach a Commonwealth statutory declaration completed by your sponsor about your relationship. Check the page for your visa before you submit.

Is there a fee for Form 888?

Form 888 does not show a fee of its own. It is attached to a Partner or Prospective Marriage visa application, and the subclass 820, 309 and 300 pages point to the Home Affairs Visa Pricing Estimator to work out what the visa will cost.

Can Home Affairs contact our witnesses?

Yes. The form tells witnesses they may be contacted for further comment or an interview about the information they provide.

Related guides and templates

Official sources

Department of Home Affairs — Form 888, Supporting statement in relation to a Partner or Prospective Marriage visa application (Design date 08/26) (checked 2026-10-14)
Home Affairs — Partner visa (temporary), subclass 820 (checked 2026-10-14)
Home Affairs — Partner visa (permanent), subclass 801 (checked 2026-10-14)
Home Affairs — Partner (Provisional) visa, subclass 309 (checked 2026-10-14)
Home Affairs — Partner (Migrant) visa, subclass 100 (checked 2026-10-14)
Home Affairs — Prospective Marriage visa, subclass 300 (checked 2026-10-14)
Home Affairs — Visa pricing estimator (checked 2026-10-14)

Not legal advice. PartnerProof turns WhatsApp, Telegram, Instagram, Facebook Messenger, and iMessage exports into dated, chronological PDF evidence you can print and add to your package. It does not fill in or file DHA forms. Try it free →