Form 956a · Visa support
Appointment or withdrawal of an authorised recipient
What this official form is for and who lodges it. The form itself is only ever the Department's own document; nothing is completed or submitted here.
Dated factual snapshot · captured 2026-07-15
Departmental form summaries: a searchable copy of published facts from an earlier capture. Records are not rechecked for each release and may have changed or been withdrawn. Confirm the current record at the official source before relying on it.
Source: Australian Government Department of Home Affairs. Official source · Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia.
About this copy
Original factual summaries describing what each official form is for and who lodges it. No form fields, layout or text are reproduced; the official PDF remains the only form.
Platform-authored navigation; no lawyer or registered migration agent reviewed this catalogue. It does not assess eligibility, points or suitability for any person.
Purpose
This form notifies the Department of Home Affairs that a person is appointing an authorised recipient to receive correspondence on their behalf, or withdrawing an existing authorised recipient appointment. It is distinct from appointing someone to give immigration assistance.
Who lodges it
The visa applicant or other person whose matter is before the Department; an authorised recipient does not give immigration assistance unless they are separately a registered agent, legal practitioner or exempt person.
When it is used
It is used during visa application, cancellation, sponsorship or ministerial-intervention matters when a person wants departmental documents sent to a nominated recipient, or wants to end or change that arrangement; it is not used when a migration agent or legal practitioner acting as recipient completes form 956 instead.
Visas that commonly use this form
- Employer Nomination Scheme visa (186)
- Skilled Independent visa (189)
- Skilled Nominated visa (190)
- Special Category visa (subclass 444) (444)
- Skills in Demand visa (482)
- Temporary Graduate visa (485)
- Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (Provisional) visa (494)
- Student visa (500)
The official visa page lists what an application actually requires.
Official form
Open the Department's own PDF or instructions page.
Open official form 956a ↗Genuine PDF held here
An unmodified copy of the Department’s file as captured on 2026-09-17 (directory listing dated 2022-05-26, ? pages, 301 KB). The Department may have published a newer version since; check the official link above before relying on it.
SHA-256 f65b6cb515436f2d0d3bf1bcb111e653e106021c6d77cfe192436dd916d27d2f. Reference only: the Department published this file with PDF security.
Australian Government Department of Home Affairs, licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia (copyright notice). Nothing is completed or submitted here.