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Character Test Australia 2026: Section 501 Visa Refusal and Cancellation Explained
Updated: 3 days ago
Section 501 of the Migration Act 1958 gives decision-makers powers to refuse or cancel visas on character grounds. The character test is broader than criminal convictions alone and applies both when a person seeks a visa and, in relevant circumstances, after a visa has already been granted.
What is the section 501 character test?
A person does not pass the character test if any statutory limb in section 501(6) applies. These include a substantial criminal record, certain immigration-detention offences, association or membership concerns, past and present criminal or general conduct, specified risks to the Australian community, child sexual offences, serious international crimes, adverse security assessments and certain Interpol notices.
Legislation: Migration Act 1958 — section 501.
What is a substantial criminal record?
Section 501(7) includes, among other things, a sentence of imprisonment for 12 months or more, two or more terms totalling 12 months or more, life imprisonment or a death sentence. The Act contains detailed rules about concurrent sentences, periodic detention, residential programs, pardons and related matters.
Passing the test does not end every character issue
Section 501 contains both objective and discretionary elements. In a discretionary refusal or cancellation case, the decision-maker must apply the Act and any binding ministerial direction. Direction No. 123 commenced on 31 October 2026 and revoked Direction No. 110. Home Affairs now identifies Direction 123 for relevant section 501 and section 501CA decisions. Its published PDF is a consolidation incorporating Direction 123A; check the version applicable to the decision being considered.
Disclosure obligations
Home Affairs requires visa applicants to declare criminal charges and convictions and to answer character questions truthfully. Police certificates, Form 80, a Statement of Character and other records may be requested.
Department guidance: Character requirements for visas.
Review and court proceedings
Review rights depend on who made the decision, the provision used and the person's circumstances. Some delegate character decisions can be reviewable by the Administrative Review Tribunal under special statutory rules, while personal ministerial decisions may have different review consequences. Judicial review is concerned with legal error rather than a fresh merits decision.
For court review principles, see Migration Judicial Review Australia 2026.
Hatewar [2026] HCA 45: family hardship and character refusal
On 11 November 2026, the High Court dismissed a challenge to a section 501(1) refusal of a Return (Residence) visa. The decision under review was made under Direction 110 in May 2026, so the case must be distinguished from the current Direction 123 framework.
The majority explained that Direction 110's community-safety principle concerned protection from harm caused by a non-citizen's criminal or other serious conduct. It did not require family ties and children's interests to be reframed as safety considerations. Accepted hardship and findings favouring family reunification did not make refusal legally unreasonable: [5]–[11].
The majority also declined to infer that medical evidence about the wife's caregiving capacity had been overlooked simply because findings made elsewhere were not repeated under the child's best interests: [12]–[14].
For applicants, the lesson is to address both family consequences and the adverse character case with evidence. A favourable finding about children or family ties does not itself establish that a refusal contains legal error.