Mark Northam
Members-
Posts
134 -
Joined
-
Last visited
-
Days Won
2
Mark Northam last won the day on June 23 2016
Mark Northam had the most liked content!
Recent Profile Visitors
The recent visitors block is disabled and is not being shown to other users.
Mark Northam's Achievements
Senior Member (4/6)
42
Reputation
-
Hi Sim1 - If you're planning on your mother applying onshore, this can be tricky as the visas that would be processed in any reasonable time are the contributory parent visas (subclass 143 and 173) and the contributory aged parent visa (subclass 864) which has an age limit - hence the reason for Alan's question above I expect - note that the 143 and 173 applications do not provide a bridging visa, even if you apply while the applicant is onshore. The 864 does provide a bridging visa to allow the applicant to remain onshore until the application is decided however. There is also the 804 onshore aged parent application that provides a bridging visa, but processing times for this visa are estimated by DIBP to be 30 years, so generally not practical unless the applicant wants to spend the rest of their lives on a bridging visa (some in fact don't mind this!). Hope this helps - Best, Mark Northam
-
Immigration address for 820 partner visa
Mark Northam replied to StructureD's topic in Family / Partner Visas
Hi Greg - Suggest you apply online using ImmiAccount as it's far easier than paper applications, and avoids the need to get copies certified, etc. Then after lodgement if you have additional evidence such as additional witness statements, travel evidence, etc you can simply upload that to your lodged application. If you must use a paper application, it's generally best if you can find out which of the several onshore partner visa processing centres is processing your application so you can send the documents to the correct location and avoid delays - you might contact DIBP at 131 881 (be prepared for an hour on hold) to see if they can tell you where your application is/will be processed and get you an address. Hope this helps - Best, Mark Northam- 2 replies
-
- partner visa
- address
-
(and 4 more)
Tagged with:
-
Also note that the requirement that you be "settled" in Australia refers to being lawfully in Australia for 2 years (according to current DIBP policy) on any sort of visa which can include time on temporary visas such as student visas, 417, 457, etc. You must however be a PR at the time you lodge the parent visa. Note the very long waiting times (20+ years) on the traditional parent visa subclasses, however this can be overcome if you are willing to pay the high second visa application fee for the contributory and contributory aged parent visas.
-
My biggest concern about these proposed changes is that if an applicant is named in a sponsorship application (for a partner visa) and the applicant is offshore and planning on coming to Australia on a visitor visa to lodge an onshore partner visa, what would that sponsorship application do to the applicant's chances of being granted a visitor visa (for tourism purposes)? If an applicant was already onshore on a 3-month visitor visa stay and there is a sponsorship application requirement introduced, it could potentially delay the application by the applicant past the 3-month mark - if the applicant then went offshore and re-entered Australia if their visitor visa was a multiple-entry visa, could designation on a partner sponsor application then cause the applicant not to be allowed to re-enter Australia due to an intention to lodge a permanent visa onshore when allowed to do so? The added delay and cost to partner visa applicants is also an issue - this visa has seen a HUGE increase in visa application fees over the last few years, and at some point the application fee will be seen as punitive. And in terms of character, I can understand the concerns re: sponsors with criminal records sponsoring young children dependents of their proposed partners, but to what extent will character issues with sponsors result in their inability to sponsor their own partner? Given the introduction of highly sensitive character-related provisions, such as where a visa can be cancelled if the applicant is deemed a threat to "the health, safety or good order of the Australian community or a segment of the Australian community; or the health or safety of an individual or individuals" (Section 116(1)(e) of the Migration Act 1958 (Cth) dealing with cancellation powers). And what of family violence claims against sponsors on previous application(s) that are upheld yet the sponsor is given no opportunity to contest the claims or provide evidence the claims are false? How would it be fair or reasonable to penalise a sponsor based on such a one-sided decision making process with no natural justice provided to the sponsor to comment on adverse information given to the Department? Lots of questions, few answers so far, lots to look forward to this year! Best, Mark Northam
-
Hi Sswatek - Assuming this is a de facto partner visa application, the date of the start of the de facto relationship (ie, the date the relationship became de facto) can be critical, especially if it is within 12 months of the date of application. 1023 would be the right form to correct information on the application that is incorrect, but suggest you get professional advice on the ramifications of declaring a new relationship start date, especially if the new start date is less than 12 months before the date of application. This particular question is often misunderstood by applicants, and frankly is not very well worded in the application form which is often the root cause of the misunderstanding. The key issues are that you do not endanger your eligibility re de facto relationship, that you do not create conflicting information in your application which can lead to further issues, and that you can demonstrate with evidence that your relationship was at a de facto level from the time you claim it was. Hope this helps - Best, Mark Northam
-
Sponsoring a New Partner - 820 visa advice
Mark Northam replied to bella1458's topic in Family / Partner Visas
Hi Bella - You would not have any waiting period imposed on you prior to sponsoring your new partner, as the previous visa you were sponsored under was not a partner (820/801 or 309/100) visa but was an employer sponsored visa. You're correct, the applicant must be onshore at the time of lodgment for the subclass 820/801 partner visa application. He might come to Australia on a visitor visa of some sort, then lodge the partner visa once here on a visitor visa. In this scenario he may want to make a final decision on lodging the partner visa after he arrives, so that he arrives with the intention of (only) visiting Australia for tourism purposes if asked. Once he overstays the minimum stay period of the visa (for ETA visas it's often 3 months), assuming you lodged an onshore partner visa during the stay period of the visitor visa (important!), the Bridging Visa A he receives from applying for the partner visa will activate as soon as he overstays the minimum stay period. Once the BVA has activated, he has full work and study rights in Australia. Hope this helps - Best, Mark Northam -
For my profile, will there be any chance for 489 visa to be denied
Mark Northam replied to Sasidhar's topic in Visa Chat
Hi Sasidhar - Thanks for the note. By "cousin brother" I assume you mean a first cousin who is a male, and shares a pair of grandparents with you. If so, that would appear to be an allowable family relationship to sponsor as first cousins are allowed to sponsor for the subclass 489 visa. There is always a chance for any visa to be refused - there simply is no such thing as a 100% guaranteed visa that I know of. With points tested visas, the details of the supporting documentation, especially for work experience claimed for points, is absolutely critical. You can have the strongest evidence, but if DIBP decides to verify it and whoever answers the phone at your current or ex-employer says the wrong thing, you can have problems. If you want an assessment of the vulnerable areas of your application, that's something an immigration lawyer or migration agent can help you with, but even with a highly experienced professional, there's no way to predict with any specific accuracy the chances of success - we can certainly provide a rough estimate, but there are always variables that are out anyone's control. Add to that vague words like "genuine", "compelling" etc used in the law that can be anything to anyone and it creates a fluid situation where things simply aren't predictable with any great amount of accuracy. The best you can do is to take all steps ahead of time to maximise the chances of success and reduce the risk as much as possible. Hope this helps - Best, Mark Northam -
Time scale granting Subclass 600 12 month Visitors Visa
Mark Northam replied to Marsuz's topic in Visa Chat
Hi Marsuz - Can be from a few days to 2+ months depending on a number of factors including country of citizenship of the applicant (higher risk countries often take longer to process), any immigration history that the applicant may have with DIBP (Australia) or otherwise, whether the person has any potential character issues, etc. Also, a 12-month visitor visa (visitor stream) can be a rather challenging visa to get unless the applicant can show they have the resources to take, essentially, a 12-month vacation to Australia, and can show sufficient ties to their home country that would provide a strong incentive for them to return after 12 months in Australia. Remember that for the visitor stream, you have to show that you are coming to Australia for tourist/visitor related purposes. Hope this helps - Best, Mark Northam -
Hi Jackie321 - Great question. To include your partner on your application, you would need to show that you are in a de facto or married partner relationship with him. People who are engaged normally would not be able to use that relationship to include a partner on a skilled visa application (as a migrating partner) unless they could prove that the relationship was at a de facto level. Suggest you carefully review the requirements for de facto relationships and make sure you have the evidence to support it - with 10 years living together (de facto requires 12 months) that part certainly is met, however look at the four required types of relationship evidence - financial, social, commitment, household - and consider what evidence you'll be using to show DIBP your relationship has been at a de facto level for at least the 12 months prior to the date of application. Hope this helps - Best, Mark Northam
-
Hi CaddyUK1234 - In your case the skills assessment is the issue. I'd look at the 457 visa option first through a sponsoring employer, where if you can show 3 years of experience in this occupation, you can pass the ANZSCO minimum skilled requirements via work experience to get the 457 visa. Then after 2 years working for the employer on a 457 visa, the employer (at their option) can sponsor you for a 186 or 187 employer sponsored PR visa. This pathway avoids a skills assessment entirely unless DIBP requests it as part of the application process, however years of proven, documented experience can often work per the ANZSCO work experience option. More on this on http://www.anzscosearch.com/search/ which is a handy site for occupation-specific info. Hope this helps - Best, Mark Northam
-
I agree with George - coming back in on a visitor visa could be an option depending on whether you can get approved for a visitor visa and assuming that visitor visa does not have condition 8503 (no further stay). The risk is getting stuck outside Australia if you cannot get a visitor visa. Hope this helps, and Merry Christmas!
-
Hi Chid Pom - You can lodge an onshore partner visa application, however as you are holding a bridging visa only you will be subject to the Schedule 3 criteria which requires "compelling reasons" to be shown why you cannot go offshore and lodge an offshore partner visa application. The bar for this is rather high, so you'll want to consider your circumstances carefully and perhaps get some professional assistance in determining whether whatever circumstances you plan to claim have a reasonable chance of being approved. The step-daughter relationship may have a chance, but may depend on proving the negative impact on her if you left and lodged an offshore partner visa and had to wait offshore 1-2 years for that to be approved. Hope this helps - Best, Mark Northam
-
Hi - Could be from the same employer, just better documented and explained, however depends on the circumstances whether the nomination can be modified to be acceptable to DIBP or not.
-
Hi Sentia450 - There may be hope at the AAT for a reversal of the refusal - this sounds like the nomiantion was refused, not the actual visa application. Generally there are 2 ways to proceed in this type of case - either put in a new nomination with additional/better evidence, or appeal the nomination refusal to the AAT. Whether the visa application part of the 187 application have been lodged can also make a difference - if the visa application has not yet been lodged, it's often easier to put in a new nomination assuming there are no visa expiration issues to deal with. However if the visa application have already been lodged, it may make sense to take the visa refusal (which happens unless the application is withdrawn (no refund) since there is no valid nomination for the current application) to the AAT and petition the AAT to hear the cases of the nomination and refusal together. Suggest you consider getting professional advice from an immigration lawyer or migration agent who can thoroughly assess your case, the reasons for refusal, the lodged evidence vs new evidence available, and give your friend professional informed advice as to her options and the best way to proceed. Hope this helps - Best, Mark Northam
-
Hi Robdec23 - When you make a valid application for the AAT for your visa refusal, once the AAT receives the application and processes it your bridging visa (BV) will automatically be extended with an indefinite stay period (no expiration date) with all the conditions you currently have intact - you do not have to make a new BV application. Your BV will eventually be set to expire 28 days after the AAT final decision. Best, Mark Northam