What is Form 956?
Form 956 lets you appoint a lawyer or another permitted representative to give immigration assistance and tells Home Affairs about that appointment, or its end. Home Affairs’ Form 956 also records an appointment to receive documents if that option is selected.
The Home Affairs PDF, with design date 08/22, requires a separate Form 956 for each matter; everyone listed appoints the same representative and, where selected, the same authorised recipient.
Section 280(3) of the Migration Act 1958 permits an Australian lawyer to give immigration assistance in connection with legal practice, while sections 280(5A) and 280(5B) provide exemptions for close family members and nominators.
Who can be appointed on Form 956?
Form 956 can appoint three kinds of person: an Australian legal practitioner, a registered practitioner, or an exempt person, as listed in Home Affairs’ Form 956.
The table sets out the lawyer and exempt-person categories in Form 956, alongside how Home Affairs’ “Using a legal practitioner” and “Exempt person” pages describe dealing with them.
| Who | Can they charge you? | What Home Affairs then does |
|---|---|---|
| Australian legal practitioner: a lawyer with an Australian practising certificate, acting in connection with legal practice | Yes | Discusses the application with the lawyer and asks them for more information. Sends written correspondence to them only if they are also appointed as authorised recipient. |
| Exempt person: close family member — spouse, child, adopted child, parent, brother or sister | No | May discuss the application with them and ask them for information. |
| Exempt person: your sponsor or nominator | No | May discuss the application with them and ask them for information. |
| Exempt person: a member of parliament or their staff; a public servant acting in their duties; or a member of a diplomatic mission, consular post or international organisation | No | May discuss the application with them and ask them for information. |
An exempt person must not charge a fee for immigration assistance, as Home Affairs’ Form 956 explains. Being your nominator therefore does not allow someone to charge you for acting as an exempt representative.
How to lodge Form 956
To lodge Form 956 when appointing an Australian migration lawyer, follow the sequence on Home Affairs’ “Using a legal practitioner” page:
- The lawyer completes the form, recording the appointment.
- You sign it, confirming the appointment.
- The lawyer sends it in, or it is uploaded to ImmiAccount with the application, as the Department’s National Innovation visa page directs.
For an exempt person, Home Affairs’ “Exempt person” page gives the corresponding process: they complete Form 956, you sign it, and it goes in with the visa application. The signature confirms whom you have appointed; the authorised-recipient choice determines where written correspondence goes.
Form 956 and correspondence: the authorised recipient question
Appointing a lawyer on Form 956 does not automatically send your letters to them. Home Affairs’ “Using a legal practitioner” page says the lawyer receives written communication only if also appointed as your authorised recipient on the same form.
Question 17 and the Part C declarations in Home Affairs’ Form 956 record that additional appointment. Once made, Home Affairs sends all written communication to the authorised recipient, and that communication is taken to have been received by you.
This distinction matters when checking who will monitor requests and decision letters. Acting for you and receiving your correspondence are connected roles, but Form 956 treats them as separate appointments.
To name someone only to receive letters, Home Affairs provides Form 956A. That role alone does not authorise the Department to discuss your matter with them unless they also act as your representative or you give separate consent; see Form 956A: naming an authorised recipient.
Appointing a lawyer for an 858 EOI and the visa application (written consent at EOI stage)
For the National Innovation visa (subclass 858), Home Affairs’ EOI form page says anyone submitting an expression of interest on your behalf needs your written consent and must attach Form 956 or Form 956A. The appointment document does not replace that written consent.
The Department’s EOI is an online form on the Home Affairs website, separate from the later ImmiAccount application. Home Affairs’ EOI submission page says you cannot add information or documents after submitting, so check the consent and appointment attachments before submission.
At the visa application stage, Home Affairs’ National Innovation visa page directs you to upload the appointment forms or a written notice in ImmiAccount. Its “Using a legal practitioner” page explains that an Australian lawyer lodging clients’ applications there uses a legal practitioner number.
Your 858 nominator is an exempt person under Form 956 and section 280(5B) of the Migration Act 1958, and may be appointed to assist without charging a fee. Home Affairs’ “Exempt person” page describes how that appointment is completed and lodged.
Home Affairs does not say whether the EOI and later visa application count as one matter or two for Form 956. The Department’s pages ask for the appointment documentation at both stages, so do not assume that attaching it to the EOI also supplies it for the application.
Ending or changing a Form 956 appointment
Ending or changing a Form 956 appointment involves three checks under Home Affairs’ Form 956 and “Using a legal practitioner” page:
- End the existing appointment using Part B of Form 956 or by notifying Home Affairs in writing.
- Record the replacement appointment: a new representative lodges a new Form 956, signed by them.
- End the old authorised-recipient appointment too, if one exists, using Form 956A or Parts B and C of Form 956.
The third step is important: Home Affairs’ instructions explain that letters continue going to the old authorised recipient unless that appointment is also ended. Ending their role as representative alone does not settle the correspondence question.
Form 956 download and PDF
Download Home Affairs’ Form 956 PDF from the Department’s form listing. The current supplied PDF carries design date 08/22; this site does not host a copy.
Copies on document-sharing sites may be out of date. Use the Home Affairs PDF and check its design date rather than relying on a copied file’s upload date or filename.
Form 956 in ImmiAccount
For the visa application, Home Affairs’ National Innovation visa page says to upload the appointment forms or a written notice in ImmiAccount. This is the application-stage instruction, distinct from attaching documents to the online EOI.
Home Affairs’ “Using a legal practitioner” page says an Australian lawyer wishing to lodge clients’ applications in ImmiAccount applies for a legal practitioner number using Form 1548. The lawyer sends that form with their practising certificate to legalpractitioners@homeaffairs.gov.au.
The legal practitioner number concerns the lawyer’s use of ImmiAccount; Form 956 records your appointment of them. For the application account and document-upload context, see ImmiAccount and the 858.
Frequently asked questions
What is Form 956 in Australia?
Home Affairs’ Form 956 notifies the Department that you have appointed a representative to give immigration assistance on a visa matter, or that the appointment has ended.
What is the difference between Form 956 and Form 956A?
Home Affairs’ Form 956 records someone acting for you and, optionally, receiving your letters. Form 956A records only the authorised-recipient role, which does not itself permit discussion of your matter.
Who needs to fill out Form 956?
Under Home Affairs’ “Using a legal practitioner” and “Exempt person” pages, the person being appointed completes Form 956 and you sign it.
Can my 858 nominator be appointed on Form 956?
Yes. Home Affairs’ Form 956 includes your nominator as an exempt person, provided they charge nothing for immigration assistance.
Does the lawyer on my Form 956 get my decision letter?
Only if also appointed as your authorised recipient, according to Home Affairs’ “Using a legal practitioner” page.
Choosing an 858 visa lawyer to appoint
For an 858 visa, Form 956 changes who Home Affairs deals with: its “Using a legal practitioner” page says the Department discusses the application with the appointed lawyer and asks them for further information.
With the authorised-recipient appointment selected, a written section 56 request goes to the lawyer and counts as received by you under Form 956; regulation 2.15(1) of the Migration Regulations 1994 ordinarily provides 28 days after notification to answer a written request for an application made in Australia, with a different period for someone in immigration detention.
When appointing an Australian migration lawyer for your 858, the lawyer can check that the appointment and correspondence choices match who will monitor requests and prepare responses.
If appointing an Australian migration lawyer on Form 956, check the authorised-recipient choice and who will receive and respond to any section 56 request.