De Facto or Work visa?

[Guest annabee80]

Hi everyone

My boyfriend and I are hopefully moving to Australia in Summer 2009. He is Australian, we have been together 3 years and living together for two. However, I moved into his flat two years ago and kept meaning to tell the letting agent and landlord but never quite got round to it. We have now sorted this but of course the contract states that i moved in this month! I have phone bills and bank account letters to our address for the last two years and both are names are on the Council Tax bill but we dont have a tenancy agreement that proves we have been living together for two years. Does anyone know if this will affect our chances of getting a defacto spouse visa? Also our joint account was "joint" in the sense that we both put money in it to pay for electricity bills etc but was actually an old account that my boyfriend had already that we used as a join account, but was only in his name. Also all electricity, phone bills etc were in his name. feel really stupid saying all this but we hadnt even thought about moving back and just went for the easy options when we moved in together!

 

I am a teacher and i'm wondering if it is more sensible to apply separately for a work visa myself rather than as a de facto spouse. I cant seem to find any websites that tell me how i cna see if i have enough points or what i need to have to have more points to get a work visa.

 

We are obviously planning on staying together (hopefully) and if we decide to stay permananently in Oz will it be difficult for me to stay there if i have entered on a work visa?

 

Any advice GREATLY appreciated

 

Anna

x

[SD_MOA]

Hello Anna,

From the little detail you have provied i would suggest that you should be able to prove that you have been living together for more than a year.

 

As you are likely only to be isssued with a 2 year temporary visa initially applying under your own skills is an option worth considering.

 

Feel free to contact me if you require further information.

 

Regards

Stephen Dickson

Director Migration Outcomes Australia

Registered Migration Agent Number 0640511

Member of Migration Institute of Australia 2602

Email: stephen@migrateaus.com.au

http://www.migrateaus.com.au

 

[Guest littlesarah]

Hi Anna

 

I was in a similar situation to you when I decided to migrate. In the end I decided to apply for a 175 (independent skilled, permanent residence) visa; mainly because I want the security of being resident from day 1 (& I'm obsessively independent!).

 

There are pros & cons for each visa: 175 costs more than spouse, & takes longer, but it gives you permanent residence (which is helpful when it comes to getting credit). I also like the fact that, apart from supplying copies of my husband's birth cert & pasport, it was all about me & my skills.

 

Good luck with whatever you decide - you'll get plenty of help from peeps on this site (including me, if I can) if you need it.

 

Best wishes

 

Sarah x

[Guest annabee80]

Thanks Sarah, that's really helpful. Do you know how long the 175 visa takes to process? How does it compare to the defacto visa process.

I hadnt really realised that it would only be temporary residence. if we decided to come back before I got permanent residence on the partner visa would i have to go through it all again?!?

 

x

[Guest littlesarah]

Do you know how long the 175 visa takes to process?

My understanding from this site is that it varies! Mine took 10 months, but would have been less if I hadn't aksed to re-do my medicals (I needed to delay my intial entry). If you have a job offer it's quicker, but there doesn't appear to be much lgoic when it comes to processing times! (IMHO)

 

How does it compare to the defacto visa process?

I didn't really investigate de facto visas, as I considered 175 my first choice. However, one of my husband's best mates went through the process in Australia with his partner. De facto is all about proving that the relationship is genuine, so the evidence is around that (our friends had to attend for interview, but I think that's because they were in Aus at time of application). 175 involves meeting points test, so is really only about the applicant. The main thing is skills recognition, which involves a Skills Assessment from the relevant assessing authority. Other factors for which points are awarded include age & English language ability (there are a few more, but I can't remember them - they may not have been relevant to me). I do remember that 175 is more expensive than de facto visa, and I think the spouse classes are processed quicker. I found applying for my visa straightforward, & didn't use an agent. Once I got a Case Officer I found them helpful, rather than trying to make me fail.

 

As I understand it (& I'll happily stand corrected if I'm wrong), de facto visas give the applicant 2 years temporary residence, which is then converted to permanent residence after that.

 

I also believe (but I may be incorrect) that temp residents are not eligible for full Medicare benefits (although emergency care would be covered under reciprocal scheme), whereas PRs are.

 

If we decided to come back before I got permanent residence on the partner visa would i have to go through it all again?!?

Now that I really don't know! I would guess that de facto visas all multiple-entry, but I think most time-limited visas expire when they expire (i.e. clock doesn't stop if you leave and then re-enter) - but I am not at all sure of my facts, so please don't take my word for it!

 

Of course, you could enter Aus on a spouse visa & then apply for an onshore permanent residence visa. I know processing times for onshore 175s are shorter than for offshore. The other thing to bear in mind is that there are more than 2 types of visa. I know this is stating the obvious, but there are quicker & cheaper ways to get to Aus than 175. It just depends on what factors are most important to you - I am completely biased towards my own desire for total independence, & my commitment to making Australia my permanent home. (But then I am horribly willful!)

 

Good luck

Sarah x

 

PS I dare say Gollywobbler will be along to correct any errors :yesxmas:

[Guest SGKG102]

Hi everyone

My boyfriend and I are hopefully moving to Australia in Summer 2009. He is Australian, we have been together 3 years and living together for two. However, I moved into his flat two years ago and kept meaning to tell the letting agent and landlord but never quite got round to it. We have now sorted this but of course the contract states that i moved in this month! I have phone bills and bank account letters to our address for the last two years and both are names are on the Council Tax bill but we dont have a tenancy agreement that proves we have been living together for two years. Does anyone know if this will affect our chances of getting a defacto spouse visa? Also our joint account was "joint" in the sense that we both put money in it to pay for electricity bills etc but was actually an old account that my boyfriend had already that we used as a join account, but was only in his name. Also all electricity, phone bills etc were in his name. feel really stupid saying all this but we hadnt even thought about moving back and just went for the easy options when we moved in together!

 

I am a teacher and i'm wondering if it is more sensible to apply separately for a work visa myself rather than as a de facto spouse. I cant seem to find any websites that tell me how i cna see if i have enough points or what i need to have to have more points to get a work visa.

 

We are obviously planning on staying together (hopefully) and if we decide to stay permananently in Oz will it be difficult for me to stay there if i have entered on a work visa?

 

Any advice GREATLY appreciated

 

Anna

x

 

Hi Anna

 

Personally I found it easier to go for the Spouse Visa. Although my situation is different to yours I would say to go down the Defacto route. This route is very quick and not at all expensive. Provided you have all the doumentation required, statutory declarations from friends and family and proof that your other half can support/sponsor you you should not have any problems. The hardest part of obtaining this visa is collating the evidence and possibly the certifiaction that all copies are true. My visa was granted within 16 days of submission and would have been much quicker had I known about the Form 80.

 

With regard to the tenancy, if you have the Council Tax bills in both your names for the two years that is good but if you do not then you can contact your council tax office and ask them to write you a letter confirming that you have been at the same address for the amount of time required. I had to do this as I only keep documentation for 1 year and then destroy it. However as I said my circumstances are different from yours but at the end of the day I can't see it making any difference to the application.

 

Whilst I appreciate that you will only have a 2 year temporary visa, you can automatically apply for the permanent visa once the two years are up. In fact I am almost sure that this forms part of your original application. You are entitled to work and Healthcare during your 2 year temporary visa.

 

I hope you find this helpful.

 

Good luck whichever route you decide to take.

 

Karen :emoticon-signxmas: