Know your visa - Offshore Partner visa (Subclass 309 and 100)
If you are outside Australia and a spouse or a de facto partner of an Australian citizen or Australian permanent resident or an eligible New Zealand citizen, you can apply for the Partner visas (Subclass 309 and 100) to move to Australia and live permanently.
Partner Visa (Subclass 309) is a provisional visa while Partner Visa (Subclass 100) is a permanent visa and they are sequential which means you will apply for these visas combinely. If you are granted a subclass 309 visa, you can come and stay temporarily in Australia until the decision of your permanent visa Subclass 100.
Your relationship can be with someone of the same or different sex and you need to be outside Australia while applying for this visa.
Eligibility for Subclass 309:
- You must be 18 years of age or older
- You must be a spouse or a de facto partner of an Australian citizen or permanent resident or an eligible New Zealand citizen
- Usually your de facto relationship must have existed for at least 12 months immediately before you apply for the visa
- If you are married, your marriage must be valid under Australian law
- You must meet health and character requirements
What you can do with this visa?
- You can stay in Australia until a decision on your permanent Partner visa (subclass 100) is made or the application is withdrawn
- You can work in Australia
- You can study in Australia (you will not receive any government support)
- You can travel to and from Australia as many times as you want
- You can enrol in Medicare, Australia's public health care scheme
Cost of Application
The current visa application charge for this visa is AUD 7850 for the main applicant and it covers both visas (Subclass 309 and 100). This cost will increase if you have any dependents included in the application.
The transition from Subclass 309 to Subclass 100
Usually, your application for the permanent partner visa (Subclass 100) is assessed after 2 years from the date you applied for this visa. You will again be required to submit additional documents to prove that your relationship is genuine and continuing for the permanent partner visa processing. You don't need to pay any additional fee for this process.
Eligibility for the permanent partner visa (Subclass 100)
- You must have held a partner visa (Subclass 309 or a dependent child visa (Subclass 445)
- You must be married or in a de facto relationship with the same partner
- You must have a genuine and continuing relationship
- You must live together, or not live permanently separate and apart
- You must be mutually committed to a shared life excluding other partners
Upon the grant of your Permanent Partner Visa, you will be a permanent resident of Australia and eligible for most of the privileges that Australian citizens and Permanent Resident enjoys. You can live and work permanently, sponsor relatives, and much more. You can also apply for Australian citizenship once you meet the eligibility criteria.
Do you have questions about partner visas? Talk to us today to find out what is the next right step you should take to achieve your migration goals quickly.
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