Abi6635 Posted October 16, 2017 Share Posted October 16, 2017 Me and my partner are applying for a skills visa. Both of us have wanted skills, my partner is the main person applying for the visa and I am going on his partner. We have been together for 6 years, we haven’t lived together and we don’t have a joint bank account. We currently live between our parents houses as we are saving to emigrate. We have evidence through photos, flight tickets, statements from friends. What is needed to ensure the visa will be granted? What else can we submit as evidence? Has anyone applied for a visa in a similar situation who could help? thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 16, 2017 Share Posted October 16, 2017 I think you will have a hard time proving an ongoing relationship with so little evidence. You need to prove you have marriage like relationship. Which means living together, having joint bills etc. I'm afraid photos, flight tickets and statements from friends isn't really going to be enough. TBH i think if you both have skills on the list you'd be better of applying for your own visa. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 16, 2017 Share Posted October 16, 2017 You’ve posted this twice on the forum. I replied in your other thread. As above, think you’ll struggle to claim de facto. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Abi6635 Posted October 16, 2017 Author Share Posted October 16, 2017 Sorry I didn’t mean to post it twice! Thanks for your help. We are just really stuck with what to send, we thought there might be other information that we could send, or someone else in a similar situation to ourselves. Thanks anyway! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JD3006 Posted October 18, 2017 Share Posted October 18, 2017 possibly speak to an authorised agent, they will have had this issue before and probably know what is needed. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nemesis Posted October 18, 2017 Share Posted October 18, 2017 3 hours ago, JD3006 said: possibly speak to an authorised agent, they will have had this issue before and probably know what is needed. dWhat they need is proof that they have been cohabiting, as a married couple, for at least 12 months. From what they have written here DIBP will see them as merely a boyfriend/girlfriend scenario. No agent can produce evidence to say they are a de facto couple if they aren't living together. When living apart it is incredibly difficult to roove that you are a couple, even some FIFO couples are being turned down because they are apart most of the time. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JD3006 Posted October 19, 2017 Share Posted October 19, 2017 19 hours ago, Nemesis said: dWhat they need is proof that they have been cohabiting, as a married couple, for at least 12 months. From what they have written here DIBP will see them as merely a boyfriend/girlfriend scenario. No agent can produce evidence to say they are a de facto couple if they aren't living together. When living apart it is incredibly difficult to roove that you are a couple, even some FIFO couples are being turned down because they are apart most of the time. what I meant is the agent can offer advise as to what to supply as evidence. as you don't have to be married to be named a partner on the visa. there could be some other piece of evidence other than shared address and bank? so instead of saying it wont work maybe lets offer some help and share some info that they might of missed. for example this list from the gov website https://www.border.gov.au/visas/supporting/Pages/partner/Proof-that-your-relationship-genuine.aspx Proof that your relationship is genuine and continuing As many of the following documents as possible: a statement about your relationship that describes: how, when and where you first met how the relationship developed when you became engaged or married, if applicable joint activities periods of separation significant events in the relationship your future plans together. documents that show you and your partner share financial responsibilities, for example: mortgage or lease documents showing joint ownership or rental of property loan documents of major assets such as homes, cars or major appliances in both names joint bank accounts household bills in both names documents that show that you and your partner share household responsibilities, for example: a statement about the way housework is distributed household bills in both names mail or emails addressed to both of you joint responsibility for children your living arrangements documents that show your relationship is known by others, for example: joint invitations, going out together, friends and acquaintances in common proof that you and your partner have declared your relationship to government bodies, commercial or public institutions proof of joint sporting, cultural or social activities proof of joint travel. documents to show you are committed to each other your long term relationship, for example: knowledge of each other’s personal circumstances such as background and family situation. You could tell us this at an interview. documents that show you have combined your personal matters the terms of your wills letters and phone bills that show you have been in contact when apart. as I said before maybe speak to a visa agent who can advise. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VERYSTORMY Posted October 19, 2017 Share Posted October 19, 2017 1 hour ago, JD3006 said: what I meant is the agent can offer advise as to what to supply as evidence. as you don't have to be married to be named a partner on the visa. there could be some other piece of evidence other than shared address and bank? so instead of saying it wont work maybe lets offer some help and share some info that they might of missed. for example this list from the gov website https://www.border.gov.au/visas/supporting/Pages/partner/Proof-that-your-relationship-genuine.aspx Proof that your relationship is genuine and continuing As many of the following documents as possible: a statement about your relationship that describes: how, when and where you first met how the relationship developed when you became engaged or married, if applicable joint activities periods of separation significant events in the relationship your future plans together. documents that show you and your partner share financial responsibilities, for example: mortgage or lease documents showing joint ownership or rental of property loan documents of major assets such as homes, cars or major appliances in both names joint bank accounts household bills in both names documents that show that you and your partner share household responsibilities, for example: a statement about the way housework is distributed household bills in both names mail or emails addressed to both of you joint responsibility for children your living arrangements documents that show your relationship is known by others, for example: joint invitations, going out together, friends and acquaintances in common proof that you and your partner have declared your relationship to government bodies, commercial or public institutions proof of joint sporting, cultural or social activities proof of joint travel. documents to show you are committed to each other your long term relationship, for example: knowledge of each other’s personal circumstances such as background and family situation. You could tell us this at an interview. documents that show you have combined your personal matters the terms of your wills letters and phone bills that show you have been in contact when apart. as I said before maybe speak to a visa agent who can advise. Yes, but the single thing all of this is trying to establish is that a couple are de facto. The department regard someone as de facto as a couple who have lived together for at least 12 months in the case of PR visas. There are exceptions, but these are rare. The list you have provided is the evidence that they can use to establish that they are a de facto couple. But they are not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 19, 2017 Share Posted October 19, 2017 2 hours ago, JD3006 said: what I meant is the agent can offer advise as to what to supply as evidence. as you don't have to be married to be named a partner on the visa. there could be some other piece of evidence other than shared address and bank? so instead of saying it wont work maybe lets offer some help and share some info that they might of missed. for example this list from the gov website https://www.border.gov.au/visas/supporting/Pages/partner/Proof-that-your-relationship-genuine.aspx Proof that your relationship is genuine and continuing As many of the following documents as possible: a statement about your relationship that describes: how, when and where you first met how the relationship developed when you became engaged or married, if applicable joint activities periods of separation significant events in the relationship your future plans together. documents that show you and your partner share financial responsibilities, for example: mortgage or lease documents showing joint ownership or rental of property loan documents of major assets such as homes, cars or major appliances in both names joint bank accounts household bills in both names documents that show that you and your partner share household responsibilities, for example: a statement about the way housework is distributed household bills in both names mail or emails addressed to both of you joint responsibility for children your living arrangements documents that show your relationship is known by others, for example: joint invitations, going out together, friends and acquaintances in common proof that you and your partner have declared your relationship to government bodies, commercial or public institutions proof of joint sporting, cultural or social activities proof of joint travel. documents to show you are committed to each other your long term relationship, for example: knowledge of each other’s personal circumstances such as background and family situation. You could tell us this at an interview. documents that show you have combined your personal matters the terms of your wills letters and phone bills that show you have been in contact when apart. as I said before maybe speak to a visa agent who can advise. It's all very well trying to help but at the end of the day if they don'y qualify there's no point giving false hope. Clearly they can't prove a defacto relationship as they've never lived together. Most of what is on the list to prove so they can't supply. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Abi6635 Posted October 19, 2017 Author Share Posted October 19, 2017 Thank you JD that list has been really positive and supportive! Really appreciate the help! Thanks!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quoll Posted October 19, 2017 Share Posted October 19, 2017 1 hour ago, Abi6635 said: Thank you JD that list has been really positive and supportive! Really appreciate the help! Thanks!!! I hope you’ve got the message though that as you are not living together in a marriage like relationship you are unlikely to succeed and would be better served getting your visas in your own rights with your relevant skills. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Abi6635 Posted October 20, 2017 Author Share Posted October 20, 2017 No one is giving me any ‘false hope’. I have a friend who has just emigrated on the same visa and was in exactly the same position as me with his partner, and he got the visa with no problem. I simply wanted some more advice, if anyone else had been in a similar situation. Saying that we can’t prove we are a couple isn’t actually helpful. I appreciated a bit of positivity from JD. I understand why everyone else is being so honest, but I only wanted some advice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 20, 2017 Share Posted October 20, 2017 (edited) " Saying that we can’t prove we are a couple isn’t actually helpful" unfortunately it may not feel helpful however it is the truth. We have just gone through the partner process ourselves and had to provide a huge amount of information, and we've been together for over a decade, married, child etc. The advice given here is not to try to trip you up nor be unhelpful (well, most of it I'm sure!) it's to try to give you advice on areas that many, if not most have been through recently or have older experience with. To help give you information and tips on how you could achieve your desired visa. No on here, as far as I have seen, gives advice hoping that the person fails. The posters on here are trying to give you advice so you can read through and check if you are eligible. For defacto you do have to show you have been cohabiting / sharing finances for a year. That's the rules set down by the Australian government. Under the fact sheet for the 'one year relationship requirement' on the immigration page, the Government states " live together or do not live separately and apart on a permanent basis" and you've said you both live separately. So the posters on here are just responding to the info you gave. Otherwise if you apply and you're not eligible you'll be wasting $7,000 - you don't get your visa application money back if you are rejected unfortunately. Unless anyone here is a heartless youknowwhat, no-one wants to see someone being rejected and losing such a big amount of money. Edited October 20, 2017 by Guest Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nemesis Posted October 20, 2017 Share Posted October 20, 2017 6 hours ago, Abi6635 said: No one is giving me any ‘false hope’. I have a friend who has just emigrated on the same visa and was in exactly the same position as me with his partner, and he got the visa with no problem. I simply wanted some more advice, if anyone else had been in a similar situation. Saying that we can’t prove we are a couple isn’t actually helpful. I appreciated a bit of positivity from JD. I understand why everyone else is being so honest, but I only wanted some advice. We had a home together. We had everything, bills, wages, insurance, wills, personal possessions all in that home. Not shared with anyone else. But jobs/wages meant that my husband retained, and worked half of the year in, his permanent job in the UK. When he was back there he lived in temporary rooms provided by his job. We were not considered a genuine couple largely because he did not want to give up a well and secure job until he had PR in oz. That meant they did not consider us a genuine couple as they said if we were, we would be iving together 365 days a year, under the same roof. The visa was rejected and we are back in the UK trying to save up a fortune to try again in a few years time, probably after we have retied 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quoll Posted October 20, 2017 Share Posted October 20, 2017 7 hours ago, Abi6635 said: No one is giving me any ‘false hope’. I have a friend who has just emigrated on the same visa and was in exactly the same position as me with his partner, and he got the visa with no problem. I simply wanted some more advice, if anyone else had been in a similar situation. Saying that we can’t prove we are a couple isn’t actually helpful. I appreciated a bit of positivity from JD. I understand why everyone else is being so honest, but I only wanted some advice. Well, if you have a friend who has managed to get a partner visa without actually demonstrating the commitment by living together for a year + you had probably best ask them how they got around the requirements because nobody here has managed to do it. Nemesis is a case in point with a far stronger application. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phoenix16 Posted October 20, 2017 Share Posted October 20, 2017 (edited) Me and my then partner weren't married when we went through the visa process and we had only been together for 4 years but we had a child and we had complete evidence we lived together and were a couple, absolutely everything was joint, it was a total pain to prove it all i.e all of the documentation required but we had no doubts we would get the visa because we did have all of the evidence and we knew we could show it, we then did the silliest thing after all that pain, we got married the day before we flew to Australia!!! PS I only say 'then' partner because now he's my husband! Edited October 20, 2017 by Phoenix16 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phoenix16 Posted October 20, 2017 Share Posted October 20, 2017 1 hour ago, Nemesis said: We had a home together. We had everything, bills, wages, insurance, wills, personal possessions all in that home. Not shared with anyone else. But jobs/wages meant that my husband retained, and worked half of the year in, his permanent job in the UK. When he was back there he lived in temporary rooms provided by his job. We were not considered a genuine couple largely because he did not want to give up a well and secure job until he had PR in oz. That meant they did not consider us a genuine couple as they said if we were, we would be iving together 365 days a year, under the same roof. The visa was rejected and we are back in the UK trying to save up a fortune to try again in a few years time, probably after we have retied I'm sorry to hear your story Nemesis and it shows just how harsh the rules are, everyone has their own story and everyone lives their lives the way they do and circumstances sometimes dictate that, my hubby moved out into work accommodation (100kms away) 1 day after our child was born, because he needed to focus on his job at a critical time and to be honest it was the best thing at that time although I didn't think that at the time! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VERYSTORMY Posted October 20, 2017 Share Posted October 20, 2017 14 hours ago, Abi6635 said: No one is giving me any ‘false hope’. I have a friend who has just emigrated on the same visa and was in exactly the same position as me with his partner, and he got the visa with no problem. I simply wanted some more advice, if anyone else had been in a similar situation. Saying that we can’t prove we are a couple isn’t actually helpful. I appreciated a bit of positivity from JD. I understand why everyone else is being so honest, but I only wanted some advice. Please consider this. If some of our experienced members are correct and you apply and are refused, you lose the thousands in fees. Department visa fees are not generally refunded. You also face a potential ban on reapplying for a number of years. I would suggest you consult a good registered migration agent. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NicF Posted October 20, 2017 Share Posted October 20, 2017 Just to point out the OP isn't applying for a partner visa but rather a skilled visa with one of them being included as the partner. I have no experience of the skilled visa so cannot comment with any certainty but I was under the impression that the burden of proof for a partner on a skilled visa was substantially less than that for an actual partner visa? Many comments on here relate to people who have applied for a partner visa rather than a skilled visa. OP regardless of the fact you are applying for a skilled visa rather than a partner visa you are still supposed to be a de facto couple and you may need some additional help from a migration agent around how you can prove this. You don't have to get the agent to do the whole application but it can't hurt to get some advice on whether you would qualify as the partner of a skilled visa applpicant and if so how to prove it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 20, 2017 Share Posted October 20, 2017 This application is for a skilled visa with the partner going on a dependant isn’t it? The requirements iirc I’ve already linked to in the OP’s other thread. I’m not sure you can claim defacto though. The lack of evidence of a shared life could be the stumbling block. Dating, being exclusive but living at home with your respective parents still doesn’t count as de facto as I understand it. Discuss with an agent perhaps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wrussell Posted October 21, 2017 Share Posted October 21, 2017 (edited) To establish a de facto relationship it is not necessary to live together for 12 months, or at all. http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/cases/cth/FCAFC/2015/69.html This is not a DIY exercise. Edited October 21, 2017 by wrussell Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JD3006 Posted October 21, 2017 Share Posted October 21, 2017 5 hours ago, VERYSTORMY said: I would suggest you consult a good registered migration agent. I've been saying this since my first post. I didn't want her to get told no by users on here and just give up as it will be a NO from the Visa. if you don't try you don't succeed ! there is no harm in chasing it up with a agent who is qualified to tell you what to do, not a user on a forum. this is a great place for advice but no way should be substituted for what an agent actually does. I was in no way offering false hope, I simply supplied her with the list of documents that she needs to supply as many of as she could, as stated by the gov website. its down to her and possibly her agent to go through this list and see what is feasible to supply. no one else offered this but instead said that she wont be able to get it. unless these users are in fact visa agents they should make that clear on their profile. good luck on your journey and I hope in some way you find an answer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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