JBARTOX

Head to this link for wait times: http://www.border.gov.au/about/access-accountability/service-standards/global-visa-citizenship-processing-times

Hi MrsWayLay17, I'm in a very similar situation. I had my Temporary Partner visa for 1 year before moving to Australia, and then applied for the permanent one as soon as I could (two years post temp visa approval). The temporary visa came through pretty quick for me, I think it was about 3 months or so. When I applied for the permanent visa, the wait time was 6-8 months. That was 16 months ago and I'm still waiting. The wait list is now saying the expected processing time will be 17-43 months. This is a major issue for me now, as we are trying to buy a house however without a permanent visa, the banks will not lend anything more than 30-35% of the property value to us. Something to note is that the processing times are updated monthly, around the 14th of each month. You'll find them on the following link: http://www.border.gov.au/about/access-accountability/service-standards/global-visa-citizenship-processing-times I suggest you take these time frames into account for your own situation before heading over. Understandably most situations a re different, but I'm curious to know where your got the $7,000 price tag from? I paid considerably less than this. All the best with your application.