To our kababayans, it is important to take note that The Migration Amendment (Family Violence and Other Measures) Act 2018 took effect on 17 April. 2019. This new legislation was recently proclaimed by the Governor-General on 8th of April 2019 which basically tells you that the sponsor, and not just the applicants, will now also be assessed.
As a result, both onshore and offshore partner visa applicants should expect a stricter and longer process and subsequently more requirements to comply to be able to apply and acquire a visa.
Below is a breakdown of how this change would affect each participant in applying for an Australian Partner Visa:
Partner Visa applicants
• People who are in Australia on a short-term visa (e.g. a visitor visa with 3 months stay period and planning to apply for their partner visa)
• Sponsorship applications which have not been finalised before their current visa runs out, these applicants need to go back to their home country or apply for any other visa they are eligible for
• Partner Visa applicants who have limited time on their current visa may need to make other arrangements while the sponsorship application is being decided, like getting another type of visa while onshore to lawfully stay in Australia.
Sponsors
• Eligible sponsors will be required to apply for a separate sponsorship application and be approved before the applicant will be able to lodge a partner visa application.
• Mandatory disclosure to the visa applicant – police clearance and character history of sponsors.
• Any history of violence from the sponsor may result in non-approval of sponsorship.
• In any case of a breach in the terms of sponsorship obligations is confirmed, approved sponsors may be subjected to civil penalties and other administrative sanctions aside from the sponsorship being revoked.
Processing time
• As of this writing, Partner Visa processing may take up to 24 months max. With the changes, both onshore and offshore applicants should expect a longer processing time
To all our kababayans, always keep in mind that the Australian migration policies are ever-changing in nature. So in the days to come, expect more changes to the visa application regulations.
