461 visa renewal onshore

[maddy88]

Hi guys,

I have a bit of a problem at the moment with my current 461 visa (New Zealand Citizen Relationship visa) expiring in March 2019 and I want to renew it preferably this month as I looked at the timelines being 17-21 months at the moment (it only took me 9 days to get it offshore last time).

I have been planning to move to New Zealand with my partner early next year either before the visa expires or after depending on how long the New Zealand visa will take. I applied for a Partner of New Zealand Resident Visa in New Zealand and the timeline there is 9 months (I applied in September).

I would apply for the renewal of my 461 now and then stay on a bridging visa via the 461 in case the New Zealand visa doesn't come through in time. My only concern is that if I apply onshore and the New Zealand visa does come through quite quickly,  I might leave Australia before Australian immigration has made a decision on my visa and I read one needs to be in the onshore when the decision is made when you have applied onshore.

How would it affect the outcome of my 461 visa renewal if I leave Australia on a bridging visa and not intend to come back until the decision on the visa has been made? Can I just come back to Australia for a few days after the decision has been made and am therefore onshore? I would like the Australian visa as a safety net in case New Zealand does not happen to work out for me and I can always go back to Australia for a few years.

I hope this all makes sense and someone can help.