IMPORTANT THINGS THAT YOU MUST KNOW BEFORE LODGING A PARTNER VISA Australian Partner Visa for Filipinos (Subclass 300, Subclass 309, Subclass 820 | by Teresa Cardona, Lawyer and Registered Migration Agent 0640100| auspacvisa.com.au
When did you and your partner meet? Have you seen each other in person? When is exactly the date you agreed to be exclusive with each other? When did you start living together? How did the relationship start? When did you decide to get married? Have you met the parents? What are your partner’s favourite food? How about the kids – are they coming to Australia? Do you plan to have children?
These types of questions can give headache especially if all you want is just to be with our loved ones. From the point of immigration –that cannot simply happen because they have to scrutinize first the genuineness of the relationship based on the criteria set by the law.
In this blog, you will find out the things that you must know before diving into a partner visa application.
To start, you will need to understand that those questions are important parts of the visa processing for your fiancé, spouse, or partner to be able to come to Australia. In the end, you will need to work on a simple principle of “don’t claim if you do not have any evidence”. In a nutshell, if you said that you are in a marital or de facto relationship with someone, then you will have to prove all the aspects of a genuine and continuing relationship.
So what do you need to do?
It simple – you will need to document your relationship with your Australian fiancé, spouse or partner to show that you are in a genuine and continuing relationship with each other.
The question is how?
Well, first, you must be prepared to be open to show and tell the Department of Home Affairs all about your relationship with your partner. No secret! You cannot say that you did not want to put a photo of your partner in FB because others may see it. Well, I can tell you now that, in partner visa application – FB posts and status of relationship is one of the best evidence you can show to the Department of Home Affairs. Whatever you put in the social media is a public affirmation of your relationship.
Secondly, you will need to check the Department of Home Affairs website to see the types of partner visa that you may be eligible to apply to be able to come to Australia. . You can type in the search box“ partner visa” to show the different options or types of partner visa. You can also answer the four questions in the “explore visa options .” Isn’t it easy?
Now that you have seen the department of Home Affairs’ website – you can also browse, scroll up and scroll down to see all the other information on partner visa including the processing time, the fees, the requirements and the eligibilities. Just like what other people say – click here and there and you will know everything! And you can get your visa approved by simply doing that! Isn’t it simple?
Seriously, Is it really easy and as simple as that???
The answer is NO! because underneath all those website headings are the complex, convoluted and confusing process and requirements that you need to meet to be able to be granted a partner visa. For example, a partner visa that is granted receives a simple grant letter. Normally one page! It is short, straightforward, and easy to understand. However, when the application is refused, the applicant receives a long, probably 10 pages or more from the immigration detailing all the applicable and relevant laws that you did not satisfy. You will then be shocked about those applicable laws that you have never seen in the entire time of preparing the application. While you refer to the website, your case officer refers to the relevant laws. Consequently, the visa application and supporting documents do not satisfy the legal requirements – hence the refusal!
What then are the IMPORTANTTHINGS THAT YOU MUST KNOW BEFORE LODGING THE APPLICATION?
I listed 6 important things that you must know before making a partner visa application.
1. You must select the correct type of partner visa that is applicable in your situation
To be able to select the correct visa type, you must know the different visa types. There are 5 partner visa types which are as follow:
Prospective Marriage Subclass 300 – also known as fiancé visa – this is for those who are engaged to be married to an Australian, PR or Eligible New Zealand. This visa must be lodged offshore. Once granted, will allow the fiancé to travel to Australia to marry the sponsor.
Spouse(Temporary) subclass 309 – this is for the spouse or partner of an Australian citizen, PR, ENZ who are outside Australia and seeking to travel to Australia and join their partner sponsor in Australia. This visa is a provisional visa that can lead to PR visa Subclass 100.
Partner(Permanent) subclass 100 – this is permanent visa stage of subclass309. Usually granted after two years of lodging a successful application of subclass 309.
Partner(Temporary) Subclass 820 – this is a temporary visa for person who is married or in de facto relationship with an Australian citizen, Permanent Resident, or ENZ citizen. This visa is for the applicants who are already in Australia. This visa can lead to PR visa, Subclass 801.
Partner(Permanent) Subclass 801 – is a permanent visa for those who are granted SC 820, and still married or in a de facto relationship with AU citizen, Permanent Resident or Eligible New Zealand Citizen.
Oftentimes, partner visa is also categorized according to the two stages of partner visa processing– the temporary visa stage and the permanent visa stage. Sometimes, it is also classed depending on the location of lodgment – the onshore (if within Australia)and offshore (if the applicant is outside Australia). Therefore, subclasses 300at 309 are offshore and subclasses 820 at 801 – are all onshore. The subclasses300, 309 at 820 are all temporary visas while subclasses 100 at 801 are permanent visas.
2. You must know at least the basic about partner visa
A partner visa can e temporary, provisional, or permanent visa. To be able to apply for this visa – you must have a sponsor who is your fiancé, spouse, or partner. And that your sponsor must be Australian citizen, permanent resident, or an Eligible New Zealand citizen. Out of the three kinds of sponsor, the Eligible New Zealand citizens seemed to be confused for all New Zealand citizens in Australia. To clarify, the Eligible New Zealand Citizen who can be eligible to sponsor are those New Zealander who were in Australia on 26 February 2001 of a Special Category Visa, and has spent at least 12 months in Australia on an SCV in the 2 years immediately before 26February 2001. Whereas the PR (permanent resident) are those who hold the permanent residency visa; the Australian Citizens are easy, Australian birth certificate or passport should be sufficient.
3. You should also know who can join or be included in the application
Knowing how many applicants are to be included in the lodgment can help you plan especially if there are issues with the financial and complications with previous relationship and custody. On the financial side, the additional applicant in the application can attract an additional charge and requirements. It can potentially delay the processing of the application if the previous partner does not consent to the medical and the travel of the child.
Anyhow, the children of the main applicant can be included in the application except if the child is no longer dependent, is fully employed, has his/her own family or in the case of minor children – if the other parent does not consent to the travel of the child.
In any case, a child can be included in the application even after lodgment but not after the decision is made on the application provided that the child or the secondary application is at the same location as the main applicant. Just like any other visa subclasses, the child or the additional dependent needs to meet certain criteria to be included. If you have any question about this – consultor visit us.
If the visa application of the main applicant for partner (temporary stage) visa has already been approved, the child can no longer be included in the application because the application has already been finalised. The child may however be applied as a Child or Dependent Visa.
If, however, the partner visa application was refused and the applicant applied for a review of decision in the Tribunal – the child cannot be included in the appeal just the same. If however, the said application was remitted by the Tribunal to the Department – the child then can be included in the fresh reassessment of the application.
4. Your sponsor must know and agree to any additional applicant/s
The sponsor’s signature and extension of sponsorship are required for the application. If the sponsor does not agree, any permitted family member cannot be included.
5. You must be financially prepared to apply for this visa.
Applying for this visa will cost a lot of money. The current visa fee to the Department of Home Affairs for a single applicant for a partner visa is $7715. Other than this, there are other costs in the application such as the medical examinations, police certificates, and perhaps in the near future English certificates. The overseas police clearance from other countries such as Saudi Arabia, China and Middle East are extra difficult to obtain. It is a good idea if an applicant can secure a police clearance from all the countries, she/he went to (stayed for 12months) before moving to Australia.
If you are considering getting the services of the registered migration agent or a lawyer, you should expect to ay at least in the range of AUD$3500-AUD$5500 or more. The fees of agents and lawyers are different from one another. In most cases, it will depend on the experience, expertise, seniority, and the complexity of the case. If you need any assistance, contact us for a reliable, qualified, and affordable visa advice and assistance.
6. You must be updated with the changes in the immigration laws and visa processing
If you have read my blog on Migration Plan 2020-2021 and the Partner Visa Changes, you know that there are 72,300 allocated places for partner visa, with those in the regional areas being the priority. You will also know that there are changes to happen next year including the introduction of an English Test Requirement for the applicant and the PR sponsor. There is also the possibility of splitting the application to two parts – the sponsorship part and the visa application part.
Now that you know what should be done prior to making a decision on whether to proceed with a partner visa application, it will be appropriate to ask whether you will do the application yourself or get a professional help.
The professional assistance in this area can be obtained from a registered migration agent or a migration lawyer. The question is are all agents the same? are there any difference with the services obtained from an RMA or a lawyer? How can you be sure that your agent is legitimate?
We will tackle those subjects along with the sponsorship, eligibility for sponsors and restrictions imposed on sponsorship. That will be next week!
