Getting married to an Australian to get your way into the country? Yeah, that’s completely possible and legal. If you marry an Australian citizen (whether a man or a woman), you will be able to get a visa to enter the country. Living in Australia is a dream come through for many internationals, and this is going to be possible if you marry an Australian citizen.
Australia is a fun country to be in, and its citizens are some of the nicest people around the world to relate to. Moving to Australia through marriage gets you a partnership visa; however, there are further requirements to foster your move – even faster. In this article, we will discuss the main details that would help foster your move to Australia by marrying a citizen.
How to Move to Australia by Marrying a Citizen
It is important to note that in your application for a partnership visa, you will have to provide evidence that you’re either legally married or in a de facto (committed) relationship with an Australian citizen. Also, if you marry a New Zealand local, you may still be eligible to migrate to Australia with your New Zealander partner.
1. Understanding Marriage Visa Options for Australia
If you are married to an Australian citizen, permanent resident, or eligible New Zealand citizen, you can apply for a Partner Visa (also called Spouse Visa) to move with your partner to live in Australia. There are two main categories of this visa type, which are Prospective Marriage Visa (Subclass 300) and Partner Visa (Subclass 820/801).
Prospective Marriage Visa (Subclass 300)
This visa type is available to people who are engaged to an Australian citizen but are not yet married. If you get approved for this visa, it means you have 9 months to move into Australia and get married to your engaged partner. Once officially married, you can apply for a Partner Visa to stay in Australia permanently.
Partner Visa (Subclass 820/801)
Now, this is the main visa you’re looking for, but you have to be married to an eligible Australian or New Zealander. Also, there are two stages of this visa type.
- Temporary Partner Visa (Subclass 820): Allows you to stay in Australia temporarily, live, work, and study while your permanent residency application is processed.
- Permanent Partner Visa (Subclass 801): After holding the temporary visa for a certain period (usually two years), you may be eligible for permanent residency, provided your relationship is still ongoing.
2. You Must Meet Key Requirements
To be eligible for a Partner Visa, you must meet some specific criteria, which are targeted to ensure that your relationship is genuine and that you are moving to Australia for legitimate reasons. These requirements include:
- You and your partner must be at least 18 years of age
- You must be in a genuine relationship with your Australian partner.
- Your marriage must be legally recognized under Australian law
- You both must be committed to a shared life together
- Undergo a medical assessment and provide police clearances for countries you’ve lived in the past 12 months or not more over the past 10 years.
- Original marriage certificate, joint financial documents, and attestation from family as evidence of your relationship with the eligible (sponsoring) spouse.
Also, the sponsorship requirement includes that your partner must be either an Australian citizen, permanent resident, or eligible New Zealand citizen, and must agree to sponsor you for at least two years and support you financially, if necessary.
3. Submitting the Application
Applying for a Partner Visa to move to Australia can take a long while though, but here’s a step-by-step guide on how to go about the processing, and probably reduce the amount of time it’d take to get your approval.
- Gather all required documents, which include passports, identification documents, marriage certificates or evidence of your relationship (e.g., photos, emails, text messages), police certificates, and health examination results (if required).
- Make sure you apply and submit your documents via the Department of Home Affairs website. Don’t pay anyone to do this for you, and be sure to fill out the form correctly.
- Check your email to see when your Temporary Partner Visa (Subclass 820) will be granted or when to submit additional documents, or booked for an interview with the immigration office.
- With the Subclass 820 visa, you can move to Australia and live with your partner. Yes, you will have access to benefits such as healthcare, work pass, and study pass.
- After two years on the Subclass 820, you can apply for the Permanent Partner Visa (Subclass 801), if you’re still with the partner.
How Long Does It Take to Get a Partner Visa?
The processing time for a Partner Visa varies depending on several factors, such as the time it takes you to complete and submit your application, how easily verifiable your documents are, and how many applications the department has to deal with at the time. But on average, a Temporary Partner Visa (Subclass 820) takes between 18 to 24 months to process, while a Permanent Partner Visa (Subclass 801) may take an additional 24 months to process after the temporary visa is granted.
How Much Would it Cost You to Move to Australia With Your Partner?
The price cannot be correctly predicted; however, Australia – while not the cheapest country to live and work in – has quite an affordable cost of living. The fees you will pay to move to the Oceania country with your partner may include:
- Visa application fees up to the tone of AUD 8,000 or more, and there may be additional costs if you’re moving with children.
- Document processing costs for your documentation could reach AUD 5,000 in total.
Conclusion
Moving to Australia by marrying a citizen is one of the ways to migrate to the country. However, the processing and approval may take quite a long time. Also, you need to live with your partner for at least 2 years to get the actual partner visa that solidifies your permanent stay in Australia. We hope that this article provided a lot of insights to your course.