Partner Visa (subclass 820 and 801)

What are the two partner visa streams available to apply for?

• Partner (820) visa (Temporary)
• Partner (801) visa (Permanent)

What are the basic eligibility criteria for the partner visa?

In most circumstances, you must be the spouse (married) or de facto partner of an:

• Australian citizen
• Australian permanent resident or
• eligible New Zealand citizen.

You must be inside Australia when you submit the application.

Partner visa (temporary) (subclass 820)

This visa lets the de facto partner or spouse of an Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen live in Australia temporarily. Getting this visa is the first step towards a permanent Partner visa (subclass 801).

What can you do on the Partner visa (temporary) (subclass 820)?

On the Partner visa (temporary) (subclass 820), you can:

• stay in Australia until the Department of Home Affairs decide your permanent Partner (Migrant) visa (subclass 801) or that application is withdrawn
• work in Australia
• study in Australia (you will not receive government support)
• travel to and from Australia as many times as you want
• attend up to 510 hours of free English language classes provided by the Adult Migrant English Program
• enrol in Australia’s public health care scheme, Medicare

How long you can stay in Australia for?

You can stay on the visa until the Department of Home Affairs decide your permanent visa (subclass 801) application.

Applicants who have been in a long-term relationship before they apply might not have to stay on the subclass 820 visa at all. The Department of Home Affairs might grant you the permanent visa immediately after they grant the temporary subclass 820 visa.

Include dependent children

You can include a dependent child or children in your application:

• when you submit your application, or
• after you submit your application but before the Department of Home Affairs decide your temporary visa

These dependants must:

• meet the Department of Home Affairs health requirement
• meet the Department of Home Affairs character requirement
• be in Australia

Prospective Marriage visa holders

Applicants who hold or have held a Prospective Marriage visa can also include a member of the family unit in their application. You can’t add these family members after you submit your application.

Where can you apply from?

You and any family members or dependent children applying on your visa application must be in Australia, but not in immigration clearance.

Once the Department of Home Affairs decide on your temporary visa application, you and any family members or dependent children must not be in immigration clearance.

Your obligations

You and your family must meet all visa conditions and obey Australian laws.

Where can you travel to?

You can travel outside Australia as many times as you want.

Visa label

The Department of Home Affairs will digitally link your visa to your passport. You won’t get a physical visa label in your passport.

What are the eligibility criteria for the partner visa (temporary) (subclass 820)?

Have you had a visa cancelled or an application refused in Australia?

If you have had a visa cancelled or a visa application refused in Australia, you might not be eligible for this visa. Talk with our team to discuss your migration options if you have had a visa cancelled or application refused as the Department of Home Affairs prefers honesty and transparency.

Relationship requirements 

In most cases, you must be the spouse or de facto partner of an:

• Australian citizen
• Australian permanent resident or
• eligible New Zealand citizen

Your relationship can be with someone of the same or different sex.

You might still be eligible for the visa if your relationship breaks down or your sponsor dies while the Department of Home Affairs are considering your application.

Married applicants 

To be a married applicant:

• you and your spouse must both be committed to a shared life together to the exclusion of all others
• your relationship with your spouse must be genuine and continuing
• you must live with your spouse or do not live apart on a permanent basis
• your marriage must be valid under Australian law

De facto partners 

To be a de facto partner, you must be in a de facto relationship.

• you and your partner are in a de facto relationship if all these apply:
• you are not married to each other
• you are committed to a shared life to the exclusion of all others
• your relationship is genuine and continuing
• you live together or do not live separately and apart on a permanent basis
• you are not related by family

Usually, your de facto relationship must have existed for at least 12 months immediately before you apply for the visa. Time spent dating or in an online relationship might not count as being in a de facto relationship.

The 12-month requirement will not apply if you can show compelling and compassionate circumstances exist to grant the subclass 820 visa.

The 12-month requirement also will not apply if:

• your partner holds or held a permanent humanitarian visa
• your de facto relationship existed before the Department of Home Affairs granted their visa
• your de facto partner told us about the relationship before the Department of Home Affairs granted their visa 

It also will not apply if you:

• are in a de facto relationship with a partner who is an applicant for a permanent humanitarian visa, or
• you have registered your relationship with an Australian authority such as a registry of births, deaths and marriages

You might still be granted the temporary visa if your relationship has broken down or if your sponsor died. 

Have a sponsor

You and anyone who applies for the visa with you must have a sponsor when you lodge your application and when you are on this visa.

Your sponsor is usually your partner.

The Department of Home Affairs must approve your sponsor. There are limitations on approval.

You can’t change your sponsor. The person who sponsors you when you apply for the visa must be same person who sponsors you for 2 years after the Department of Home Affairs grants your temporary 820 Partner visa.

Be the right age

Married applicants must usually, be 18 or older when they apply. This is because usually, you must be 18 or older to be married under Australian law.

Applicants in de facto relationships must be 18 or older when they apply.

Health requirement

You and any family members or dependent children who applied for the visa with you, must meet the Department of Home Affairs health requirement.

Character requirement

You and any family members or dependent children who applied for the visa with you, must meet the Department of Home Affairs character requirement.

Debts to the Australian Government

If you or any family members (including those who don’t apply for the visa with you) owe the Australian government money, you or they must have paid it back or arranged to pay it back.

Bring a family member – Add dependent children to your application

You can’t add family members to your visa application after the Department of Home Affairs grants the Partner visa (Permanent) subclass 820.

If a dependent child needs a visa, you will have to apply for a Dependent child visa (subclass 445).

If your child holds a Dependent child visa, you can include them in your permanent Partner visa application.

What happens if your relationship ends?

You might still be eligible for this visa and a permanent visa if your relationship ends. Speak with our team of registered migration agents if your situation has changed as it’s best to be transparent with the Department of Home Affairs when applying for your visa.

Are you ready to apply for the Partner visa (Temporary) (subclass 820)?

If you have read the above information and believe you satisfy the visa requirements, contact our team of registered migration agents to begin your visa application today.

Partner visa (Permanent) (subclass 801)

This visa lets the de facto partner or spouse of an Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen live in Australia permanently. It is usually only for people who currently hold a temporary Partner visa (subclass 820).

What can you do on the Partner visa (Permanent) (subclass 801)?

On the Partner visa (Permanent) (subclass 801), you can:

• stay in Australia indefinitely
• work in Australia
• study in Australia
• enrol in Australia’s public healthcare scheme, Medicare
• sponsor your family members to come to Australia
• travel to and from Australia for 5 years
• if eligible, attend free English language classes provided by the Adult Migrant English Program
• if eligible, apply for Australian citizenship

Travel to and from Australia for 5 years

You can travel to and from Australia as many times as you want for 5 years from the date the Department of Home Affairs grant the permanent visa. This is as long as the travel facility on this visa remains valid.

If you want to travel after the initial 5-year travel facility:

• you will need to apply for and be granted a Resident Return (RRV) so that you can re-enter Australia as a permanent resident
• you might also want to consider Australian citizenship. If you become an Australian citizen, you don’t require a visa to enter Australia. You will need to apply for an Australian passport and use it to leave and re-enter Australia.

How long you can stay in Australia?

The Partner visa (subclass 801) is a permanent visa. It lets you stay in Australia indefinitely.

You become a permanent resident on the day the visa is granted by the Department of Home Affairs.

For citizenship purposes, your permanent residency starts:

• on the day the visa is granted if you are in Australia
• on the day you enter Australia on this visa if you are outside Australia.

Can you include family on this visa?

You can include your dependent child in your application when you apply for the combined temporary and permanent visas.

If you did not include your dependent child in your temporary visa application, you can still add them to your application before the Department of Home Affairs make a decision on your permanent visa application. The child must:

• usually hold a Dependent Child visa (subclass 445) and
• be in Australia

Your children must meet the Department of Home Affairs health requirement. If they are 16 years or older, they must also meet the character requirement.

Your obligations

You and your children must obey all Australian laws.

Visa label

There are no longer physical visa labels. The Department of Home Affairs will digitally link your visa to your passport and create a record for you.

You will not get a label in your passport anymore.

What are the eligibility criteria for the Partner visa (Permanent) (subclass 801)?

Have this visa

Usually, you must hold a Partner visa (subclass 820) or Dependent Child visa (subclass 445).

Relationship requirements

You must still be in a relationship with your spouse or de facto partner.

You must usually continue to be sponsored. You might still be eligible for the permanent visa if your relationship breaks down or if your sponsor dies after the Department of Home Affairs have granted the temporary visa but while they are still considering the permanent visa.

Debts to the Australian Government

If you or any family members (including those who don’t apply for the visa with you) owe the Australian government money, you or they must have paid it back or arranged to pay it back.

Becoming an Australian citizen

After a certain time, you might be eligible to apply for Australian citizenship.

For Australian citizenship purposes, your permanent residency starts on:

• the day the visa was granted if you were in Australia
• the day you entered Australia on this visa if you were outside Australia when it was granted

Our team of registered migration agents and immigration lawyers have assisted clients through the Australian citizenship process.

Talk with our team today to discuss your Australian citizenship options.

Are you ready to apply for the Partner visa (Permanent) (subclass 801)?

If you’re ready to apply for the Partner Visa (Permanent) (subclass 801), discuss your migration options with our team today. Our team of registered migration agents can assist you through your visa application process. Contact us here.

See also