TheWayOfThePony

Yes I was a resident in the UK but had spent over a year (cumulatively) in another country. I still put myself down as resident of the UK as this is where I was living, working, paying taxes etc. All fine. But my CO requested a police clearance check for that other country (on top of the UK one).

Yes, they allow a bunch of document types as detailed in the link above, but as a rule I go for PDFs - that way there is no need to worry about having the right version of Office Word or things like that. Regarding your emails - just screencap them and combine all the images into one PDF. Remember you have an upload limit of 60 files (though 60 for the applicant and 60 for the sponsor), and that goes quicker than expected!

I'm in the same boat as you, and "varies widly" is the answer I think. In this topic: https://www.pomsinoz.com/topic/201158-waiting-time-after-immigration-ask-for-medical-and-police-checks-820-visa/ you can see that the first person was still waiting after 12 months while the person at the end only had to wait for 5 months. Granted they didn't give details (how straightforward their case was etc) but to me it just means it's hard to predict. Good luck!

When we applied for our PMV we simply sent scans of our passport pictures (applicant and sponsor). We lodged with the help of an agent and he only asked for the pictures, not the back, and the CO was obviously fine with it as he never requested the back, and the visa was granted. I think as long as you give the file a title that is self-explanatory (like PassportPhoto_Applicant.jpg) that should be fine?

Ah, you say you got married in the Hindu culture and registered the mariage in a Nepalese court - does it mean you are already legally married? (sorry, I don't know what constitutes a legal marriage in Nepal; in my country a religious wedding has no legal status, the only type recognised by the law is a civil wedding). 300 is a Prospective Marriage visa - so you can't already be married when applying for it.

I applied from the UK for a 300 with an agent lodging on my behalf and it took three months. Other applicants (also from the UK) who were lodging themselves got theirs in the same time frame. I don't think it makes a difference. The country you are lodging from makes a bigger difference I reckon (the UK is considered a low risk country). I don't know the details of your situation and I'm not an agent so I don't want to commit and say what your best option is... We picked the 300 because we were in a long distance relationship and had not been living together, so that was the best option - for us. I think it might be worth having a consultation with a registered agent and see what they say. It might cost you a few bucks but peace of mind is priceless when you try and navigate this!

A 820 would require you to provide evidence you have been in a relationship for at least a year - living together etc. I think I read somewhere that if you come here on a visitor visa and get married in Aus, Immigration may object as it goes against the purpose of the visitor visa (which you get to visit, not to get married - so it's seen as disingenuous)... 300 applicants *do* have to prove the relationship is genuine and continuous. You will have to provide screencaps of regular emails and chats, pictures of you, evidence that you are planning a wedding, etc. There is less evidence to provide than in a 820 or 309 as pointed out above, but make no mistake it IS a hassle, gathering all the evidence takes time. And it has to be applied from offshore. How long it takes depends on many factors, including how low/high risk your country is deemed to be. Hard to say sadly. Be prepared to the fact that depending on her industry she might struggle to find a job right away, that's not unusual for new migrants - especially with 300 or 820 which are temporary visas.

Yes definitely federal! My partner only applied for the state police check at first and our agent told us that was not good enough. Has to be federal. Our CO requested his police check at the same time as mine, so I assume it's a standard thing now and sponsors have to go through the police check as well (which makes sense in a partner visa).

I was living in the UK and in a long distance relationship with my Australian fiance for a year before applying for the 300 - like you, visiting each other as often as we could. So I don't think distance/not living together is necessarily an obstacle, as long as you can prove your relationship is genuine and continuous (=regular chat/emails/phone call logs etc). 300 gives you working rights, so you could get a job as soon as it is granted. But yes separation with former spouses is not enough. You both need to get the divorces formally settled before doing anything.

820, so onshore Sorry Wiganer, waiting to hear from Immi myself - interesting to see you've been waiting for 12 months, means I should expect many more months of waiting! I had always assumed the grant came shortly after request for the medical/police checks (mine came after a month when I applied for 300 - mind you that was offshore). Hopefully not long to wait for you!

Concerning the evidence regarding your relationship: you need to prove you and your partner have been together for a minimum of 12 months. If you have no official paperwork like a marriage certificate/civil partnership/registered relationship etc, look for: - evidence that you live together: bills with both names, rental agreement with both names, all dating back for as far as you can find, etc. - evidence you are socially accepted as a couple (such as invites to events addressed to both, Facebook posts, photos with friends and family) - photos of the two of you (plus children, if applicable!) - evidence of your commitment to each other: life insurance, joint bank account statements, things like that

I used this page to help with organising my documents https://partnervisa820uploadguide.neocities.org/

I got my grant from the London office a few weeks after submitting my police/health checks (upon request by the CO). You shouldn't have too long to wait now!

I assumed the same - that they meant a different person. I said no.

Congratulations!!

I don't have a CO yet but my passport was about to expire, so I renewed it as they do say they want the applicant to have a valid passport (with a validity period of at least 6 months, preferably). You can update the details in the online application (click on "view detail", then "update details" on the left column). If they have contacted you, I suppose you have contact details you can use?

Yes that is the link I started from. But I'm a bit stuck with the application form as my case (i.e. currently waiting for my temporary visa to be granted) doesn't seem to fit the boxes (you need to be a citizen or a permanent resident/applying for a permanent residency etc). I thought about calling/dropping by, yes, but I remember reading that staff are not necessarily aware of who has a right to register for medicare, and that some people really had to insist. But they might have been at the 801/PR stage already (so, further down the line), I can't remember. So I was hoping somebody in a similar situation could share their experience.

Hello! I'm in Australia on a bridging visa; I've just applied for my Spouse Visa 820. I won't be eligible for 801 for another two years and as a French citizen I don't qualify for the reciprocal agreement (I was a resident in the UK for the past 14 years, but not sure that makes a difference) It was my (possibly mistaken) understanding that I would be eligible for Medicare as soon as I applied for the 820, however looking into it I found this: (source:https://www.humanservices.gov.au/individuals/enablers/how-enrol-or-re-enrol-medicare#a3) I can't see anything else that applies to my case (temporary resident). Does it mean I'm not eligible for Medicare after all? (gulp) Thank you for any tip/clarification!!

Yes I had a brief breast examination too, which wasn't on the list - but then again, neither was the urine test or the eye test; I guess it all falls under the "general examination" umbrella. I was offered to have a third person in the room too, but I've seen enough physicians not to care about showing them my breasts (I mean I doubt they see us differently than a vet sees his 100th cow!). However not everyone is comfortable with this, so you're not being silly at all The Bupa centre was very busy (I'm guessing they always are) so we were directed to the first doctor available. I don't recall being able to pick male or female. I always assumed you could request female/male if you preferred for personal/religious reason though... they could have asked you to wait for the next female doctor available. Sorry to hear your experience was uncomfortable... at least it's out of the way!

Haha, good luck! Perhaps the Australian way has seeped in though, because I too was bracing myself for the worst but when I got at the consulate I found the staff to be efficient, helpful and courteous. Done and dusted in 20 mn, whereas the same procedure took 4 hours in the French consulate in London

Maybe you can try the French consulate in Sydney? they do biometrics, and it's a French authority, if that's the issue here.

I just lodged my spouse visa application and I was also wondering about having IDs certified, but the official website says this: So we didn't. The one thing that has to be certified though are the statements from your witnesses. These have to be filled via form 888. The personal statement (written by your partner and yourself) are another thing; they can indeed either be written as a stat dec, or as a free-form text (which we did), in which case they don't have to be certified. Your personal preference! As for your medical checks, yup they can be frontloaded, just make sure they are carried on by a panel physician and not a regular GP. For a list, see https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/lega/lega/help/location/united-kingdom Good luck!!!

Thanks @dotdotslash and @Sarahvee for the updates, we've lodged ours this month so it gives us a better idea of what to expect!

Thank you @wrussell

Thank you, I think I wasn't clear - this is indeed an onshore application, I am here on a PMV and therefore already live in Australia with my husband and his child. There is no question of removing the child. The bit that puzzled me is question 43 in form 80 (which I have to provide), where they ask if I have children. I was simply wondering if it was a question concerning dependant children on my side only (I don't have children from a previous relationship, so in that case I'd leave that bit empty), or if I had to include *all* children in the relationship (and thus my stepchild). Ours is a straightforward case (there's no custody battle or anything), it's just a technicality about whether I mention my stepchild on my form 80