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Hi there, I'm an Australian citizen by birth and my husband is a US citizen ... so although we're not Poms, I keep seeing this site pop up in my searches so thought I would post here and see if anyone can share any advice. We've been married 3 years during which time we've been living together in the US. I really want to go home as I'm very homesick and miss my family and friends in Australia and we don't really have any close friends or family where we live here. We visited Australia for a month at the end of 2008 and my husband loved it and is happy to move. We would also like to start a family and I would find it very hard without my Australian family around. We applied for a spouse visa in July 2009 but it was refused a couple of weeks ago because my husband has ulcerative colitis and a Medical Officer of the Commonwealth said he would potentially cost $100,000. He is in remission and perfectly able to work, he just has to take medication. We had put through a health waiver request but that was refused and I'm not exactly sure why - the letter we received didn't state which compelling and compassionate circumstances were considered or not, just that they decided not to exercise the waiver. I had put together a lot of information about our financial situation (which I believe is good, we own a house and have savings) and job prospects (my occupation is listed on the NEW skilled occupations list and my husband's was on the old one which was in effect at the time we applied), had six statutory declarations from family and friends stating that they'd be willing to provide care and support, and I also included a statement about wanting to start a family and how it would affect me emotionally if I wasn't able to return home. After getting the refusal I was so devastated that I rang the case officer and asked her if she could give me a better explanation of why it was refused - she sounded very flustered and just kept saying "it's the cost, it's the cost". When I said "but I'm an Australian citizen and you're basically telling me I can't live in Australia", she just said "you can live in the USA". I guess I was naive in thinking that the health waiver is exercised as a matter of course for spousal relationships. After doing some research online and stumbling across a 2007 Australian National Audit Office report on DIAC's administration of the health waiver process, it appears it's only exercised around 12% of the time. We are now applying to the Migration Review Tribunal and I wanted to find out if anyone knows anything about the process. Is it something we can do ourselves or would we definitely be better off getting the assistance of a lawyer? I have sent off the form and just received a letter and receipt today which stated I should send in evidence as soon as possible. I had spoken to an Australian lawyer over the phone prior to sending the application off and he said I should wait before sending any evidence. Is that right? What do I need to do next, do I just ask the Australian Embassy here to give me a copy of our DIAC file? I'm just not sure what the steps are - I had a look at the MRT website but I couldn't find anything which laid out the exact steps that would occur. If anyone can offer any assistance or clarification about the MRT process or point me in the right direction, I would very much appreciate it, as this whole thing has made me very frustrated and anxious. I just want to go home. :sad: Thank you very much if you can help at all.

Hi everyone. My husband and I are relocating on a short skill temp visa (482) with his work, hoping to move to Sydney at the end of January. When we move I’ll be 14 weeks pregnant (first time). We’ve read that private health insurance will not cover the costs of antenatal care if you haven’t had a policy in place for 12 months. We’re happy to use public hospitals and services and I’m trying to understand if we’ll be part covered by Medicare, or if we need to cover the costs ourselves? Can anyone help? Has anyone arrived pregnant in Australia on a 482? I’d be so grateful to hear any advice, recommendations and guidance of who to speak to for more information. With me not having a job to go to and unlikely to get maternity pay it’s a bit of a concern to us. (As well as the scary thought of having our first child so far away from our family and friends!) Other info; we need health insurance as part of the visa approval and they have requested I have a medical in the U.K. Thank you for reading.

I haven’t visited this forum for some time as it has a reputation for being quite negative in peoples responses to questions, I don’t want to offend anyone but I could do without negativity right now. Me and my partner have found ourselves back in Australia as visitors with exemptions as we sadly lost his Dad in sudden and tragic circumstances. I’m not sure if we would like to live here permanently but we had considered it before and agents said we would have to do a 491 visa but my partner couldn’t get the English test scores and we gave up after a couple of goes and bought a second house in the Uk, but being back here obviously gets you thinking. My partners last resident return visa expired in 2004. He was granted a RRV in 2006 but we can’t work out if he ever activated it as he and the family have been back and forth so many times over the years. For the last six years his entire family have lived in Australia and they all have PR. With the recent loss it does get you thinking whether or not he would be successful in getting his RRV and where would this leave me? Can you attach a partner to a RRV? From what I can tell No? Just curious really. The federal and state gov have been incredibly supportive and helpful in getting the exemption to travel I was really very surprised!

Hi all, stumbled across this forum some months ago when researching the possibilities of an Aus visa for my partner. I am dual Australian/British citizen in my mid 50's, partner is a British citizen in his mid 30's and we have been in our relationship and lived together for 10 years in the UK. We want to go to Aus within the next few years and make the next chapter of our life there together. I've researched the 309/100 visa application and know there is a multitude of information required to submit it but I have a few concerns as to how successful it will be. Neither of us have family in the UK and we only have a very small circle of friends - we are a quiet couple who enjoy our own company and not crowds. We have never shared bank accounts, the property we live in is one that I owned before we were together so the title and many of the bills are in my name and in this age of electronic communication we don't have many letters/postcards etc. dating back to the start of our relationship that might be helpful in proving it is legitimate. We also don't have many photos - I don't like photos together because I am conscious that he looks so much younger than me and we are also of different cultures (he is of Asian decent). We also don't have children. My concern is how we find enough of the information required in order to prove our relationship is genuine and will our it be potentially viewed as suspicious because we are so different in age and culture? We have also been engaged since April 2018 - a proposal and a ring but no official party or announcement. We were planning to get married in early 2020 but then the world got locked down and in fact marriage is not a huge concern for us. But, would it be better for us to be married before applying? A host of concerns - perhaps someone can help with some encouraging information as we are a genuine couple but more unusual than others..

Hi This is my first post on this forum and I was wondering if anyone has had an experience where they were refused a spouse visa due to Hypopituitarism (or if they were granted their visa and have this conditon). My husband, who has this condition, is currently applying for his spouse visa (I am Australian and we are planning to move there permanently from the UK). He has undertaken his medicals and we just got an email from our case officer saying: 'Your medical reports were referred to the Health Operations Centre (HOC) in Australia for an opinion on whether you meet the health requirement for the grant of the above visa because a health concern was identified by our panel doctors during your medical examinations.' I am only assuming that they are referring to his Hypopituitarism, unless he has something else we don't yet know about! What I am wondering is - is this just a normal response for someone who has an existing medical condition? Do all/most medical conditions need to be referred to HOC? My husband's condition requires him to take medication everyday, which we are obviously willing to pay for ourselves in OZ (he gets it for free here) and he does not require any hospital treatment or any other type of medical treatment apart from his daily medication. Many thanks in advance to anyone who can help :cute:

Hi Married couple (age 33 and 30), no children. We moved here in December, and were each sponsored for a 4-year 482 visa through my new employer. We love it here and are thinking about settling permanently. Assuming the rules don't change between now and then (!), I understand that if I continue to work for my new employer for a further 2.5 years I should be able to apply for Permanent Residency (I think it's the 186 visa?) However, what will happen to my husband? He is self-employed and I don't think his occupation (media / advertising) is on either the short or medium-term skills list. Can he get permanent residency, and if so, how? Thank you in advance, Lucy

Hey all My wife and I just landed in Australia and will now submit the joint application for the 485 post-study work stream visa. She is currently on a 500 student visa and I am on an eVisitor (subclass 651). As we understand, my wife (the primary applicant) will retain the same rights as she currently has throughout the duration of the bridging visa. As her spouse and the secondary applicant, can anyone confirm what work rights I would have while the bridging visa is in effect? Am I also right in thinking that the bridging visa will not take effect until her previous student visa expires? Thank you TooEasy

I have applied for my husband’s spouse visa in June 2017 and received a phone call interview on the 6th of February 2018. Does anyone know around how long I could be waiting for my husband to get his visa? My husband is an Afghan National currently living in Pakistan.

Hello, if you are like me and interested in how long it is taking the high commission in London to process applications for Spouse, Defacto and interdependency (Subclass 309 via the 47SP application), then please add your details to this thread. 12weeks is their standard quoted time but it seems some are granted much faster, especially if front loaded (Medicals and police checks completed prior to submission). Please add your details if you submitted a 47sp Application for Subclass 309 Spouse visa, including the following information: Application Submitted: Case Officer (C/O) Email: Visa Granted: Please also include any additional information, like if you front loaded your application (ie, included your police checks and medicals), and also any additional information that may be useful (like if you were asked to complete an 80 form, if and what type of interview was required). If there is a better thread out there on this topic, Please paste a link to it.. Here is a short history I have gathered so far: (Sorry If I missed yours! Please add, I will Edit the Post so the list below is always comprehesive.) APPLICATIONS IN PROCESS: 30th April: Sent Application (Frontloaded with 80 form). 6th May: We have had no news yet 30th April - Visa application sent (spouse visa 309) 5th May - Money taken from account 11th May - Email from C/O asking for further information (Police Check & ID card) Sent UK police check and form 80 also. 25/4 - App Sent Front Loaded 27/4 - Payment Taken 6/5 - Email from CO stating application and that processing times are currently 3 - 4 months 24th April: Sent application 24th April:Medical done 24th April, should be sent on 29th April, police checks almost ready, will send by first week of May 2009 28th April: payment taken 11th may: contacted by c/o, requested to send police certs and form 80, 11th may 13th may sent police certs and form 80 17th April sent 309: (front loaded with meds and police checks) 20th April: Received and payment taken: 23th April:CO contact requesting more evidence 27th April: Further evidence sent 29th April: CO requested further evidence 9th May: Further evidence sent 13th May: CO contact stating enough evidence and requesting phone interview: 18th May: Phone interview arranged Submitted 15th April CO on the 17th with the standard letter, & requested further information which all in all we managed to provide by the 24th April. On the 24th we had an interview where our CO said he would be approving the application we just needed to get the police checks. On the 24th i also asked about the processing times and he said average was 4-12 weeks. The police checks were sent off and received on the 28th April and since then we have not heard anything further from the CO. Spouse visa application and police check sent 21.1.09... c/o contact 30.1.09...medical done 6.2.09.....and still waiting... COMPLETED SUCCESSFUL APPLICATIONS: (Post Creator - SR1992s timeline) 3rd April 2009: Sent Application for Spouse Visa subclass 309, using forms 47SP and 40SP (Fully front Loaded wtih PCs and Meds) 6th April 2009: C/O Replied & Payment taken 7th May: Got impatient and Phoned CO to check if more info is required, no information given other than standard line "3-4months processing time due to backlog of applications". 15 May: email from CO stating that the 309 was approved. No additional information or interview was requested. 9th April - sent Spouse visa application via registered mail from Ireland (We frontloaded with meds & police checks (no form 80).) 14th April - application received in London 15th April - money taken out of account 20th April - received photos back in the mail 5th May - rang Aus House, as we've had no confirmation of receipt (supposed to confirm within 3 weeks of receipt of application). The lovely lady said our application was with a case officer and we should hear something soon! it was actually approved on 16th April - we just never received the email to say so Defacto App sent 2nd March 09, C/O contact 18th March 09, VISA GRANTED!! 20th March 09 Sent the app on 26th Feb, 09 Visa granted 19th March 09 Date lodged: 9th November 2008 Case Officer Allocated: 18th November 2008 Sent Form 80, medicals & police certificate; 15th Dec 2008 VISA GRANTED: 19th January 2009 309 Visa sent 17/10/08, Email from CO 3/11, more info requested 13/11, sent back 28/11, phone ints 12/12 & 05/01, VISA GRANTED 09/01/09! Spouse Visa Application posted 8/11/08 Meds done 8/12/08 Visa granted 15/12/08 Lodged application 12th September 2008, C/O replied 14th Sept 09, Telephone interview 16th September Visa granted 19th September 2009 June 11th 2008 - Sent off visa application! June 18th 2008 - Request for further docs & form 80 July 2nd 2008 - Granted Spouse Visa! Defacto visa submitted 21.05.08 frontloaded Police checks Payment taken 22.05.08 Meds done 23.05.08 VISA GRANTED 17.06.08 application sent 14/04/08, payment taken 16/04/08, CO assigned 21/04/08, police & meds requested 21/04/08, police cert sent 06/05/08, meds sent 15/05/08, VISA GRANTED 21/05/08 Cheers!

HI is there any body who got spouse subclass 309 visa based on Nikkah, as i wana a apply 309 for my spouse based on Nikkah, that mean its legal married, will be gettig married once she got her visa. Just wondering there would be any issue, please let me in this regard.

Hello we are currently in the UK but considering a move down under in the next couple of years depending on finances and life! My partner has dual citizenship New Zealand and Bristish so has a NZ passport. We have 3 children born in the UK who would be eligible for NZ passports too. So my partner and kids would all be allowed to live and work in Australia without visas (I believe) but we don’t know what I would qualify for? We aren’t married but we would like to get married in the future so I’m not sure if that affects anything. I would need to work to afford to live down under. If we went to Australia it would only be for 6months-1yr initially and then if we loved it we could extend our stay but again it would all depend on visas. Does anyone know what options we would have? Also we have no friends or family in Brisbane (where we are considering) but we have friends in Sydney (which we couldn’t afford) and Canberra. Has anyone else made the move down under alone and how did you find it? Have you managed to make friends? And what about childcare after school or school holidays if you are both working? Thanks so much Penelope

I entered Australia on a Prospective Marriage visa in April 2017 and got married the following month. I then applied for a Partner visa. At the time the application was submitted, I attached the same statutory declarations that I used for the Prospective Marriage visa (from my mother-in-law and sister-in-law.) They are from April 2016. I have not yet provided any additional statutory declarations. So far, I have received one letter requesting further information (which was supplied) and my husband received another from the Sponsorship Assessment Unit. We supplied the information that they requested. However, on neither occasion did they ask for another statutory declaration. Looking back through the documents I have submitted, I am apprehensive that they may not accept the "old" statutory declarations even though they have not flagged this with us in the two instances they have been in contact. They didn't mention the fact our police checks were more than 12 months old either, but to err on the side of caution I ended up obtaining some new ones in November. Do you think we need to supply more statutory declarations, or should it be fine as is?

Hello, I am new here but have been a lurker for a few weeks. I am an Australian citizen who has been living in the UK with my now-husband for 15 years (i am a dual citizen). We got married last month in Queensland and have now come back to the UK. We've decided to move to Australia permanently with our two children in 2019 and I wanted to get the ball rolling with his visa. Am i right in thinking that he applies NOW for his temp visa ... which then eventually will turn into the permanent one? I can apply for this visa now even though we won't be there for another 19 months? Our children will have citizenship via me so i won't need to do anything with them besides get their Aust passports sorted out. If anyone else has done this, i'd love to hear from you. I understand the visas can take up to 3 years to obtain so now is a good time to start right?? Do some people wait until they're IN Australia? $7,000 is a lot of money! Thank you for reading!

Hi Guys. My wife has applied a partner visa 309 on 28 June 2016. The application is in the final stages. Today she receive the email that your medicals are not valid after 1 year. Online immiaccount showing medical is clear for the processing of this visa. My query is that the visa processing has been delayed by the immigration deptt then why should one undergo the medical checkup again? Does it happen to anyone else who are waiting for decision for more than 12 months?

Need advice please Ok where do I start LOL i was sponsored on a 457 as a gym manager in 2013. Met a girl had a baby girl, unfortunately the relationship ended as my daughters Mum fell in love with another man. The problem is that we were just about to launch my spouse visa. I have 50/50 custody of my daughter and pay child support. Now the problem I have is my 457 is being soon and until recently I was under the impression that my company would continue the visa for another 2 years but now have decided against it. I asked them a while back about sponsoring me PR but it turns out they couldn't because they'd not fulfilled the training requirements tied into the process. I'm now in another relationship but it's only 3 months in and my partner is very supportive of my situation but I think we are way off spouse sponsorship. Does anyone know of anyone who might of been in a similar situation?? i can't leave my daughter she is my world and she needs her dad. Any help would be helpful or I pray that someone has experienced something similar and can shed some light or point me in a direction of assistance sean

Hi Everyone I am Currently on the prospective marriage visa 300, and I have just gotten married and will need to apply for the 820 visa. I used an agent for my prospective marriage visa and he was great, but for the 820, his fee is so expensive, and after looking at the forms all being online now it looks pretty straight forward? Is this true? What are peoples experiences going alone? Also Does anybody know If I would have to resend all the evidence of the relationship, i.e joint bills, photo's etc for this 820 visa or would what I sent for the prospective marriage visa cover it? The same with all the form 800s we had completed by family and friends stating that the relationship is genuine, would we need to do all of this again? It seems a bit silly having to send it all twice. Hope someone can help

My husband is the main applicant for a skilled 189 visa however, he is taking the IELTs test for extra bonus points but he is underconfident about how he will do. I wish to take the exam aswell in the hope that my points will also count towards the visa application. Can anyone clarify for me the following, will my test results gain points (provided they are proficient or superior) for the visa or am I taking an unnecessary exam that won't be counted in the points test. As you can see my quality of grammar is very rushed in this post haha! my apologies!:biglaugh:

Has anyone who immigrated to Australia with a 189 visa and a dependent spouse ever received a surprise visit of the DIBP to check whether the marriage (or de facto relationship) was not just a "convenience relationship"? Does anybody know whether they really do this kind of thing?

Hello Everyone, Great forum. Very useful. I have a question about timing of spouse visa 309 application. I am an Australian citizen and living in UK. Met my wife after I left Australia about 7 years ago and she has UK citizenship so now that we are planning to move back to Australia in couple of years we need to apply for a spouse visa for her. We have been married for four years now and have all the documentation ready to go but I have now been offered a transfer to Hong Kong for year or so to manage all our operations there. It's a great opportunity and would love to take it. My question is regarding when and where should I apply for her spouse visa. Given its takes nearly 9-12 months, do we apply now and then move to Hong Kong in 3 months time or apply in Hong Kong? We would love to apply here given all our evidence is from UK but once we leave UK we won't have any UK address. Any help would be much appreciated. Thanks

Hi everyone I am kindly asking for any further advice. My boyfiend is on the last page of the online application and is ready to click on the pay button for his visa. There is still an option to add a family member, could he add me on as de facto (no option there) without jepodising his application? This is his third invite from WA and is worried that he will lose his invite. The first two times he wasn't told about his invites due to using a bad visa company and the third he did independently. I spoke to a helpful guy at GoMatilda as recommended but there is only so much he can say. He said that you can add/change at any stage even if it doesn't match what was on the EOI as the core requirements are still the same. Issue being, de facto add ons aren't family or are they? As there is evidence that needs to be sent off and nothing is final until they fully grant the visa after payment, he mentioned that they will notice that I have been added, I am presuming they will put the visa application on hold until we have submitted relationship evidence? My partner only has till the 21st of Feb to pay his visa payment so we really need to think fast and and advice is welcomed!

Hi, am wondering if anyone can shine a light on my situation. I have tried contacting the UK Gov but have had no real help! Long story short, I have duel nationality (Uk and AUS) and live now in AUS. -My partner is Australian (together almost 10 years) and we would love to get him a UK visa/passport to make trips to UK to see my family etc easier. -We are not married and usually to enable a spousal visa they have to live in that country for a certain amount of time, which obviously we don't do. Any tips/help/advice would be greatly appreciated! :wink:

Hi, Can anyone advice with citizenship? Can I apply for citizenship only for me even when I'm married? When my wife and I have permanent residency. My home country allows me to have dual citizenship, so I'd like to apply for oz citizenship. My wife have different citizenship and her country doesn't allow dual citizenship. She doesn't want to loose it. I can't find any details on official websites, if it is possible. Had anyone similar experience? Thanks

Hi Everyone, Hope to get some ideas/advice on my situation. I have been offered a job in Brisbane and my new employer is willing to sponsor me on a 457 visa. I'm a Malaysian citizen and my fiance is from India (working in Malaysia on a work permit). We just got engaged and planned to get married end of the year. Now,my employer will start the nomination process (no MA as my employer has done this before) and I want to add my fiance as spouse. However, I do not have any legal paper to prove we are married (yet!). My questions: 1) Can I add him into the application now? Should I apply under de facto partner or married (and indicate the marriage date will be end of the year??) 2) If I choose de facto, I don't have any joint account statement to prove we are financially committed. He is an expat here and he has been managing his own rental/properties and expenses. 3) If I can't add him now, what do I need to do after my visa is granted? My employer need to write another sponsorship letter to support my spouse's visa application? How long does it normally take? 4) If I do so, can my spouse work in AU under spouse visa? After getting the job offer, we both are equally happy and sad. We do not wish to be separated after we just got engaged and there are so many things that we need to consider if he can't join me in AU. Hope I can hear some advice from all. Thanks.

i am in the prosses of collecting my evidence to go with my defacto visa. i have applied for police checks had my chest x-ray and am going for medicals on friday. i was wondering if anyone could help me with the information to provide with my application? below is what i have already, i just dont think i have enough.... · APPLICATION FEE · COMPLETED FORM 47SP · COMPLETED FORM 40SP . COMPLETED FROM 80 IDENTIFICATION : · CERTIFIED COPY OF APPLICANT PASSPORT · CERTIFIED COPY OF SPONSOR PASSPORT · CERTIFIED COPY OF APPLICANT BIRTH CERTIFICATE · CERTIFIED COPY OF SPONSOR BIRTH CERTIFICATE · 2 X PHOTOGRAPHS OF APPLICANT · 2 X PHOTOGRAPHS OF SPONSOR HEALTH & CHARACTER · FORM 26 - APPLICANT MEDICAL EXAMINATION · FORM 160 – APPLICANT RADIOLOGY EXAMINATION . FORM FOR POLICE CHECKS FOR ENGLAND . CERTIFIED COPY OF PASSPORT PHOTO . COPY OF PASSPORT . DOCUMETNS TO SHOW EVIDENCE OF ADRESS X2 . CHEQUE . FORM FOR POLICE CHECKS FOR AUSTRALIA . COPY OF PASSPORT PHOTO . CHEQUE OUR STATEMENTS · CERTIFIED STATUTORY DECLARATION WRITTEN BY APPLICANT · CERTIFIED STATUTORY DECLARATION WRITTEN BY SPONSOR OTHER STATEMENTS : . CERTIFIDE STATUORY DECLERATION/ CERTIFIED COPY OF PASSPORT – DAD . CERT STAT DEC/ CERT COPY OF PASSPORT/ BIRTH CERT – MUM . CERT STAT DEC/ CERT COPY OF PASSPORT/ BIRTH CERT – JONS MUM . CERT STAT DEC/ CERT COPY OF PASSPORT/ BIRTH CERT – JONS DAD . CERT STAT DEC/ CERT COPY OF PASSPORT/ BIRTH CERT – JONS GRANDMA . CERT STAT DEC/ CERT COPY OF PASSPORT/ BIRTH CERT – JONS DAD . CERT STAT DEC/ CERT COPY OF PASSPORT/ BIRTH CERT – DAN/EMMA . CERT STAT DEC/ CERT COPY OF PASSPORT/ BIRTH CERT – JON BAKER . CERT STAT DEC/ CERT COPY OF PASSPORT/ BIRTH CERT – JODIE . CERT STAT DEC/ CERT COPY OF PASSPORT/ BIRTH CERT – JASON CERT STAT DEC/ CERT COPY OF PASSPORT/ BIRTH CERT – MARCUS . CERTIFIED STATEMENTS BY NANA AND GRANDPA AND UNCLE FINANCIAL INFORMATION FOR SPONSOR · CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE FROM EMPLOYER · CURRENT PAYSLIP OF EMPLOYMENT · MOST RECENT BANK STATEMENT EVIDENCE OF LIVING TOGETHER + RELATIONSHIP: · CERTIFIED COPY OF JOINT BANK ACCOUNT · RENT BOOK · BANK STATEMENTS – JOINT BANK ACC · WEDDING INVITATIONS – SAME ADRESS . PARTY INVATATONS – SAME ADRESS . ENGAGMENT PARTY INVITE – SAME ADRESS · FOLDER FULL OF PHOTOS IN ORDER OF RELATIONSHIP/ BIRTHDAY CARDS ETC .CAR INSURANCE – BOTH NAMES · BOOKING CONFIRMATION & ITINERARY FOR TRIP TO NZ · FLIGHT TICKETS FOR TRIP TO NZ · EVIDENCE OF EMPLOYMENT : · APPLICANTS C.V . STATEMENT FROM APPLICANTS EMPLOYER – STATING EMPOLYMENT WHEN ALLOWED TO WORK AGAIN

I met my partner in 2009 ago in Perth, we worked together for 4 months and we became good friends. I then left and went home to UK and we were online friends for 3 years we sent mail and spoke on Skype regularly. In 2012 in the Feb I flew back to permit to see him as I knew I had feelings for him. We had a two week holiday and decided we want to be together and had to find a way. So I went home to UK after my holiday and he saved up and moved to the UK in September 2012 to live with me. We have been living in the UK for 9 months and we are now planning to apply this September for the spouse visa...... But I am freaking out because I do not know where to start. I can't get my head around it and I've never wanted anything more in my whole life its so scary and I don't want to get it wrong and lose out. Can someone give me some steps to start me on the right track? :-) we have a joint bank account, we have been a couple holidays together and we have long Facebook chat conversations going back 4 years... We have photos and letters sent to each other. He is an Australian citizen by birth and has a house that he owns for us to live in when we get to WA. I have a uni degree but no specific skill. He has met my family hundreds of times, I have met his father once and his sister a couple times. For the statuary declarations I worry that we don't have many strong ones in aus... We have had our relationship mostly in the UK. anyway.... Sorry if I'm blabbing on but I don't know where to start or what is actually relevant. Hilz :-)