Partner visa queries

[emanyalpsid]

Me (aus citizen) and (unmarried) UK citizen partner have just returned from another holiday in Aus and are now considering moving over there potentially in 2024. I have had a look through the home affairs website but just wanted to clarify a few points here.

Me and partner have been together around 14 years and have an 18 month old child together (will be eligible to citizenship by descent). During the 14 years we have split up twice for around a year each time and lived separately The last time being around 3-4 years ago. I understand the minimum relationship requirements are 12 months. Will these breaks count against us when applying for the visa? Obviously I will have to be honest when applying for the visa but I would be disappointed if we were honest and disclosed these things when it turns out it could give reason to refuse the visa?

Secondly with regards to finances we live in a house which I own. My partners name is on the council tax but none of the other utility bills. I have tonight emailed these utilities to ask that they put her name on, however I pay these bills from my own sole bank account. We do have a joint account together which we used to use to pay our rent and bills many moons ago when first living together but recently it has just been used to pool any money gifted to our child. No regular payments are made in or out. My partner pays for all the childcare through a salary sacrifice at work and so we consider it quits on that basis. I have a standing order to her account for food shopping money. This might be unconventional in the eyes of some people so again i'm wondering what can be done to alleviate any concerns or am I worrying too much? My Nan and Grandad always had seperate money and he paid all the bills and owned the house, i'm not sure how unusual it is?

I have seen it mentioned on here that the offshore visa option has advantages? Could someone please let me know these? I see the fees start at around 8k AUD, how variable is this figure if 'starts' is mentioned? Is this paid on application or prior to grant of visa?

I would have thought with a 14+ year relationship and a 18 month old child together we should sail through however on reading the home affairs website it has just alerted me to a few things so thought it best to consult the knowledge here and find out what (if anything) should be done to improve the outlook?

TIA

 

[JMcKie]

I would have a consultation with a migration agent to fully disclose all your information just for your own sanity. There a few on the site here that are very reputable such as @paulhand.

[Jon the Hat]

If your most recent spell of relationship is 4 years (assuming you lived together for all that time) and have an 18 months old child together you more than meet the requirements for defacto.  I might still be worth a consultation though to see if you might qualify for the PR visa straight away based on the 12 years on and off part.

I also paid for everything from my account and had no issues.  As long as you have documents showing you are in the same house (i.e. same address) they don't have to be joint accounts.  I included a list of payments from me to my partner in the financial section.  Her being on the council tax will be good evidence, also see if you have polling card etc. with her name on.  Anything to show she has been there.  When you get it together, scan multiple docs together in one pdf - called for example household bills, start with joint ones.

Citizenship by descent is easy, just get on with that one.

[Marisawright]

I agree with Jon that a consultation with an agent would be a good thing. It may well be that the period prior to your last split won't count towards the visa (since it could be said that your first relationship ended, then you started a new one).  That would mean you'd submit evidence only for the last 4 years, which would be more than enough anyway.  However, I'm no expert, so I'd definitely say an agent is needed.  Try Suncoast Migration or Go Matilda.

Immigration recognises that not all couples have joint accounts.  Just explain how your finances balance out and show evidence.

The benefits of offshore, if you're applying from the UK, is that it's usually faster.  You can just get on with your lives in the UK while the application goes through, instead of being in limbo on a bridging visa in Australia (finding work on a bridging visa can be hard). 

[can1983]

why not just focus on the last uninterrupted part of 4 years with the child? Its more than enough on its own and the period apart just weakens your application because it could be interpreted as being a sign you are not in an ongoing relationship.

You aren't lying by not mentioning you had another relationship in the past with a break, you'd only be lying if you said it was 14 years together.

[emanyalpsid]

I just thought that when disclosing the relationship I didn't want to start lying saying that we only met 4 years ago. I thought the whole truth would be better. 

I didnt realise you could get immediate pr based on length of relationship? Does this shorten the time before partner could become a citizen? Is it 4 years after moving to aus if going down the traditional partner visa route?

How much do these agents charge for their services (ball park)? I usually am quite capable with paperwork

Thanks for replies

[Marisawright]

22 minutes ago, emanyalpsid said:

I just thought that when disclosing the relationship I didn't want to start lying saying that we only met 4 years ago. I thought the whole truth would be better. ....

How much do these agents charge for their services (ball park)? I usually am quite capable with paperwork

This is why you need to consult an agent.  You don't have to hire them to do the whole application if you feel capable of doing it yourself.  You can book them for a one-off consultation (make it clear you're looking for answers to specific questions, not just a general intro).  The best way to find out what that will cost is to ring them and ask them for a quote. We'd just be guessing.

[Nemesis]

22 minutes ago, emanyalpsid said:

I just thought that when disclosing the relationship I didn't want to start lying saying that we only met 4 years ago. I thought the whole truth would be better. 

I didnt realise you could get immediate pr based on length of relationship? Does this shorten the time before partner could become a citizen? Is it 4 years after moving to aus if going down the traditional partner visa route?

How much do these agents charge for their services (ball park)? I usually am quite capable with paperwork

Thanks for replies

Definitely disclose the relationship. You will be asked things like when did you first get together, and you need to be honest. Never lie to Immigration - your instincts are correct.

The fact the you have got back together, and have a child together, will go in your favour. And having been together for that length of time you should get PR at once, and not have to wait the usual 2 years.

[paulhand]

4 hours ago, can1983 said:

You aren't lying by not mentioning you had another relationship in the past with a break, you'd only be lying if you said it was 14 years together.

I think this is poor advice. It is a very bad idea to be economical with the truth. 
 

 

[can1983]

10 minutes ago, paulhand said:

I think this is poor advice. It is a very bad idea to be economical with the truth. 
 

 

As you're a professional the OP should take your advice, I think it looks bad having gaps though which is a shame because 4 years and a child is more than enough for pr straight away

[emanyalpsid]

Thanks for the replies. Out of interest what are the timescales with these visas. Not nessecarily application times but how long post successful application do you have to enter aus? How long post entering aus on provisional visa will you be elidgbke for permenant partner visa? How long until partner is entitled to their own citizenship / permenant residency?

[Nemesis]

2 hours ago, emanyalpsid said:

Thanks for the replies. Out of interest what are the timescales with these visas. Not nessecarily application times but how long post successful application do you have to enter aus? How long post entering aus on provisional visa will you be elidgbke for permenant partner visa? How long until partner is entitled to their own citizenship / permenant residency?

If you have been together, either married or de facto, for 3 years then you are eligible for PR straight away. If there is a child of the relationship this drops to 2 years. 

[emanyalpsid]

3 hours ago, Nemesis said:

If you have been together, either married or de facto, for 3 years then you are eligible for PR straight away. If there is a child of the relationship this drops to 2 years. 

Do the immigration officials inform you of this when you make the standard offshore application? There doesn't seem to be any other subclass for this scenario.

[paulhand]

1 hour ago, emanyalpsid said:

Do the immigration officials inform you of this when you make the standard offshore application? There doesn't seem to be any other subclass for this scenario.

It’s all part of the same application. You apply for both visas (or stages) on the same form and they either grant one or both stages based on the circumstances. 

[emanyalpsid]

Cheers thats helpful

[emanyalpsid]

So from my skim reading there doesn't appear to be a time needed between pr and citizenship application. Does this mean if pr is granted after arriving in Australia you can bang citizenship app in straight away?

Is there a time limit once pr is granted to arrive in aus? Its hard to get the timings all right with not knowing how long things take

[Tulip1]

40 minutes ago, emanyalpsid said:

So from my skim reading there doesn't appear to be a time needed between pr and citizenship application. Does this mean if pr is granted after arriving in Australia you can bang citizenship app in straight away?

Is there a time limit once pr is granted to arrive in aus? Its hard to get the timings all right with not knowing how long things take

Pretty sure you can’t get citizenship until you have lived in Australia for four years.  As for when PR is granted.  You need to validate the visa within 12 months by passing through immigration (you could land and leave again straight away I think) and you have a total of 5 years from PR grant to arrive (and remain) in Australia. 

[can1983]

3 hours ago, emanyalpsid said:

So from my skim reading there doesn't appear to be a time needed between pr and citizenship application. Does this mean if pr is granted after arriving in Australia you can bang citizenship app in straight away?

Is there a time limit once pr is granted to arrive in aus? Its hard to get the timings all right with not knowing how long things take

you have to 'serve' four years before applying for citizenship. It can also be a long wait from citizenship application until getting a ceremony when you can actually become a citizen. Different state by state council by council.

I validated my pr to attend a wedding in March 2017, we moved over properly in September 2017. I applied for citizenship in March 2021 fours years to the day after i validated. The time spent away in 2017 was ok with the 'days away per year rules'

I got the piece of paper in July 2021. With the current rules I think that's as fast as it can be done - less than 4 years after moving here (because of the validation trip)

 

[Marisawright]

4 hours ago, emanyalpsid said:

So from my skim reading there doesn't appear to be a time needed between pr and citizenship application. Does this mean if pr is granted after arriving in Australia you can bang citizenship app in straight away?

Is there a time limit once pr is granted to arrive in aus? Its hard to get the timings all right with not knowing how long things take

Once you have PR, it's 4 years before you can apply for citizenship.   In some states during the pandemic, it was taking a year or more from application to having citizenship conferred, but it should speed up again now. 

In the interim, the only downside of not having citizenship is in employment:  many government bodies require their employees to be citizens. It doesn't affect much else about your life, apart from not being obliged to vote!  

When PR is granted, it will show the date by which you MUST arrive.  Fail to arrive by that date and you lose the visa.  However, all you have to do is fly over to Australia, go through Immigration to "activate" the visa, and you could turn straight round and get the next plane back.  Once that's done, you'll have almost 5 years to make the permanent move. 

[JetBlast]

 

5 hours ago, emanyalpsid said:

So from my skim reading there doesn't appear to be a time needed between pr and citizenship application. Does this mean if pr is granted after arriving in Australia you can bang citizenship app in straight away?

1 hour ago, Marisawright said:

Once you have PR, it's 4 years before you can apply for citizenship.   

 

For the benefit of others, under different circumstances, this isn't quite right for everyone. You have to be in Australia for 4 years total, but a minimum of 1 year on a PR visa, this also has to be the last year. 

For example, if someone spent 3 years (or more) in Australia on a temporary visa, obtained a PR, they could then apply for Citizenship 1 year after receiving PR (Exclusions apply). However, for many people who arrive here on a PR, it is usually 4 years on that PR visa before applying for citizenship.

 

https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/citizenship/become-a-citizen/permanent-resident#Eligibility

Quote

Permanent residents or eligible New Zealand citizens

When you apply you must have been:

• living in Australia on a valid visa for the past 4 years
• a permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen for the past 12 months
• away from Australia for no more than 12 months in total in the past 4 years, including no more than 90 days in total in the past 12 months.

 

[Mcguinnessp1968]

Once you have PR, it's 4 years before you can apply for citizenship.   In some states during the pandemic, it was taking a year or more from application to having citizenship conferred, but it should speed up again now. 
In the interim, the only downside of not having citizenship is in employment:  many government bodies require their employees to be citizens. It doesn't affect much else about your life, apart from not being obliged to vote!  
When PR is granted, it will show the date by which you MUST arrive.  Fail to arrive by that date and you lose the visa.  However, all you have to do is fly over to Australia, go through Immigration to "activate" the visa, and you could turn straight round and get the next plane back.  Once that's done, you'll have almost 5 years to make the permanent move. 

Not strictly true

[Marisawright]

1 hour ago, Mcguinnessp1968 said:

Not strictly true

Care to explain?

[Tulip1]

8 minutes ago, Marisawright said:

Care to explain?

I think you have to be in Australia lawfully for four years (minus allowed time away for holidays etc) so you could be on temporary visas for much of that four years, it doesn’t have to be a PR visa (does for the last year minimum but the first three years could be on another visa). 

[Mcguinnessp1968]

Care to explain?

Yes because it’s possible to be here on a valid visa, then get pr and apply for citizenship a year later

[Mcguinnessp1968]

I think you have to be in Australia lawfully for four years (minus allowed time away for holidays etc) so you could be on temporary visas for much of that four years, it doesn’t have to be a PR visa (does for the last year minimum but the first three years could be on another visa). 

That’s right