Case Study: Partner Visa Relationship Less Than 12 Months
Here we will explain one case study of a Partner Visa Australia application where the relationship is less than 12 months. In this case, the couples had been in a de facto relationship in Australia only for 6 months. When they were not living together, they found applying for a Partner Visa could end the misery, so they contacted ONEderland Consulting to find the best solution.
Jonathon (not real name), an Italian citizen, met Nicole, an Australian citizen, while he was on a Working Holiday Visa in Geelong, Victoria in early 2018. They began dating and started a committed relationship shortly after.
Jonathon had scored his dream job working in a coffee shop as a Barista, meanwhile Nicole was in Melbourne’s CBD working in a Law Firm 1 hour away and due to this distance they chose to live separately.
However every weekend they would meet up in Melbourne to spend time together; eating and exploring the hidden treasures of the city.
In 2019 Jonathon’s Second Working Holiday Visa was set to expire so after a quick chat with his boss, who was happy to keep him on as long as he remained on the visa, he made the swift decision to renew it online for one extra (and final) year.
That third year went by quickly and many things changed.
Jonathon and Nicole’s relationship had developed immensely and in the last 6 months before his visa expiry date, Nicole quit her job and moved down to Geelong in a desperate attempt to spend every last moment with him before he was required to leave so this meant they could move in together.
At this point, Jonathon asked his boss about the possibility of obtaining sponsorship on the Temporary Skills Shortage (subclass 482) so he could stay longer and continue his life with Nicole, but unfortunately, his occupation as a Barista is not listed on the Skilled Occupation List. The available Work Visa options were very limited for him, even the DAMA program in Victoria did not have Barista on its occupation list.
Since Nicole had quit her job at the law firm so she could move in with Jonathon 6 months before, they now had extremely limited finances and were not in a position to apply for what would have been the perfect solution for them; the onshore Partner Visa.
Despite all this, Jonathon got down on his knee and proposed to Nicole, the love of his life, vowing that somehow they could make their relationship work, even though the odds were clearly against them. After all, they would for the first time, be separated by not just a 1 hour train ride but by country borders and oceans.
The situation brought Jonathon and Nicole to only being able to spend time in a de facto relationship in Australia for only 6 months. They kept wondering if one day they could reunite with the Partner Visa despite not living together for 12 months.
When Jonathon returned to Italy, he actively did personal research on similar situations. He also found a comfortable job in a local coffee shop, and he eventually obtained a job as the Manager. It offered a good base salary and benefits yet he saw this as only a temporary fit and was determined to get back to Nicole in Australia.
Nicole was in a similar state and quickly picked herself up, throwing herself at Law firms all over Melbourne and going from interview to interview until she finally secured another position.
It was then that Nicole contacted ONE derland Consulting to research how she can be with her partner again. With her full time work commitment, it wasn’t a sustainable or an achievable option for her to fly to Italy every 3 months to see him, so he needed to come to her.
We advised her that she would need to keep a steady income to become his sponsor for a Partner visa and that there was more than one type of Partner visa available.
So, we can see here Since they had only been in a de facto relationship in Australia for 6 months which is less than 12 months, they would not meet the requirement for the Partner Visa on the basis of De Facto Relationship.
Being in a de facto relationship for less than 12 months left them with one option, they needed to get married to obtain the Partner Visa. And for their case, lodging a Partner Visa while not living together was still possible under one of these ways:
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The Prospective Marriage Visa with an application made while Jonathon is offshore. This would give them 9 to 15 months to wed in Australia from the time the visa is granted. The Prospective Marriage Visa will surely bring them to live permanently in Australia with the onshore Partner Visa, but it would take quite a long time (might be over 2 years to finally settle down in Australia permanently). OR
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The Partner Visa-on the basis of Marriage– This would mean they would need to be married legally before they applied for the visa.
They explained how committed they were to each other and that they did intend to marry so we suggested Nicole fly to Italy and marry Jonathon in a quick but legal manner and then apply offshore for the visa.
We explained that the only way for them to be able to apply for the Partner visa onshore and to be given a bridging visa (allowing Jonathon to remain in Aus during the entirety of the visa processing) would be if he was to apply for a Visitor Visa and for it to have no conditions of no further stay.
Nicole decided that they would get married abroad in Italy and then apply for a Visitor Visa and celebrate again in Australia with Nicole’s parents and then hopefully apply for the Partner visa while Jonathon is still in the country.
That was the goal and they set out to make it happen with lazor focus.
That month Nicole married Jonathon and contacted us to help her apply for the Visitor Visa.
She had more than $5000 in her bank account, at least 3 months of bank statements to prove employment and she has accommodation for him, which meant she would qualify to be his Australian sponsor.
We helped her lodge the first Visitor Visa and with our support, this visa was granted very quickly with no condition of “No further stay” and Jonathon flew down the next week.
The Visitor Visa was valid for 3 months which means we had a sufficient time to apply for the Partner Visa onshore.
This was an ecstatic day for all of us and since the couple had been planning this day for so long, Nicole had plenty of time to prepare for the payment and was ready for us to lodge the Partner Visa as soon as he arrived on Australian soil.
Because he was onshore when the application was made, Jonathon was granted a Bridging Visa A and was allowed to remain in Australia until the temporary Partner Visa itself was granted.
That special day came roughly 12 months later and with a baby on the way, the timing turned perfectly in the end.
They were then required to apply for the Permanent Partner Visa 2 years from that date.
It’s your turn now to stop the pain of long distance relationship.
ONE derland Consulting fees for Partner Visa application starts from AUD $4,300 and it includes complete assistance for both temporary Partner Visa and permanent Partner Visa (which usually takes more than 2 years to get the permanent Partner Visa).
Our registered migration agent will help you strategize the best plan to assist you in settling down in Australia with the Partner Visa whether you’ve been only in a de facto relationship for 6 months or in a condition that force you to not living together with your partner.
We lay an actionable step by step plan which each step brings you closer to staying and working in Australia.
Those plans are backed with more than 10 years professional experiences of succeeding in handling many complex visa cases from clients all over the world.
We are complex visa specialists. As a registered Australian migration agent with the Migration Agents Registration Authority (MARA), we are regulated in our professional practice and bound by the profession’s Code of Conduct issued by the Migration Agents Registration Authority.
Take the first step and get in touch with us. Our team members are professional and honest and speak various languages, such as Mandarin/Chinese, Bahasa Indonesia, Arabic, Japanese, and Thai. Contact us by email at [email protected] or by phone at 1300 827 159.
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