Partner Visas – Spouse or De facto relationship

• Spouse (married partners – of opposite sex) and 
• De facto partners (in unmarried relationship, including those in same-sex relationship) 

of 

• Australian citizen, 
• Australian Permanent Resident or 
• Eligible New Zealand citizen living in Australia 

are eligible to apply for these visas to travel and live in Australia.

Partner Visa - Sub Classes 

Partner Visa are categorized under 4 visa Sub classes. 
Two of these are provisional and the other two are permanent. 

The appropriate Subclass of a Partner visa application is determined by the location of the applicant at the time of lodgment of the initial partner visa application.

• Subclass 309 – Is a Temporary Partner visa, for an applicant who is off-shore (outside Australia) at the time of lodgment.
• Subclass 100 – Is a Permanent partner visa granted to an applicant who held a SubClass 309 visa while in Australia.
• Subclass 820 – Is a Temporary Partner visa, for an applicant who is onshore (in Australia) at the time of lodgment.
• Subclass 801 – Is a Permanent partner visa granted to an applicant who held a SubClass 820 visa while in Australia.

Partner Visa - Requirements

• Applicants must be married. (recognised under Australian law); or 
• been in a de facto relationship for a minimum of 12 months before applying.

with an Australian citizen, permanent resident or and eligible New Zealand citizen who are generally the sponsors.

• Provide evidence that the relationship is genuine, ongoing and consensual.
• Meet Health and character requirements for Australian residency.
• Meet English language requirement or pay additional fee for English language learning.

Partner Visa - Definitions

Marriage - Marriage claimed in the application must be legal under Australian law. Underage, polygamous or same-sex marriages are not legal in Australia.

Forced marriage - where one or both of the parties has not freely or fully consented is considered criminal by Australian law and offenders could be prosecuted.

Arranged marriage - is not considered as forced marriage, as both parties give full and free consent.

De facto relationships - a genuine ongoing relationship that has existed for at least 12 months before applying. Periods spent while dating is not considered towards the length of a de facto relationship.

Proving a De Facto relationship includes providing evidence of:

• genuine on-going commitment to each other to the exclusion of others,
• Financial aspects of the relationship, 
• nature of household, 
• social aspects of the relationship etc. 

Sponsors

• Sponsors for applicants of a Spouse/De facto visa are their Partners who are Australian residents.
• Sponsors must be settled in Australia, provide evidence of employment and/or financial status 
• and give a sponsorship undertaking to provide adequate assistance to the applicants in settling in Australia.
• Sponsors must not have sponsored 2 or more persons as a fiancé(e) or partner before or sponsored another fiancé(e) or partner in the last 5 years.
• There may be exceptions to this above limitation in compelling circumstances such as death of a previous partner or abandonment of relationship leaving young children or you have a child from the current relationship etc.

Partner Visa - Stages

Applicants are initially granted a temporary partner visa. Generally, Permanent visa is granted after two years from the date of application of the provisional visa.

Exceptions to the 2-year waiting period may apply:

• if the partner relationship existed for more than 3 years before date of application
• or there is a dependent child in the relationship.

Partner Visa – Rights 

• Both temporary and permanent visa holders can engage in any employment, study or business anywhere in Australia.
• They can also enroll for Medicare and avail of other social security benefits.
• Temporary Partner Visa holders can live, travel to and from Australia until a decision is made on their permanent visa.
• Partner permanent visa holders can live in Australia indefinitely and can travel to and from Australia till the validity of their visa.

Partner Visa – Temporary to Permanent

• A Temporary Partner visa holder can generally expect an invitation to apply for a Permanent Partner visa in about 2 years from the date of lodgment of their initial partner visa application.
• Applicants must demonstrate ongoing, committed relationship with their Australian resident partner for grant of a permanent residency visa.
• A permanent partner may be granted earlier if the applicants spouse or de facto partner dies and the holder of the provisional visa has close business, cultural or personal ties in Australia.
• A permanent partner visa may also be granted earlier when a relationship breaks down and there is a child of the relationship or due to family violence.

Please contact eMA by purchasing a MAP to discuss your specific circumstances, appropriate advice and costs for applying for a partner visa.