oldchap Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 I'm from Britain (citizen) and trying to build up 12 months de facto relationship with my Australian partner in WA (Western Australia), I'm currently on an evisitor 651 tourist visa meaning I must leave the country every 3 months. After March 2016 we will have met the 12 months living together (with very short breaks in between as per the visa) provided no issues visa wise are encountered. At over 50 I do not appear to qualify for any other types of visa other than tourist and we are not happy to rush into marriage having both recently ended long term commitments. I would rather not keep having to leave the country and my partner every three months and was thinking of applying for a 600 Visa in the hope this would allow me to stay in Australia for longer than 3 months at a time but this does not always look to be the case. My current 651 visa expires early August 2015. I wondering if it is worth applying for the 600 visa or, can I somehow extend my current 651 visa, apply for another 651 or are there other options that I may be unaware of. My Australian partner has 5 children in education from her previous marriage so she is unable to leave Australia meaning the only way to build up the 12 months de facto relationship is for me to be in Australia as much as I can. Each of us has sufficient funds to support me during the time I'm unable to work in Australia. I'm also increasingly worried about being quizzed by immigration at the airport having entered Australia 3 times on my current 12 month 651 visa, an immigration agent told me not to admit to being in a relationship if questioned but I don't want to seem dishonest, especially as I will eventually be stating I've been in a de facto relationship next year when I apply for a partnership visa and I don't want their "interview" records showing I stated I said I wasn't if I follow the agents advice. Any advice on what my next step visa wise should be until I can apply in March for the partnership visa will be hugely appreciated. Adam Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 You don't actually have to be living together to qualify for de facto status. One of my friends got her Nepalese husband in on the de facto rule in spite of the fact that he spent large parts of the year in Nepal and she was in Australia with her children. My understanding is that other evidence is more important - things like shared finances (bank statements showing you paying joint bills), stat decs from family and friends attesting that it's a genuine relationship, evidence that you're named in each other's wills, evidence of continual contact while you're apart (e.g. itemised phone bills), photos showing you together in family situations, Christmas cards from your family to you both (which demonstrates that they see you as a couple) etc. I assume you've read this: http://www.border.gov.au/about/corporate/information/fact-sheets/35relationship I would also be a bit worried about not admitting the relationship when you're going to be relying on that evidence in your eventual application, but I'm not an expert. Is your agent a registered agent? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 On another note, I notice you say that you're reluctant to rush into marriage as you've both recently left previous relationships. How long ago was that and how long were you dating before you moved in together? As you'll see from the kind of evidence Immigration requires, they're looking for a genuine 12-month de facto relationship - ie. one that's equivalent to a marriage, not one where both parties are still trying to decide whether to make the commitment long-term. So they will look at how long you were together before moving in. My friend actually took nearly 2 years to get her oh's visa approved, because Immigration felt their first several months together weren't a "full" de facto relationship, even though they did live together for part of that time. Very frustrating for her but because she didn't have enough evidence for that early phase, she couldn't do anything about it. Also by the way, I know no one likes to consider break-ups when they're just starting a relationship, but if you're reluctant to commit to marriage, be aware that de facto break-ups in Australia are covered by pretty much the same laws as marriage, once you've been together two years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quinkla Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 On another note, I notice you say that you're reluctant to rush into marriage as you've both recently left previous relationships. I spotted this too - and it made me think that the OP is not describing being in a de facto relationship right now - but rather trying to find a way to get a visa to live in Australia when there aren't any other options. Of course, that may be far from the reality, but the way the OP describes it almost invites that conclusion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bronyaur Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 I'm from Britain (citizen) and trying to build up 12 months de facto relationship with my Australian partner in WA (Western Australia), I'm currently on an evisitor 651 tourist visa meaning I must leave the country every 3 months. After March 2016 we will have met the 12 months living together (with very short breaks in between as per the visa) provided no issues visa wise are encountered. At over 50 I do not appear to qualify for any other types of visa other than tourist and we are not happy to rush into marriage having both recently ended long term commitments. I would rather not keep having to leave the country and my partner every three months and was thinking of applying for a 600 Visa in the hope this would allow me to stay in Australia for longer than 3 months at a time but this does not always look to be the case. My current 651 visa expires early August 2015. I wondering if it is worth applying for the 600 visa or, can I somehow extend my current 651 visa, apply for another 651 or are there other options that I may be unaware of. My Australian partner has 5 children in education from her previous marriage so she is unable to leave Australia meaning the only way to build up the 12 months de facto relationship is for me to be in Australia as much as I can. Each of us has sufficient funds to support me during the time I'm unable to work in Australia. I'm also increasingly worried about being quizzed by immigration at the airport having entered Australia 3 times on my current 12 month 651 visa, an immigration agent told me not to admit to being in a relationship if questioned but I don't want to seem dishonest, especially as I will eventually be stating I've been in a de facto relationship next year when I apply for a partnership visa and I don't want their "interview" records showing I stated I said I wasn't if I follow the agents advice. Any advice on what my next step visa wise should be until I can apply in March for the partnership visa will be hugely appreciated. Adam Hi, just a reminder, the new legislation states 6 months as being reconized as a defacto relationship. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldchap Posted July 18, 2015 Author Share Posted July 18, 2015 Thank you all for your input. Quinkla, apologies for leading you to the wrong conclusion, I'm certainly not looking for just a quick route into Australia, our families and friends will attest that, but I am seeking a way to stay with, and not be apart from, the girl I want to spend the rest of my life with and her wonderful children. After both being in previous relationships for 30 years each we realise that a ceremony and vows are now not needed whilst living together in a happy loving relationship. Bronyaur, I'm obviously intrigued about the 6 months ruling, is this something that's also recognised by immigration and does it apply to all Australian states including WA? I was unaware of this, do you please have any links to further information relating to it especially if it's regarding new immigration documentation. I note that Marisa states it is still 12 months requirement. Marisa, we met in May last year, again in November and have been living together sharing household costs and jointly attending all school activities etc since March this year, there were over 45,000 facebook messages and an average of 3 or 4 hours daily Skyping between us since last summer and this March. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 I note that Marisa states it is still 12 months requirement. Marisa, we met in May last year, again in November and have been living together sharing household costs and jointly attending all school activities etc since March this year, there were over 45,000 facebook messages and an average of 3 or 4 hours daily Skyping between us since last summer and this March. I'm not aware that it's been reduced to 6 months but I'm not a professional in the field, so I can't say. What I am saying is that whatever the time requirement is, you do NOT have to be physically living together for any particular number of days, weeks or months, as far as I'm aware. Immigration recognises that even married couples are forced to live apart sometimes due to work or cost or visa restrictions. What you need is evidence that it has been a real committed relationship for at least twelve months, even though you haven't been together. What you need to do is collect the paperwork to prove that - bills and bank statements to prove you're sharing household costs, certified copies of wills showing each other as beneficiaries, photos showing you attending school activities with your partner and children, Christmas cards and other correspondence addressed to you both as a couple, etc. Plus statements from as many family and friends as you can manage. You can't submit electronic evidence so I don't know how you could use your Facebook or Skype evidence - can you get an itemised call log from Skype showing who you've called? Also, even though you feel a piece of paper is not necessary for the two of you, it would certainly make it easier for you if you did marry - in Australia it's possible to have a simple ceremony in a park which is a lovely way to celebrate your love. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaggieMay24 Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 For a de facto application, you must provide evidence that you've been in a de facto relationship for the 12 months prior to the application. There was recently a court ruling that said it's not necessary to have lived together for 12 months, however apparently DIBP still put most of the weight of consideration on living together. So anything short of that is still a risk. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nemesis Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 Are you in a state that allows you to register a relationship? No need for any cohabitation then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldchap Posted July 19, 2015 Author Share Posted July 19, 2015 We're in Western Australia so we're unable to register the relationship. I'm thinking the 600 visa is my only option, I'm assuming that I can only state that to continue exploring Australia would be the only valid reason to give in the "reason for requesting the visa extension" section but I don't want this to cause problems when immigration check back on my records when I apply for the partnership visa next year and realise I would have also had other reasons (living with partner) for requesting the tourist visa extension. How have others in this situation fared? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted July 20, 2015 Share Posted July 20, 2015 We're in Western Australia so we're unable to register the relationship.I'm thinking the 600 visa is my only option, I'm assuming that I can only state that to continue exploring Australia would be the only valid reason to give in the "reason for requesting the visa extension" section but I don't want this to cause problems when immigration check back on my records when I apply for the partnership visa next year and realise I would have also had other reasons (living with partner) for requesting the tourist visa extension. How have others in this situation fared? It does sound like a very dicey situation to get a visa under false pretences, then use it as evidence of cohabitation - if Immigration decides you've been acting fraudulently to get the other visas, wouldn't that incline them to feel your de facto application is all a lie too? They can still turn you down, even with 12 months cohabitation, if they think it's all a setup. I'd suggest before you do anything else, get a second opinion from another expert - I know it will involve a fee but how important is this to you? Go Matilda seems to get good reviews on these forums. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldchap Posted July 21, 2015 Author Share Posted July 21, 2015 Just a quick update, after some information freely supplied by helpful migration agent Mark Northam on another forum I applied for the 600 tourist visa extension stating I wished to remain for longer with a partner in Australia and the visa was finalised and granted almost immediately, Thanks again for the information provided in this thread. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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