J_J Posted January 29, 2018 Share Posted January 29, 2018 Hi all Hello all this is my first post on here but have been reading a lot for the past few months so thanks everyone for the information and advice. I have a question about the visa we have lodged.... Myself and partner (Civil partnership) lodged our application on the 28th January 2018 for a partner (provisional) 309 Visa. I am British and my partner is Australian, we met in 2014 when i traveled in Australia for 12 months and when i returned home at the end of 2014 he decided to come and move here with me as at the time it was both quicker and easier. We have lived together in the UK since March 2015 and got Married / Civil partnership in October 2016. My partner has done visa applications before in Australia as part of a previous job so we felt confident we could do it ourselves and not use a lawyer but its always different when you are doing your own and not for someone else. My question regarding the application is when we came to submit the visa, although the application we lodged was the partner (provisional) 309 Visa it also had on the page / (subclass 100) visa. I have done a bit of research on this and it seemed to say that the (subclass 100) visa takes a lot longer to be approved as the guidelines for the 309 are 11 - 15 months and the guidelines for the 100 are 20 - 28 months. From this have i now been put onto the 100 and expect to wait 20-28 months or will i get the 309 first in the 11-15 months then get the 100 approved at a later date? Any information will be greatly appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nemesis Posted January 29, 2018 Share Posted January 29, 2018 6 minutes ago, J_J said: Hi all Hello all this is my first post on here but have been reading a lot for the past few months so thanks everyone for the information and advice. I have a question about the visa we have lodged.... Myself and partner (Civil partnership) lodged our application on the 28th January 2018 for a partner (provisional) 309 Visa. I am British and my partner is Australian, we met in 2014 when i traveled in Australia for 12 months and when i returned home at the end of 2014 he decided to come and move here with me as at the time it was both quicker and easier. We have lived together in the UK since March 2015 and got Married / Civil partnership in October 2016. My partner has done visa applications before in Australia as part of a previous job so we felt confident we could do it ourselves and not use a lawyer but its always different when you are doing your own and not for someone else. My question regarding the application is when we came to submit the visa, although the application we lodged was the partner (provisional) 309 Visa it also had on the page / (subclass 100) visa. I have done a bit of research on this and it seemed to say that the (subclass 100) visa takes a lot longer to be approved as the guidelines for the 309 are 11 - 15 months and the guidelines for the 100 are 20 - 28 months. From this have i now been put onto the 100 and expect to wait 20-28 months or will i get the 309 first in the 11-15 months then get the 100 approved at a later date? Any information will be greatly appreciated. When you apply for the 309 you also apply for the 100. If you have been together less than 3 years (or 2 with children) then you will be granted the provisional 309 first, then the 100 will follow, if you are still eligible, with paperwork due to be submitted for it 2 years after the initial application. From what you've written here I would expect you would probably be granted the 100 straightaway, after the initial waiting period of 11-15 months. That 11-15 months is the general offshore waiting time. The 20-28 months applies if you need to wait for the 100 at the second stage, which is usually onshore. Even the initial provisional visa takes 20-28 months currently if done onshore (as an 820). Just for info, some people have recently reported offshore spouse visas coming through in only 3-5 months. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J-J Posted January 29, 2018 Share Posted January 29, 2018 Thank you Nemesis for your response (Had to log in via twitter as there was a problem with my email) You have also answered my next question of how accurate are the waiting time estimates are. I nearly fell over when i saw your last sentence of 3 - 5 months but not getting carried away i know it can take a lot longer than that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 3, 2018 Share Posted February 3, 2018 Our visa was approved in five months, however that was early last year so timeframes have changed. As mentioned you apply for both. In some cases if you meet the criteria, like us, you can go straight through to the 100 PR visa. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J-J Posted February 5, 2018 Share Posted February 5, 2018 On 2/3/2018 at 23:38, Ozzie said: Our visa was approved in five months, however that was early last year so timeframes have changed. As mentioned you apply for both. In some cases if you meet the criteria, like us, you can go straight through to the 100 PR visa. Thanks Ozzie for your reply. Out of interest what was your latest arrival date on your visa and how long was that from the approval date? I have done some reading on here and from what i can gather it is linked to your police and medical checks would that be correct ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 5, 2018 Share Posted February 5, 2018 8 hours ago, J-J said: Thanks Ozzie for your reply. Out of interest what was your latest arrival date on your visa and how long was that from the approval date? I have done some reading on here and from what i can gather it is linked to your police and medical checks would that be correct ? It is usually. Whatever came first, police check or medical, they date it from then. Hence why people should wait till asked by CO before getting either. Eta - Do you mean the date you had to validate within? Or the 5 year date? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 5, 2018 Share Posted February 5, 2018 (edited) 8 hours ago, J-J said: Thanks Ozzie for your reply. Out of interest what was your latest arrival date on your visa and how long was that from the approval date? I have done some reading on here and from what i can gather it is linked to your police and medical checks would that be correct ? Early 2022 was the latest time I could arrive. Applied in Sept 2016, approved 5 months later (timelines have now changed I believe). We didn't wait for the CO to ask for the medical or police clearance, applied for the clearance and undertook medical and front-loaded it. Edited February 5, 2018 by Guest Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xmascreek Posted February 6, 2018 Share Posted February 6, 2018 Seven weeks submission to approval for 309/100 I lodged in 6 Dec 17 and was approved in 31 Jan 18. The whole process took around 7 weeks including Christmas holidays for a 309/100. I was very lucky I guess. Married to an Australian here in England for 11 years and made sure the kids were conferred Australian citizenship before applying. Overall it took a few months of collating evidence 5x888's etc and I did it without an agent. I'd expected it to take much longer based on the 11 month guidelines so was very surprised when we got the email. We're now getting the house on the market and expect to be on the ground with 7 months, though I'll be out in 3 months kick it off and set up bank accounts, driving license, rentals etc. Kids had schools approved when we went over (UK) summer 17 and interviewed - fees paid etc. I did take a lot time for preparation and I managed to do the Police/Medical within 2 weeks of kicking it off. I read a number of blogs about evidence and decided not overdo it - basic evidence showing that the relationship is genuine and continuing, but spread over our timeline. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J-J Posted February 6, 2018 Share Posted February 6, 2018 10 hours ago, snifter said: It is usually. Whatever came first, police check or medical, they date it from then. Hence why people should wait till asked by CO before getting either. Eta - Do you mean the date you had to validate within? Or the 5 year date? Thanks Sniffer I was meaning the Validate date. And we did pre load the medical and police checks with the application so will see. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 6, 2018 Share Posted February 6, 2018 17 minutes ago, J-J said: Thanks Sniffer I was meaning the Validate date. And we did pre load the medical and police checks with the application so will see. Then yes, from the date of the medical or police check, whichever was done first. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ellawash Posted February 6, 2018 Share Posted February 6, 2018 Hello xmascreek when you say you lodged it 6dec 17 that would be the medical and police reports to complete the application or is that too obvious Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xmascreek Posted February 6, 2018 Share Posted February 6, 2018 (edited) I paid on the 6th Dec and then uploaded my docs over the next few weeks - the medical HAP form was issued on 9th Dec - I booked the doctor and was in for medical on the 19th Dec - the results were all good with the HIV test taking a further3 days and posted online by 22nd Dec (again good thankfully). In the meanwhile I paid extra to get the Police check expedited (it took 3 days) - so all submitted before xmas week. The hardest part was tracking my 10 years of travel/countries which was a few hundred flights ! I think that the fact that we'd been together for 16 years and married for 11 helped. I also think that making sure the kids where Australian (Dual) and had school places already paid for with starting dates etc helped. But to be clear I did not and still do not have any insight into the process once submitted, so I was pleasantly surprised at the speed with which we got a positive response. I did fret about not using an agent, but in reality I've filled in so many forms for wife and kids over the last few years citizenship, passports etc that I've become familiar with the terms they use etc. Again to be clear it did take many many months preparing and scanning the docs, getting asset quotes and references etc. One interesting thing that I thought about was that I suspect the Doctor was used to confirm my identity because we didn't need to o an interview face to face. Edited February 6, 2018 by xmascreek Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeh Posted February 8, 2018 Share Posted February 8, 2018 On 06/02/2018 at 20:42, xmascreek said: I paid on the 6th Dec and then uploaded my docs over the next few weeks - the medical HAP form was issued on 9th Dec - I booked the doctor and was in for medical on the 19th Dec - the results were all good with the HIV test taking a further3 days and posted online by 22nd Dec (again good thankfully). In the meanwhile I paid extra to get the Police check expedited (it took 3 days) - so all submitted before xmas week. The hardest part was tracking my 10 years of travel/countries which was a few hundred flights ! I think that the fact that we'd been together for 16 years and married for 11 helped. I also think that making sure the kids where Australian (Dual) and had school places already paid for with starting dates etc helped. But to be clear I did not and still do not have any insight into the process once submitted, so I was pleasantly surprised at the speed with which we got a positive response. I did fret about not using an agent, but in reality I've filled in so many forms for wife and kids over the last few years citizenship, passports etc that I've become familiar with the terms they use etc. Again to be clear it did take many many months preparing and scanning the docs, getting asset quotes and references etc. One interesting thing that I thought about was that I suspect the Doctor was used to confirm my identity because we didn't need to o an interview face to face. That's really good to hear that the application can be processed quicker than the 11-15 months that they're quoting! I've just applied and am in similar situation - been married over 12 years and got 2 children with Australian (dual) passports. We've uploaded a lot of documents but haven't uploaded the children's citizenship or copies of passports anywhere yet - was wondering if this is something you did and if so which section ? Hard to know the balance between over doing it and uploading too much - or not uploading enough - we are still uploading documents and are thinking to upload a 'statement' written by both of us in the each of the 4 sections (nature of household etc) as well as bank statements etc. Any information gratefully received - as we're hoping to go mid this year and so would be great to get approval prior to going. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xmascreek Posted February 8, 2018 Share Posted February 8, 2018 Hi Jeh - yes I uploaded both passports for the children (UK/Aus), Naturalisation Certificates and of course the birth certificates with both our names on them these went into the 'Family Book/Household Booklet/Family Composition Evidence' section - I also uploaded paid school receipts for the kids starting next year in the 'Nature of the couple's household, Evidence of' section to demonstrate the nature of our commit both as a family and to moving with the family to Australia - there was a question about any specific dates in one of the docs but I left it clear as the starting date in the School acceptance is quite evident. We also got 5x 888 from close friends in Australia. Three bank statements - current and additional two over our 11 year marriage, we didn't mark them up apart from highlight our salaries going in on the most current one - it's clear from the statement that we share our life and spend from one account as there are coffee shops, waitrose etc named in the statements themselves. In total I uploaded about 43 docs excluding the online ones - about 55 scanned pages in total. I've seen youtube examples where people upload or send in (in the paper days) 500 pages of bank statements alone - no wonder it takes forever for both them and the folks assessing them ! Looking at the details most docs went in on 30th Dec and I was still uploading as late as 3rd Jan and - so in fact the folks were really efficient in their assessment and I have to thank them for that. I went to Australia house to get the stat decs certified before scanning - and decided to upload the paper stat decs as well as fill in the online ones as well - the questions were slightly different so it seemed wise (they may have viewed them as duplicates, I have no idea). I also filled in form 80 as well as the main application - it's not clear and I do think they could make it a little clearer - that was a printed and uploaded form. NOTE only source forms from the government site - I discovered that some of the PDFs on Migration agency site can be out of date so the format change etc. I'm also sure that there is no right way to do this - given the same application, a different reviewer could take a different view. And also it may be that the new year is a slow time in UK applications, who knows? Anyway good luck - my main sense of relief is that we can now target a spring sale for our house rather than Autumn/Winter :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 9, 2018 Share Posted February 9, 2018 On 2/7/2018 at 07:12, xmascreek said: One interesting thing that I thought about was that I suspect the Doctor was used to confirm my identity because we didn't need to o an interview face to face. If you submitted your application in the UK its not usual to have a face to face interview for the partner visa. I can't recall anyone posting on here they had to do that. A few may have had phone calls but not a face to face. I'm sure it happens from time to time but it really isn't the norm that I have seen over the years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 9, 2018 Share Posted February 9, 2018 3 hours ago, jeh said: That's really good to hear that the application can be processed quicker than the 11-15 months that they're quoting! I've just applied and am in similar situation - been married over 12 years and got 2 children with Australian (dual) passports. We've uploaded a lot of documents but haven't uploaded the children's citizenship or copies of passports anywhere yet - was wondering if this is something you did and if so which section ? Hard to know the balance between over doing it and uploading too much - or not uploading enough - we are still uploading documents and are thinking to upload a 'statement' written by both of us in the each of the 4 sections (nature of household etc) as well as bank statements etc. Any information gratefully received - as we're hoping to go mid this year and so would be great to get approval prior to going. Thanks! If you have children holding Aus citizenship by descent and Aus passports you may be asked to submit their full birth certificates also. This is to show both you and the sponsor are the parents and have legal rights etc. When I applied for my visa I included son's citizenship doc and his Aus passport. IIRC he was named as a non migrating dependant (as he already held an Aus passport and didn't need a visa obviously). We had his full BC ready to go but didn't submit it (it wasn't listed but I'd read it would be needed probably) and it was asked for and I had 28 days to submit it. It was in within a few and all good. Keep in mind the document limit on the account. If you are going to submit lots you may need to put some into PDF's to save room. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 9, 2018 Share Posted February 9, 2018 1 hour ago, snifter said: If you submitted your application in the UK its not usual to have a face to face interview for the partner visa. I can't recall anyone posting on here they had to do that. A few may have had phone calls but not a face to face. I'm sure it happens from time to time but it really isn't the norm that I have seen over the years. I second this. It may happen but I've never seen it on this or another popular forum (that I read). We didn't have an interview. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nemesis Posted February 9, 2018 Share Posted February 9, 2018 7 hours ago, Ozzie said: I second this. It may happen but I've never seen it on this or another popular forum (that I read). We didn't have an interview. Likewise, I've only heard of phone interviews iin the UK in recent years/ No face-to-face interviews since back in around 2000 when you could actually get your visa from Australia House. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lisa De Leon Posted February 9, 2018 Share Posted February 9, 2018 If you meet the requirements for the second stage visa when you lodge the first stage application due to a long term relationship, you need to request to be considered for the permanent visa with the first stage. Otherwise the provisional visa may be granted and you still have to wait 2 years to lodge the second stage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xmascreek Posted February 9, 2018 Share Posted February 9, 2018 29 minutes ago, Lisa De Leon said: If you meet the requirements for the second stage visa when you lodge the first stage application due to a long term relationship, you need to request to be considered for the permanent visa with the first stage. Otherwise the provisional visa may be granted and you still have to wait 2 years to lodge the second stage. Interesting - we never explicitly asked for both on any form - just assumed that this was default under the guidance "You apply for both the permanent and temporary visas at the same time and pay only one fee". Then it says "If you have been in a long term relationship before you lodge your application, the permanent Partner (Migrant) visa (subclass 100) may be granted immediately after the temporary Partner (Provisional) visa (subclass 309)." https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/trav/visa-1/309-/Partner-(Provisional)-visa-(subclass-309)-and-Partner-(Migrant)-visa-(subclass-100)-document-checklist - Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xmascreek Posted February 9, 2018 Share Posted February 9, 2018 10 hours ago, snifter said: If you have children holding Aus citizenship by descent and Aus passports you may be asked to submit their full birth certificates also. This is to show both you and the sponsor are the parents and have legal rights etc. When I applied for my visa I included son's citizenship doc and his Aus passport. IIRC he was named as a non migrating dependant (as he already held an Aus passport and didn't need a visa obviously). We had his full BC ready to go but didn't submit it (it wasn't listed but I'd read it would be needed probably) and it was asked for and I had 28 days to submit it. It was in within a few and all good. Keep in mind the document limit on the account. If you are going to submit lots you may need to put some into PDF's to save room. Good advice sifter - remember there are TWO birth Certs that you get given when you register the births - it MUST be the one with both parents named on it - of course divorce or adoption complicates things but that is covered elsewhere. As a note on snifters pdf comment - I downloaded "Cisdem PDFCompressor" as an app for my Mac on my forms to reduce the size for things like Facebook screen scrapes etc I've no idea about Windows or if Cisdem PDFCompressor is the best app, but it worked for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lisa De Leon Posted February 9, 2018 Share Posted February 9, 2018 The time of decision criteria for a 100 visa requires that any claim that the applicant and sponsor are in a long-term relationship be made at the time of application. As the Subclass 100 is lodged at the same time as lodging the Subclass 309 visa, the long-term relationship must therefore have been claimed when the application for the temporary partner visa is lodged. If the 309 visa is granted without the 100, they must wait for two years from date of lodgement in order to be eligible to be granted the permanent partner visa. It doesn't happen automatically and you need to draw the case officer's attention to the fact that you have been in a long term relationship. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xmascreek Posted February 9, 2018 Share Posted February 9, 2018 (edited) 10 minutes ago, Lisa De Leon said: The time of decision criteria for a 100 visa requires that any claim that the applicant and sponsor are in a long-term relationship be made at the time of application. As the Subclass 100 is lodged at the same time as lodging the Subclass 309 visa, the long-term relationship must therefore have been claimed when the application for the temporary partner visa is lodged. If the 309 visa is granted without the 100, they must wait for two years from date of lodgement in order to be eligible to be granted the permanent partner visa. It doesn't happen automatically and you need to draw the case officer's attention to the fact that you have been in a long term relationship. Lisa - I think that's good advice to request, but in our case we didn't ask - and I'd suggest that its pretty obvious to case officers when there is a long term relationship. As a guide where would you suggest lodging such a request in the online form? Aus Home Affairs define it on their web site as the following - Long term relationship We consider you have been in a long term relationship, at the time you lodged your application, if you had been with your partner for either: three years or more two years or more and you and your partner have a dependent child of your relationship. You will need to provide documents that show you have been in your relationship for this length of time and if applicable, that you have a dependent child. Edited February 9, 2018 by xmascreek Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lisa De Leon Posted February 9, 2018 Share Posted February 9, 2018 An agent would include this information in their legal submission. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xmascreek Posted February 9, 2018 Share Posted February 9, 2018 ... ah ! the agent 'Sell' ;-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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