Eligibility Criteria

• You must be in a genuine relationship with your spouse or de facto partner who is an Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident, or an eligible New Zealand citizen.
• You must have a sponsor, who is usually your spouse or de facto partner and must be approved by the Department of Home Affairs. You cannot change your sponsor.
• If your relationship ends or your sponsor dies while your application is in process, you might still be eligible for the visa.
• You and your dependent children who apply with you must be in Australia when applying for this visa and when your temporary visa is decided on.
• You must be 18 years old and above when you apply for this visa.
• You and your dependent children included in your application must meet the health and character requirements. Children under 16 do not need character checks.
• You must not have any outstanding debt to the Australian Government.
• You might not be eligible for this visa if you have had your visa cancelled or a previous visa application refused while you were in Australia.

Relationship requirements

1. Married applicants

To be married,

• your marriage must be valid under the Australian law;
• you and your spouse must live together or do not live apart permanently;
• you must be in genuine and continuing relationship with your spouse; and
• you and your spouse must be committed to a shared and exclusive two-party marriage life.

1. De facto applicants

To be in a de facto relationship,

• you must not be married to each other;
• you and your partner must live together or do not live apart permanently;
• you must be in genuine and continuing relationship with your partner;
• you and your partner must be committed to a shared life and exclusive two-party relationship; and
• you must not be related by family.

Your de facto relationship must have been going on for at least 12 months immediately before applying for this visa. Dating or an online relationship might not count as a de facto relationship. The 12-month requirement will not apply if:

1. you have compelling and compassionate circumstances; or
2. Your partner holds or held a permanent humanitarian visa, your de facto relationship existed before their visa was granted, and your de facto partner told us about the relationship before their visa was granted; or
3. You are in a de facto relationship with an applicant of a permanent humanitarian visa; or
4. Your de facto relationship is registered with an Australian authority, such as a registry of birth, deaths and marriages.

As an applicant for this visa

• You and your dependent children must be in Australia, but not in immigration clearance, when applying for this visa and when your temporary visa is decided on.
• You can include your dependent child or children in the application when you lodge the visa application or after that but before your visa is decided on.
• When lodging your application, you must provide supporting evidence for your claims.
• You must inform the Department of Home Affairs of any of the following changes after you lodge your application but before a decision is made: your contact details or passport, address, your marital or de facto status, the birth of a child, end of your relationship, or request to withdraw your application.

As a holder of this visa

• You can stay on this visa while your permanent Partner visa (subclass 801) is being processed which in most cases takes between 15 and 24 months.
• Applicants who have been in a long-term relationship before applying for this visa might be granted the permanent visa soon after their temporary visa is granted.
• You can temporarily live, work, and study (without government support) in Australia while your application for permanent Partner visa (subclass 801) is under process or until it is withdrawn.
• You can enroll in Medicare, the Australia’s public health insurance scheme.
• You can travel to and from Australia as many times as you want, while your visa is valid.
• You can attend up to 510 hours of free English language classes provided by the Australian Government.
• You are allowed to add a dependent child after your temporary visa is granted through the Dependent Child visa (subclass 445).
• You must inform the Department of Home Affairs if there is any change to your status, including, your contact details and address, your marital or de facto status, the birth of a child, end of your relationship, or request to withdraw your application.
• If your relationship ends, you might still be eligible for the permanent visa.
• If you have a baby in Australia while you are on a temporary Partner visa (subclass 820), your baby may be an Australian citizen.
• You must hold to the temporary Partner visa (subclass 820) to be able to get the permanent Partner visa (subclass 801). It means that if you are granted any other visa, you will not be eligible for the permanent Partner visa (subclass 801).

Who Is Eligible to Be a Sponsor? And what are their obligations?

• Sponsor, who is usually the applicant’s spouse or de facto partner, must be an Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident, or an eligible New Zealand citizen.
• Sponsor must agree to support the applicant and their dependent children by providing accommodation, financial assistance, and other support such as child care and English course, if needed.
• Sponsor must agree to support the applicant and any person included in the application for the first 2 years after their temporary Partner visa (subclass 820) is granted until a decision is made on the applicant’s permanent Partner visa application (subclass 801).
• Sponsor can be in or outside Australia when the sponsorship documents are lodged.
• The Department of Home Affairs must approve the sponsorship.
• For protection of children, those who have convictions or charges for offenses related to children might not be approved to be a sponsor.
• There is no cost involved for applying to be a sponsor.
• Sponsor must be 18 years old or older.
• Sponsor must provide Australian or foreign police certificates.
• Sponsor must consent to the Department of Home Affairs to disclose the convictions for relevant offenses to the visa applicant.
• In certain circumstances, current and former holders of the following visas might not be allowed to be a sponsor:
  • Prospective Marriage visa (subclass 300)
  • Partner visa
  • Contributory Parent visa
  • Woman at Risk (subclass 204) visa
• Sponsor can apply for the sponsorship after the applicant has submitted the visa application and have their Transaction Reference Number (TRN) or application ID ready.
• Sponsor can withdraw the sponsorship any time before the permanent Partner visa (subclass 801) is decided on. In this case, the applicant may still be eligible for the permanent Partner visa (subclass 801).
• Sponsor cannot withdraw from sponsorship after the visa is granted.
• If the sponsor does not comply with the obligations, the visa might be cancelled.
• Sponsor must notify the Department of Home Affairs of any changes to their contact details, address, relationship status, or if they want to withdraw the sponsorship.

Required documents

• Birth certificate
• National ID Card
• Passport
• Change of name documents, if applicable
• If married, your marriage certificate
• If you are de facto partners, proofs of de facto relationship, including a written statement about your past, present, and future plans; documents showing how you and your partner share financial, household, and social matters; and proof showing that how you are committed to a long-term relationship to the exclusion of all others.
• Additional proof of a de facto relationship, for example, documents showing that you have been in de facto relationship for at least 12 months immediately before you apply for this visa.
• Documents of previous relationships, such as, marriage, divorce, widowhood, etc.
• Australian Federal Police and foreign police certificates, where you have spent 12 months or more during the last 10 years since you turned 16.
• Military service records or discharge papers from the armed force.
• Form 80 (PDF).
• Documents of your dependents under 18 years old, such as identity documents and proof of sole custody.
• Parental responsibility documents, such as consent form for any applicant under 18 to migrate to Australia from anyone who is not coming to Australia and has a legal right to decide where the child lives, including Form 1229 (PDF).
• Documents of your dependents over 18 years old, such as identity, character documents, and Form 47a (PDF).
• Form 956 (PDF) if you would like to nominate a migration agent for providing you with immigration assistance.
• Form 956a (PDF) if you would like to appoint or withdraw of an authorized correspondence recipient.

* Fees were true at the time of compiling this document, but they are subject to change. Please contact us for the latest updates on this visa.

Note: All documents should be originally in English or officially translated into English.

Please note that the above content is for general information only and must not be taken as immigration or travel advice. The content was up-to-date at the time of the last update but being current and accurate cannot be always guaranteed due to the frequent changes in immigration law. Please contact us for advice and information on the latest immigration laws in Australia.

Source: https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au

Access: 22 September 2020