Four Key Aspects Of Partner Visa Australia

Nature of Commitment – 

Australian Partner visa :

The Immigration Department seeks to know the commitment of the couple. It is vital to know the nature of commitment along with future plans. There are a few other pointers that have to be complied with. They are as follows:

• The onus of proof of them living together relies completely on the couple. The couple is under a legal obligation to prove that they are living together. The applicant in a de facto relationship, must be in de facto relationship for at least 12 months. This 12 months duration must be before applying for the partner visa. The 12 months duration ceases to exist if the relationship is registered.  This rule is applicable in New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia, and the ACT. Several photographs coupled with fair substantive pieces of evidence are necessary. These evidences are essential to prove your relationship to external authorities like government organizations.
• Some weight is aligned to the relationship when a couple makes it official by registering their relationship. If married, you are not bound to show evidence of cohabitation for 12 months or so.
• The degree of the companionship of a couple is looked into. The relationship should depict the emotional support the partners render each other. 

Partner Visa Applications (Offshore and Onshore)

Offshore Visa applications are for those applicants who are residing outside Australia. This visa is for the spouses/partners of Australian citizens, permanent residents, and eligible New Zealand citizens. Some of the Partner visas for offshore visas are Subclass 309, and subclass 100. The applicant can apply for a Partner visa in the following circumstances.

• If he/she is engaged in getting married in the future to the sponsor.
• If the applicant is a spouse or de facto partner living overseas with the sponsor
• If the applicant is married to the sponsor yet living overseas
• Is married and both partners are living in 2 separate countries.

Onshore Visa applications are for those applicants who are living in Australia while applying. This visa is for the spouses/partners of Australian citizens, permanent residents, and eligible New Zealand citizens. Some of the visas for onshore visas are Subclass 801 and subclass 820. The applicant can apply for a Partner visa in the following circumstances.

• The applicant must intend to be to live permanently in Australia.
• The relationship of the applicant with the partner must be genuine and ongoing.

Circumstances causing Delays in Processing:

The processing time for each application differs based on the facts and circumstances of each application. The Covid 19 pandemic has affected the processing time, and applications may take longer to process if:

• The application is not filled properly and completely.
• If all the required documents are not included.
• If any additional information is not provided or the applicant did not respond promptly.
• Verifying the information is a tedious process and may take longer.
• The availability of places in the migration program may decide the time of processing the application.
• The time required to extract information from external sources like health, character, and requirements of national security.

Covid 19 and its impact on the Application Process:

The outbreak of the pandemic of Covid 19 has wreaked havoc globally, and Australia too is not an exception. For all the domestic flights in Australia, currently, no negative PCR test report is required. Several health care measures have been taken to prevent the spread of the pandemic. Mandatory usage of masks, social distancing, and use of sanitizers have been in practice for domestic flights. The travel advice for domestic flights has been uploaded on the airline websites of state/territory health department.  

For international travelers traveling to Australia, there are some rules and regulations. These rules and regulations have been introduced for travelers traveling on or after 22nd January 2021. At the time of check-in, travelers are required to produce a negative COVID 19 PCR test report. The testing methodologies accepted for pre-departure testing are PCR and RT-PCR. It is mandatory to have the test done 72 hours before boarding the flight. Despite negative PCR reports, travelers are expected to follow the travel restrictions.

Only travelers from green, safe travel zone flights from New Zealand are exempt from testing requirements of pre-departure. If the test report is not available in English, a certified translated copy of the same is good. Travelers with negative test results have to mandatorily quarantine themselves on arrival in Australia for 14 days. If the test result is inconclusive, then it will be treated as a positive test result. 

Hopefully, this Covid 19 pandemic ceases to exist soon and makes the world a better place for all. The Partner visa is aimed at bridging the emotional distance of the couples. Also, the Immigration department aims at uniting the couples and establishing genuine spousal relationships.