There have been multiple pieces of evidence suggesting a huge bunch of applicants sending in their requests to the authorities in order to procure a Partner Visa, thereby reuniting with their spouse/common-law partner by transferring them to Australia. However, irrespective of the genuineness and valid nature of these relationships, many instances of rejections have been evident during such applications and candidates have found it really difficult to pinpoint a single reason for these.

Some of the most obvious and common reasons for possible rejection of such applications are as follows:

• inaccuracy or insufficient information regarding one’s children
• inability to clear the test of character
• inaccurate formatting of the final document submitted
• insufficient evidence pertaining to the type of relationship or its basis, for example, not enough information with respect to financial or social aspects
• inability to clearly describe the commitment associated with the household or relationship status
• disclosing inaccurate or false information during the process of interviewing

It’s absolutely mandatory to provide only accurate and verified information during your application to the Department of Home Affairs to increase your chances of procuring a Partner Visa.

Apart from this, there are a bunch of alternative tips and tricks to keep in mind to accelerate your chances of obtaining this visa approval:

[1]   Eligibility Category for Visa Application

It’s important for applicants to be related to a partner who qualifies as either an Australian PR or citizen to be eligible for this. There are a bunch of Partner Visas like:

• Subclass 820 and 801: These are of the onshore type that permits a common-law partner or a spouse to reside in the country provided they’re associated with a citizen of Australia, an Australian PR, or a citizen of New Zealand. The period for residing in the country using Subclass 820 is a total of two years. For extension of this to a permanent period, one can opt for Subclass 801.

• Provisional 309 and 100: These are of the offshore type wherein the former is of a temporary basis while the latter caters to a more permanent feature for potential migrants. The initial residential period for applicants opting for a Provisional 309 visa is about two years. Then, if one desires to prolong this stay to a permanent kind, they can pursue type 100 during this period.

• Prospective Marriage 300: This is suitable for those applicants wishing to marry or are already engaged to an Australian PR, citizen, or a citizen of New Zealand. A total of 9 months is the timeline for a residential stay in the country.

[2]   Preparation of Documentation and Application

A couple of details are required to be submitted in order to proceed with candidate applications, namely, criteria to meet health and character status, personal identity details, passport photos, relationship status, and sponsorship data.

• Partner Visas – Subclass 801 and 820: Those eligible to be added include dependent children or step-children. Apart from these, the exact same visa rights and conditions stand viable for dependent family members.

• Provisional Subclass 309 and Migrant Subclass 100: Those eligible include family members, children as well as step-children. These could be included either post-lodging of the application or even well in advance of the lodging process.

• Prospective Marriage Subclass 300: Those eligible include family members, dependent children, and step-children, whereby the exact same visa rights and conditions apply to all of them.

[3]   Satisfying Criteria to Clear the Process

It’s compulsory that a minimum of 18 years of age has been accomplished by both, the candidate applying for the visa as well as his/her partner who will be sponsoring. Two years is the minimum required period for sponsorship.

• Partner Visa – Subclass 820 (Temporary basis): Through this visa type, temporary residential status is granted to the spouse/common-law partner of the Australian citizen/PR or an eligible citizen of NZ. This is considered the preliminary step towards procuring a permanent status via Subclass 801. It’s important for the applicant to be within the country during his/her application process.

• Partner Visa – Subclass 801 (Permanent basis): Through this visa type, permanent resident status is granted to the spouse/common-law partner of the Australian citizen/PR or an eligible citizen of NZ. Only those in possession of a temporary visa type, as in Subclass 820 are eligible for this.

• Prospective Marriage Visa – Subclass 300: During the time of lodging of the application and while the visa is in process of being granted, one needs to be a minimum of 18 years of age and should be residing out of the country. It’s important to satisfy the health, character, and relationship status criteria and also possess a sponsorship via your fiance/fiancee. In a situation wherein one has outstanding debts associated with the Australian Government, one must be able to repay/prove to be in a position in the future to repay such debts. Sponsors need to be engaged with the applicants and shouldn’t have any pending withheld visas.

[4]   Connecting with the Case Officer or DoHA

The department is authorized to request further details in the form of evidence material or documentation during the application process. In this situation, one shall receive an update through their account/profile on the immi.gov platform, while also receiving email communication through a suitable case officer. A maximum of 28 days is provided to formulate a response to the same. In certain moments, an interview targeting the applicants holding Partner visas may also be requested. During this, the case officer can crosscheck claims in your application and verify the list of witnesses displayed.

• Avoid disclosing false/inaccurate information: You may be asked to fill in details like the dates when you met your partner when you two began a relationship, the timelines when you began living in together, and started sharing financial matters. You are requested to maintain complete discrepancy while answering these and provide accurate, verified info only. To identify errors, consider proofreading. In case a misleading fact/false info/errors are identified, you shall fail to receive the grant and may also be debarred from reapplying in the future.

• Crosschecking before Processing Time: Since the immigration department verifies facts mentioned on a high priority, it’s important for the applicants to crosscheck and verify them themselves well before submitting their documentation.

[5]   Duration for Processing of Visa Application

• Provisional Partner Visa – Subclass 100: 75% of the applications take a total of 18 months to get processed, while almost 90% of them account for 22 months in total duration.

• Partner Visa: 75% of the applications take a total of 18 months to get processed, while almost 90% of them account for 24 months in total duration.

• Prospective Marriage Visa – Subclass 300: 75% of the applications take a total of 18 months to get processed, while almost 90% of them account for 28 months in total duration.

[6]   Unlocking Professional Guidance

This is a very crucial step in order to prevent rejection of your visa application owing to the presence of incorrect documentation or errors, only a Registered Migration Agent will be able to scan through your documents and provide useful feedback and suggestions. It’s important to understand that every candidate presents a varied case scenario and every relationship comes with a distinct dynamic, hence customized guidance is key in your application process.

To conclude, it’s necessary that one briefs oneself regarding details about the various Partner visas and rules and regulations along with their eligibility criteria.