The Department will assess whether a relationship is a genuine ongoing relationship to the exclusion of all others based on history of the relationship, financial aspects, nature of the household, social aspects, the commitment to one another, and mutual future plans. The documents you provide therefore must include evidence of these aspects of your relationships e.g. joint bank account statements, joint tenancy agreements/property ownership, photos, social media posts, etc. Other evidence includes proof of yours and your partner’s identity, witness statements attesting to your relationship, and health and character checks

The evidence an applicant must provide is the very similar to the de facto visa, except that their marriage certificate must be provided. Applicants for a spouse partner visa application do not have to demonstrate that they have lived to together before their marriage (either at all or for a specific time).

The Department will assess whether a relationship is a genuine ongoing relationship to the exclusion of all others based on history of the relationship, financial aspects, nature of the household, social aspects, the commitment to one another, and mutual future plans. The documents you provide therefore must include evidence of these aspects of your relationships e.g. joint bank account statements, joint tenancy agreements/property ownership, photos, social media posts, etc. Other evidence includes proof of yours and your partner’s identity, witness statements attesting to your relationship, and health and character checks.

Applicants for this visa must provide evidence that they and their sponsor have met in person; are personally known to their sponsor; and that they genuinely intend on marrying and living together as husband and wife. Such evidence includes a letter from the applicant’s celebrant/minister/Iman or Registry Office confirming their intended marriage.

Witness’s must be at least 18 years of age and be an Australian citizen or Australian permanent resident. Your witness should have personal knowledge of the visa applicant, the sponsor and the history of their relationship. The witness completing the Form 888 or providing a written Statutory Declaration must provide certified copies of evidence of their current name, age and Australian citizenship or Australian permanent residency (for example a birth certificate, Australian passport or permanent visa grant notification).

Whilst the Department of Home Affairs, only state that you need two witness statements, we recommend that you provide a minimum of four. Witness Statements should also be in either the Form 888 or a Statutory Declaration format, which are legal documents.

The processing time really depends on which visa you apply for, where you are applying from and whether you are applying from inside or outside Australia. As an example, the Department of Home Affair’s average processing times for the first stage provisional Partner Visa (subclass 820) is 17 – 24 months and the second stage permanent partner visa (subclass 801) is 15 to 22 months.

Applications which are complete and decision ready (inclusive of medicals and character checks) are generally given priority both inside and outside Australia. This means that applicants who are considered low-risk (home country) and have lodged a well-prepared application will increase the chances of having the visa granted sooner, in some cases within 6-9 months after lodgement.

If your partner visa application is lodged in Australia, then generally your application will be processed by case officers in Australia. For applicants located outside of Australia, their applications are generally allocated to the closest processing centre to their home country.

You need to be OUTSIDE Australia when you lodge your application visa and also OUTSIDE Australia when the application is granted.

If you are applying for the Subclass 820 and you have a valid Visa which allows you to lodge INSIDE Australia, then you need to be INSIDE Australia when you lodge your application.

You need to be outside Australia when you lodge your application visa and also outside Australia when the application is granted.

From 01 July 2018, all Partner and Prospective Marriage visas must be lodged online. Paper applications will only be accepted with prior approval from the Department of Home Affairs in limited circumstances.

The Department of Home Affairs often do not advise clients when they are eligible to apply for their permanent partner visa. As such we recommend that you keep record of the date two years ahead of your first partner visa application. Mark in on your calendar, set a reminder or contact us and we will advise you on what the next steps are.

The Department of Home Affairs will consider the financial aspects of your relationship when determining whether or not a couple are in a genuine and continuing relationship. The financial aspects of the relationship may be evidenced by joint loan agreements, joint property ownership, joint bank accounts, joint financial obligations, sharing day to day household expenses etc. For this reason, you and your partner should expect to provide detailed financial information as part of your Partner Visa application.

The Department of Home Affairs require that you provide you travel history (including dates, location and reason for travel) and all your residential addresses for the past 10 years. We understand that this can be challenging for some clients as they may have travelled extensively but your complete travel record is very important, and it is essential that the information you give is as accurate as possible.

A bridging visa is a non-substantive visa that allows you to stay lawfully in Australia from after you have lodged a visa application to when you are granted a substantive visa. The Bridging Visa does not come into effect though until the visa you were holding at the time of lodgement expires. For example, if you a student visa and you lodge a Partner Visa (Subclass 820/801) while in Australia, you will be granted a Bridging Visa A which will only come into effect after your student visa expires. You can then stay in Australia on the bridging visa until your Partner Visa is granted.

A bridging visa is a visa which allows you to stay lawfully in Australia when you lodge a Partner Visa (Subclass 820/801) application until it is granted. You can only receive a Bridging Visa if you are in Australia on a substantive visa, when you lodge the partner visa. Your Bridging Visa will only come into effect once your substantive visa expires and will remain in effect until your partner visa is granted.

You will not be able to get a bridging visa if you applied for the Partner Visa (309/100) while overseas.

Yes, if you have lodged a Partner Visa (Subclass 820/801) application while in Australia on a substantive visa, you will be granted a Bridging Visa A which automatically comes with full rights. Then once your Provisional Partner Visa is granted, you will have full work rights and this continues on after you have your permanent residency.

You do not have automatic work rights if you were not holding a substantive visa when you applied for the Partner Visa. In this case you will have to show to the Department of Home Affairs that you will be in financial hardship if you are not able to work and to apply for a new bridging visa with work rights.

Yes. If the visa you are holding has conditions imposed (eg work limitations, study limitations, etc) then you must continue to abide by them until your visa expires. For example, if you are holding a student visa when you apply for your partner visa, then you must continue to meet those visa conditions. The Bridging Visa A will become effective only after your student visa expires.

If you and your partner have been in a long-term relationship, you may request (at the time of application) to be considered for permanent residency immediately after the provisional Partner Visa is granted. The Department of Home Affairs consider a long-term relationship to be one that is over three years duration or over two years with a dependent child of the relationship.

It is a common Partner Visa misconception that partners cannot see each other until the Partner Visa is granted. If yours is an Offshore application, you can apply for a Visitor Visa during the processing period.

The Partner Visa (Subclass 820/801) application charge, whether you apply from onshore or offshore, is $7,160. If you hold a Prospective Marriage Visa, the visa application charge is $1,170. In addition, you also need to factor in the cost of the Department’s online surcharge fee, Health Checks, Police Clearances, Translation Fees and Migration Agent Fees (if you choose to use an agent).

The answer to that is dependent on your own circumstances. If after seeking advice, your application is deemed to be straight forward by a Registered Migration Agent, then you may consider preparing the application yourself.

However, we would say “No” to lodging your own Partner Visa Application if any complex issues with your case have been identified by a us or another Registered Migration Agent.

A Registered Migration Agent is someone who is legally allowed to give immigration and visa advice in Australia. They have knowledge of Australia’s Immigration Law and Policy. Their qualifications have been approved by the Office of the Migration Agents Registration Authority (MARA), and they have been given a listed number.

To be granted a Partner Visa as a de facto partner (opposite-sex or same-sex), you and your sponsor must show that you have been in a committed de facto relationship for the entire 12 months immediately prior to lodging your application. You may still be eligible to apply if you and your partner have compelling and compassionate circumstances which prevented you from living together temporarily during that 12-month period. Importantly, those circumstances need to be beyond your control.

If you have spent some time living apart from your partner, it is best to get professional advice as to whether you meet the 12 months de facto relationship requirement.

Yes, in some circumstances. There is provision for you (or your sponsor) to apply for a de facto partner visa, if you have been living with your current partner for more than 12 months. If you (or your sponsor) have been legally separated but are not yet legally divorced, and you meet the 12-month residence requirement as well as satisfying the other visa criteria, then you may be eligible to apply for a partner visa. Ideally, you should be able to show that you are in the process of finalising the divorce with your ex-partner.

It is possible to include children from a previous de facto relationship or marriage as secondary applicants in a Prospective Marriage visa application or Partner Visa application.

It is a mandatory requirement that your partner advise the Department of Home Affairs of all their children, no matter their age or circumstances, regardless of whether they will be included in the application or not.

Importantly, If your partner has a child aged under 18 years of age and is being included in their partner visa application, the other non-migrating parent must provide written consent to the child’s migration. Alternatively, your partner can produce official legal documents from their home country to prove that they have sole rights and access to the child to the exclusion of the other parent.

Alternatively, if your partner’s child is aged over 18 years of age and is migrating with your partner, they the child must be financially dependent on your partner e.g. studying full time, not working, all support is from your partner.

Notably, all dependent children, whether they are migrating with your partner or not, are usually required to undertake a visa medical examination. This is important because of the “one fails, all fails” rule, meaning that if your partner’s dependent child fails to meet the health criteria, then your partner will also be deemed to not meet the health criteria.

All visa applicants wishing to migrate to Australia whether that be temporarily or permanently are required to meet certain health requirements, alternatively known as satisfying the health criteria. What type of medical examinations required is dependent on the visa subclass as well as other factors such as age, countries visited and intended activities in Australia. As the partner visa leads to permanent residency applicants are subject to comprehensive medical examinations than those applicable to other temporary visas.

Your partner’s visa application could be refused if they fail to meet the health Criteria. Whilst Partner Visas do have a health waiver provision, it is not always exercised by the Department. Therefore, it is very it is very important to seek professional advice if your partner has a health condition or issue before lodging their application.

If your partner’s visa application is refused, your and your sponsor have the right to have the refusal decision reviewed by the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT). If you are in Australia, you will have 21 days 21 days from the date of visa refusal to make the application to the AAT. The fee payable to the AAT is $1,764 (from 1 July 2018). Although 50% refund of the fees are refunded if you are successful at the Tribunal and the visa application is remitted back to the Department of Immigration for re-consideration.

If you do not apply for an Administrative Appeals Tribunal review, you will need to leave Australia after the expiry of your bridging visa, because in most instances, you will not be able to apply for another visa while in Australia.

Unfortunately, if your relationship ended before you are granted the first stage temporary Partner Visa (Subclass 820 or 309), your visa application visa will be refused.

If you were holding a provisional Partner Visa (Subclass 820 or 309) and waiting for the second stage permanent Partner Visa (subclass 801 or 100), when your relationship ended, then you may still be granted a partner visa if you, or a member of your family, were a victim of family violence which occurred during your relationship.

That said, the rules and evidence required to prove family violence is very complex. As such it is extremely important to get professional advice.

Yes, in limited circumstances. The Partner Visa (Subclass 820/801) is one of the few visas that you may apply for after having a visa refusal or your visa cancelled whilst in Australia and if you are not holding a substantive visa. Importantly, the visa that was refused or cancelled cannot have been any type of partner visa.

In these circumstances, there is additional requirements which must be met, so if you have had a visa refused or cancelled whilst in Australia (and/or you are on a bridging visa) and you wish to lodge a Partner Visa application, please seek professional migration advice.

Yes, your partner may be able to sponsor you if they are not subject to the sponsorship limitations.

If your Australian Partner has previously sponsored 2 other partners for migration to Australia OR have sponsored another partner within the last 5 years OR were sponsored as a partner themselves within the last 5 years, then they may not be able to sponsor you.

If there were compelling and compassionate circumstances, such as your sponsor’s previous partner died or left the sponsor with young children or if you and your sponsor have children together, then your sponsor maybe permitted to sponsor you.

Yes, but this is dependent on when your previous partner visa application was lodged, as there are limitations on sponsorship. Usually you cannot sponsor someone for a Partner Visa if you were sponsored as a partner yourself within the last 5 years.

You may be permitted to sponsor if there are compelling and compassionate circumstances such as if your previous partner had died or left you with young children or if your current relationship is long-term or if you and your partner have children together.

Every person wanting to enter Australia is required to meet the character test, which is a set of criteria determined by the Department of Home Affairs (DOHA). The Character Test applies to not only the visa applicant but to the visa sponsor also. If either the applicant or sponsor fails the character test, the visa application maybe refused.

That said, failure to meet the character requirements, does not automatically mean that the visa will be refused. The DOHA does have the discretion to approve or refuse the visa in some cases following consideration of a range of factors and the individual circumstances.

Public Interest Criteria 4020 is very important as it relates to bogus and/or fraudulent information and includes lying on previous visa applications. If you fail to tell the truth or provide false documents the Department of Home Affairs, they may either think that your relationship is false and therefore deny your application or that you lied on your previous application which is breaking the law.

As such, providing false statements on a previous application will leave you in a difficult position with a lot of explaining to do and could possibly lead to a refusal of the visa application.