Determined to remain in Australia with his partner, the Applicant initially sought the assistance of Immigration Solutions Lawyers to lodge an onshore Partner visa (subclass 820) after his Working Holiday visa had expired.

In the event that an applicant is not the holder of a substantive visa at the time of lodging a subclass 820 visa application, arguments must be submitted to waive Schedule 3 criteria which is attached on top of standard Partner visa requirements. Compelling reasons must be put forward to justify an applicant’s failure to apply for the subclass 820 visa within 28 days of the expiry of his or her substantive visa.

Knowledge of the visa application process and lateral thinking led Immigration Solutions Lawyers to advise the Applicant that he should exit Australia and lodge an offshore Partner visa (subclass 309), as it was unlikely that his circumstances would be sufficient as compelling reasons for a waiver and there would be no Schedule 3 criteria attached. Keeping in touch via social media, the Applicant and his partner maintained their relationship during this period.

As all evidence was already compiled, Immigration Solutions Lawyers was able to lodge the application within one month. Besides statutory declarations detailing the circumstances of their relationship, joint bank statements and utility bills were tendered as proof of the pair’s genuine and ongoing relationship.

After reviewing the evidence put forward in the application and conducting an interview with the Applicant at the Australian Embassy in his home country, the Department granted the visa within seven months of lodgement.

Partner visas are granted in two stages, the first of which is a provisional visa, meaning the Applicant will be eligible to transition to permanent residence two years after the date of the provisional visa’s lodgement.

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