457 - not living together - marriage or not - help!

[HelloFrenchie]

Hi All

 

I am very new to this forum so apologies if the below isn't clear or has been answered already in the past!

 

I have been with my partner for just under a year; he has been offered a great job in Australia and the company that hired him is sorting out his visa (457) - and indirectly mine as defacto partner. While we are very serious about the relationship and committed we do not officially live together - he moved at mine over a month ago but has just only started to make the move 'official' (gas bills, bank statements sent to the address etc). I am fully aware that 'defacto' means being more than just 'boyfriend/girlfriend' and means being practically married for at least 6 months - and while it's the way we behave we don't have anything to show other than pictures, texts, emails, flights and holidays booked together. We also have the proof that we were looking for a place together before starting the visa application but that's about it.

 

Additional details: We are meant to move to Oz in January and I am too old for the WHV.

 

My questions are...

 

- do you know anyone who was in a similar situation and managed to get on the visa? Worth noting he is British, I am French.

- what else can we use to help our case? Do we need letters from friends, housemates, owners of B&Bs we stayed at etc?

- we talked about getting married, would this help us considering the tight timeline? He is not moving without me and I am not moving unless I can work...

 

Thank you so much for your help, this is all pretty stressful!

[Kirstyj]

My partner was applying for his 189 visa and me as his partner, because we are not married we to prove we had lived together for two years we had to show photos, utility bills and bank statements, not joint accounts but that we both lived at the same address, hope this helps x

[VERYSTORMY]

For a 457 you normally need to prove you have been de facto for at least 6 months. At the moment it seems you have only been for 1 month. Being a committed couple is not the same.

 

I would strongly recomend you speak to a registered migration agent urgently as at the moment you may face a rejection.

[HelloFrenchie]

Hi there - thanks for the reply!

It looks like it's going to be a nightmare for sure. Do you know how long we'd need to be married for to guarantee the visa goes through? We are very serious about the relationship but 'living together' was an option for the next few months - which again we can prove but is likely to be enough....

[YMCA]

Hi HelloFrenchie

 

Your question- marriage or not is a personal one. From an immigration point of view, getting married with your partner would save you all the hassles of having to prove your relationship with him. All it takes would be a marriage certificate and you can certainly come to Australia with your partner. However a marriage certainly means more than just coming to Australia with him, isn't it?

 

Alternatively, depending on how old you are, if you are under 50 years old and has university qualifications and possess the necessary skills, you can consider skill migration (visa subclass 189/190/ 489). I am not sure which part of Australia your partner is going to be working in. However, you would have to do a point test (scoring at least 60 points) before being able to submit an expression of interest. Only if u possess the skills and qualifications, then you will be invited to make an application.

 

Hope this helps

 

YMCA

[HelloFrenchie]

Hi YMCA - thank you SO MUCH this is so helpful! Marriage doesn't scare us at all - we are very committed but not very traditional I suppose.

 

I am under 50 but having looked at the skills my digital/advertising skills look too fluffy to be included! I will look into this further.

[Peggysue100]

Hi YMCA - thank you SO MUCH this is so helpful! Marriage doesn't scare us at all - we are very committed but not very traditional I suppose.

 

I am under 50 but having looked at the skills my digital/advertising skills look too fluffy to be included! I will look into this further.

 

 

Now I'm worried. We have been together for 5 years and we have 2 separate houses. He either stays at mine or I stay at his!!! Could this go against us?

[Nemesis]

Hi HelloFrenchie

 

Your question- marriage or not is a personal one. From an immigration point of view, getting married with your partner would save you all the hassles of having to prove your relationship with him. All it takes would be a marriage certificate and you can certainly come to Australia with your partner. However a marriage certainly means more than just coming to Australia with him, isn't it?

 

Alternatively, depending on how old you are, if you are under 50 years old and has university qualifications and possess the necessary skills, you can consider skill migration (visa subclass 189/190/ 489). I am not sure which part of Australia your partner is going to be working in. However, you would have to do a point test (scoring at least 60 points) before being able to submit an expression of interest. Only if u possess the skills and qualifications, then you will be invited to make an application.

 

Hope this helps

 

YMCA

There is a little more to it than just meeting the points, passing a sills assessment for one thing!

[Nemesis]

Now I'm worried. We have been together for 5 years and we have 2 separate houses. He either stays at mine or I stay at his!!! Could this go against us?

If you are just 'staying' with each other you may have issues proving you are a couple. What visa are you going for? What proof of a marital,de facto relationship do you have?

[HelloFrenchie]

My understanding is that without bills sent to the same address, joint house contract (both covering at least a 6 month period), joint bank accounts or 'joint big purchases' e.g. car or mortgage the visa is unlikely to go through. Flights, holidays accommodation, communications, testimonials are not as strong. I wold love to hear from people who managed to get the visa without the joint house lease/bills but for now we are assuming our application won't work as defacto, even if we NOW live together.

[VERYSTORMY]

My understanding is that without bills sent to the same address, joint house contract (both covering at least a 6 month period), joint bank accounts or 'joint big purchases' e.g. car or mortgage the visa is unlikely to go through. Flights, holidays accommodation, communications, testimonials are not as strong. I wold love to hear from people who managed to get the visa without the joint house lease/bills but for now we are assuming our application won't work as defacto, even if we NOW live together.

 

correct. You need urgent professional advice. Try Go Matilda

[HelloFrenchie]

correct. You need urgent professional advice. Try Go Matilda

 

We have that, provided by the company hiring my partner - but they are not as direct as you guys!! So in a way the forum is more useful than them. HA.

[Marisawright]

We have that, provided by the company hiring my partner - but they are not as direct as you guys!! So in a way the forum is more useful than them. HA.

 

I may be wrong, but usually the agent hired by the company is working for the company, not for you. They're only interested in acting for the company's interest in hiring your partner and they don't really care whether you come along for the ride or not - I'd be consulting an agent of your own just in case.

[HelloFrenchie]

So getting married seems the better option right now.

 

Does anyone know how long weened to have had the marriage certificate for?

 

Also, does that mean we don't need to show joint house lease, bills etc?

 

And yes we are aware it's not worth getting married for a visa - we'd just be bringing forward something we had considered already.

 

Thanks for your help!

[kittakee]

Yeah De Facto is proof of at least 6 months living together. We provided rental agreements, joint utilities, joint bank accounts as well as the less solid stuff such as flights from holidays and pictures.

 

I wish you the best of luck! I have no idea how long you need to be married for. I'd imagine if you're freshly married upon application it may look suspicious (not saying it is, but strangers probably try this to get a visa) and may require further information such as statements from friends and family etc to show the relationship is genuine.

 

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[Marisawright]

Now I'm worried. We have been together for 5 years and we have 2 separate houses. He either stays at mine or I stay at his!!! Could this go against us?

@Peggysue100 - Yes, it might well do.

 

"De facto" is the equivalent of marriage, except that you haven't bothered (or don't believe in) having an official ceremony. You're not de facto if you're sleeping together but still not 100% sure you want to spend the rest of your lives together.

 

If there are good reasons why you can't live together, and you can make a good case, then it's not a problem. For instance, if the husband has taken an overseas contract and the wife and family can't follow because of the children's education.

 

So it will come down to the question of why you haven't moved in together - and whether Immigration thinks that's a convincing reason. I'd be worried Immigration would think there's still some uncertainty about your commitment to each other, given that neither of you feels secure enough to sell your houses and buy one together.

Edited September 2, 2016 by Marisawright

[YMCA]

There is a little more to it than just meeting the points, passing a sills assessment for one thing!

 

Thanks Nemesis, you are absolutely right. Any intending applicants prior to submitting an expression of interest for 189/190/489 should obtain a satisfactory skill assessment, apart from the English language test.

 

so hard to remember to include everything you want to say in a forum.

 

All the best to you, Hello Frenchie.

 

YMCA

Registered Migration Agent

MARN: 1685514

61467 402 877

[Peggysue100]

My understanding is that without bills sent to the same address, joint house contract (both covering at least a 6 month period), joint bank accounts or 'joint big purchases' e.g. car or mortgage the visa is unlikely to go through. Flights, holidays accommodation, communications, testimonials are not as strong. I wold love to hear from people who managed to get the visa without the joint house lease/bills but for now we are assuming our application won't work as defacto, even if we NOW live together.

 

What happened to old fashioned values - we are not moving in together until we are married. Oh my goodness this thread has now made me reconsider the whole thing. I have a daughter and he has twins and they all call us mum and dad and yet we will not be regarded as a couple - unreal.

[Guest]

What happened to old fashioned values - we are not moving in together until we are married. Oh my goodness this thread has now made me reconsider the whole thing. I have a daughter and he has twins and they all call us mum and dad and yet we will not be regarded as a couple - unreal.

 

For a de-facto visa you pretty much have to be living together. As soon as you get married it is completely different.

 

There are no visas for 'couples' - only those that are married or in a relationship that in Australian law is the same as marriage i.e. de facto.

 

You can also get a prospective marriage visa so there is really no issue for those with so-called 'old fashioned' values.

 

But if you are more inclined to the 'modern new-fangled ways' (as my parents would say) then you do not have to get married but there is a lot more involved in proving the relationship.

[Bungo]

So getting married seems the better option right now.

 

Does anyone know how long weened to have had the marriage certificate for?

 

Also, does that mean we don't need to show joint house lease, bills etc?

 

And yes we are aware it's not worth getting married for a visa - we'd just be bringing forward something we had considered already.

 

Thanks for your help!

 

 

I would not expect that getting married a week (say) before lodging a visa application would necessarily solve the problem. Married couples are asked for evidence quite often. I personally don't think that they are as rigid over the six month thing for defactos as others appear to be thinking, but I also don't think a quick wedding would fix it. It could even attract attention by looking suspicious.

 

What happened to old fashioned values - we are not moving in together until we are married. Oh my goodness this thread has now made me reconsider the whole thing. I have a daughter and he has twins and they all call us mum and dad and yet we will not be regarded as a couple - unreal.

 

It isn't really to do with being old fashioned. The defacto provisions are there because some people don't believe in marriage and some people, like those in same sex relationships, might not even be allowed to get married where they live. So as to not discriminate against those groups there are provisions for defacto couples. Defacto couples live shared lives and are married in all but name.

 

If you are maintaining two houses down the road from each other, then you are not yet at the point where it could be said you are fully sharing your lives. Married couples don't typically choose to run two households across town. A married couple living thousands of miles apart on a temporary basis due to work probably could satisfy the criteria.