Assignee document checklist for work-pass and relocation cases

In short

Last updated 2026-09-06

A work-pass case has two sides and they must not share a checklist: the assignee holds their own identity, qualification and family documents, and the employer holds the contract, the registration pack and the evidence about the role. Dependants form a third pack. What each authority requires, and what must be translated or legalised, differs by country.

Split three ways because a single shared list would send the assignee the employer's payroll and registration documents, and send HR the family's birth and marriage certificates. Neither party should see the other's pack, and keeping them separate is faster as well as safer — each person only sees what they can actually act on.

28 items, 3 stages

The three packs in a work-pass case

One checklist per person: the assignee, the employer's HR contact, and — where the authority requires their documents separately — the accompanying family.

The assignee pack

At case opening

  • Passport bio page

    Full name, number, nationality and expiry, matching every other document in the file.

    Varies by country. Most authorities will not issue a pass that outlives the passport behind it, and several require a minimum validity beyond the intended start date. The exact requirement is set by the destination.

  • All used passport pages

    Prior visas and entry stamps, which evidence travel history and previous compliance.

    Varies by country. Some authorities ask for every page; others only for pages carrying stamps or visas.

  • Current visa or residence permit

    The assignee's existing status, including in a third country if they are not applying from home.

  • Curriculum vitae

    Continuous employment history with no unexplained gaps, since gaps are routinely queried.

  • Degree certificates and transcripts

    The qualification the role relies on, with the transcript rather than only the certificate.

    Varies by country. Some countries require authentication or an apostille, some require a credential evaluation by a designated body, and some require the awarding institution to appear on an approved list.

  • Professional licences and memberships

    Where the role is regulated, current registration with the relevant body.

    Varies by country. Whether a foreign licence is recognised, and what conversion is required, is set by the destination.

  • Employment reference letters

    From previous employers, confirming role, dates and responsibilities — usually needed to evidence the years of experience the application claims.

    Varies by country. Some authorities require these on letterhead with verifiable contact details, and some will contact the referee directly.

  • Police clearance certificate

    A criminal record check from countries the assignee has lived in.

    Varies by country. Whether it is required, from which countries, how long a stay triggers it, and how recent the certificate must be are all set by the destination.

  • Medical examination results

    A health check, often by a physician on an approved panel rather than the assignee's own doctor.

    Varies by country. Required by some countries only, sometimes only for certain nationalities or for stays over a set length.

  • Passport photographs to specification

    Recent photographs meeting the authority's published requirements.

    Varies by country. Dimensions, background colour and rules on glasses and head coverings differ by country.

  • Proof of current residential address

    Where the assignee is living now, which several authorities require for the application and for biometrics.

  • Bank statements or proof of funds

    Required by some destinations to show the assignee can support themselves on arrival.

    Varies by country. Whether it is required at all, and any minimum amount, is set by the destination.

The employer pack

In parallel, from the HR contact

  • Signed employment contract or assignment letter

    Role, salary, duration and location as they will appear on the application.

  • Detailed job description

    Duties, reporting line and the qualifications the role requires — usually assessed against the assignee's own documents.

  • Salary details and payroll arrangements

    What will be paid, in which currency, from which entity.

    Varies by country. Several countries set a minimum salary for the category, often varying by age, occupation or region, and revise it periodically.

  • Business registration documents

    The hiring entity's registration, showing it exists and is in good standing.

  • Employer sponsorship registration

    Where the destination requires an employer to be licensed or registered before it can sponsor anyone.

    Varies by country. Some countries operate a sponsor register with its own application and renewal; others have no such requirement.

  • Evidence of local recruitment efforts

    Advertisements, response counts and reasons the local market did not supply the role.

    Varies by country. Required in some countries, with prescribed advertising duration and channels, and not required at all in others.

  • Organisation chart

    Where the role sits, which supports the seniority the application claims.

  • Company headcount and workforce composition

    Some authorities assess an application against the proportion of local to foreign staff.

    Varies by country. Quota and ratio rules exist in some countries and not others.

  • Authorised signatory details

    Who at the employer may sign the application, and evidence of their authority to do so.

The dependants pack

Where family are accompanying

  • Marriage certificate

    Evidence of the relationship for a spouse or partner.

    Varies by country. Translation, notarisation or legalisation of foreign civil documents is required in many countries. Some recognise unmarried or de facto partners and require different evidence; others do not recognise them at all.

  • Birth certificates for children

    Showing the relationship to the assignee, with both parents named.

    Varies by country. Same translation and legalisation requirements as above, set per country.

  • Dependants' passports

    Bio pages for every accompanying family member, with the same validity considerations as the assignee's.

  • Custody or consent documentation

    Where a child is relocating without both parents, a custody order or the other parent's consent.

    Varies by country. Whether consent must be notarised, and what form the authority accepts, differs by country.

  • Dependants' police clearance and medical results

    Where the destination applies the same checks to accompanying adults.

    Varies by country. The age at which a dependant needs their own clearance or medical is set by the destination.

  • School records for children

    Transcripts and reports for school placement, which usually runs on a separate and earlier deadline than the visa.

  • Proof of accommodation

    A tenancy agreement or employer-provided housing letter for the family.

    Varies by country. Some countries require accommodation to be evidenced and to meet a minimum size or occupancy standard.

This is a general checklist, not a legal requirement

Every element of a work-pass application is country-specific: which qualifications must be authenticated or evaluated, whether a police clearance or medical examination is required and how recent it must be, whether local-recruitment evidence is needed, and which civil documents must be translated, notarised or legalised. This page names no visa category for that reason.

Treat it as the starting list to adapt, not a rule to rely on. The authority that will actually assess the file is the one whose current published requirements decide it.

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Two sides of one case, two links

The assignee is in one time zone and HR is in another, both are blocking the same filing date, and neither should see the other's documents.

  • Build the list once as a template, reuse it for every case.
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Work-pass document questions

What documents are needed for a work visa?

Three packs held by three different parties. The assignee holds identity documents, qualifications, employment references and, where required, a police clearance and medical results. The employer holds the contract, the job description, salary details, business registration and any local-recruitment evidence. Accompanying family hold their own civil documents. Which of these a specific authority actually requires, and to what standard, is country-specific — this list is the starting point you adapt, and it deliberately names no visa category.

Why keep the assignee and the employer on separate checklists?

Because the packs are private from each other. The assignee should not receive the employer's payroll arrangements, headcount and registration documents, and the employer's HR contact should not receive the family's marriage and birth certificates or the assignee's medical results. It is also faster: each party sees only items they can actually complete, so neither is scrolling past a dozen things that are not theirs. In ChaseDocs a checklist belongs to exactly one contact, and the two are tracked together as one group.

Do degree certificates need to be authenticated?

Sometimes, and it is one of the longest lead-time items in a case, so establish it early. Depending on the destination, a qualification may need an apostille or consular legalisation, an evaluation by a designated credential body, or nothing beyond a copy. Some countries also require the awarding institution to appear on an approved list. Because authentication can take weeks, ask for the certificate at case opening even if you do not yet know which treatment applies.

How recent does a police clearance have to be?

It depends on the destination, and it is worth checking before you order one. Most authorities that require a clearance also set a validity window, and a certificate obtained too early can expire before the application is decided. Which countries the assignee needs clearances from is a separate question, usually turning on how long they lived in each one. Order them in the right sequence rather than all at once.

Does ChaseDocs file the application?

No. ChaseDocs collects documents and checks what arrived — it does not submit to any authority and has no government-portal or case-management integration. It also performs no credential or identity verification: the AI reads a document and judges the document, it does not attest that a degree is genuine or that a person is who they say they are. It complements a case management system rather than replacing it. There are also no country templates in the box; document types are data, so a firm builds its own pack once and saves it as a template.

More lists like this on our checklists index, or read For immigration and relocation firms.

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