The temporary Partner visa (subclass 820) lets you live in Australia if you’re the spouse or de facto partner of:
an Australian permanent resident
an eligible New Zealand citizen.
In some conditions the visa can be given where your partner relationship has ended.
You lodge one application form for the long-term and temporary visas and pay one application fee. Your application is processed in two stages, about two years apart.
The temporary Partner visa (subclass 820) is the first stage towards a long-term Partner visa (subclass 801). You must be in Australia when you apply and also when this visa is determined.
You must be married or in a de facto relationship with:
an Australian permanent resident
You must maintain a relationship that is ongoing and genuine. You must live with your partner or, if you don’t, any separation must be just temporary.
The relationship must be freely consented to by both parties.
You may be able to be granted
your relationship breaks down and there is a kid of the relationship
Your partner dies and you’ve got close business, cultural or personal ties in Australia and you can demonstrate that your relationship would have continued if your partner had lived
Your relationship breaks down and you or members of your family unit have endured family violence.
Applicants that are married
Your marriage must be valid . Same-sex marriages, polygamous and underage aren’t legal in Australia. The union could not be invalid under limited conditions if one person is younger than 18 years old. Same-sex couples can apply for this particular visa according to their de facto relationship.
Usually your de facto relationship must have existed for at least 12 months immediately before you apply for this particular visa. Time spent dating doesn’t count towards a de facto relationship.
You can be given a visa
You can attest compassionate and compelling circumstances, such as having children that are dependent
Your partner has been granted a permanent humanitarian visa and your de facto relationship existed before it was given, before the visa was granted and you told us about the relationship,
your de facto relationship was registered in Australia (this isn’t available in all states and territories).
You must also be older than 18 years old and not be related to your partner by family. This implies you cannot have a parent in common, or be an ancestor or descendant of one another.
Expansion of partner visa qualification in Australia
You are barred by this section from applying for another visa while in Australia, except for certain prescribed visa categories, for example a Protection visa or a visa that is Bridging. However, from 14 September 2009 you may be qualified to apply for a Partner visa in Australia if you fulfill particular criteria.
Added standards that should be fulfilled by applicants that are affected in order to make an application that is valid in Australia
For those who have had a visa cancelled or refused since you last entered Australia, there are four criteria that you would need to meet to be able to lodge a valid Partner visa application in Australia. These are:
You must not have had a partner visa refused since you last entered Australia.
Note: Meeting with the criteria will simply enable you to lodge a valid application. In addition, you will be subject to other eligibility conditions for the Partner visa. Once you have made a valid application, you will be assessed against the legislative requirements in the exact same manner as all Partner visa applicants who apply in Australia. Information about applying for a Partner visa in Australia is available.
You must supply with your application two statutory declarations from Australian citizens, eligible New Zealand citizens or Australian permanent residents (other than your partner) supporting the existence of your relationship.
Health requirements
You must meet certain health requirements. The results of your health examinations are normally valid for 12 months. This applies to you and any dependent family members contained in your application.
You are able to organise your health assessments upfront before lodging a visa application.
You might not need to have a health examination if you hold a Prospective Marriage visa (subclass 300).
Character conditions
You must meet with particular character conditions. You must supply a police certificate from each nation you’ve lived in for 12 months or more during the previous ten years after you turned 16 years of age.
This applies to all dependent members of the family in the application who are 16 years old or older.
You might not have to provide police certificates if you hold a Prospective Marriage visa (subclass 300).
Debts to the Australian Government
You must have no outstanding debts or have organized to refund any outstanding debts before this visa can be granted.
Provide biometrics
You might be asked to supply biometrics (a scientific type of identification) as part of the application. Nations and visa subclasses contained in the biometrics program has more advice.
