Help with applying for Partner Visa!

[jadebrian]

Hi All,

I know there are hundreds of threads that are proberly the same as mine but im so stressed i have no idea where to start or look.

I am a Australian Citizen (Resides here in australia) and I am wanting to bring my partner who is a US Citizen to australia to live here with me as not seeing each other every few months is emotionally draining for us.

We have been together for a year, have never 'permanently' lived together however stay with each other for long periods of time e.g he has lived with me for 3 months & I have stayed with him in the US for 1 month.

Ive noticed alot of people have stated they have joint bank accounts with there partner, however we have seperate accounts? Will this be a problem?

Also he is not working at the moment so i will be assisting him when he moves here because he obviously is not allowed to work. Does that also cause a problem for our application?

Proving we are in a genuine relationship is not a problem we family members & close friends who will write a stat dec and I have screenedshot so many of our text messages back and fourth to each other if that makes any difference haha!

I would be interested in hearing if there should be anything i should be aware of so that I can get our application right. We are just so desperate to start our life and a family together.

Thank :-)

[_shel]

From what you have written you don't qualify for a spouse visa but if you plan on starting a family do you also plan on getting married? If so you could apply for the prospective marriage visa which has no living or long term genuine & comitted relationship requirement. You simply need to have met, which you have.

[jadebrian]

Thankyou. We do want to get married. Is it possible to be married here in Australia on just a ETA?

[_shel]

Not really, how would you plan it given you have to give notice and what would he say to immigration on entering if asked? If they got wind of it he could be denied entry for not using the correct visa and intent to overstay.
Is he eligible for an working holiday visa?

[jadebrian]

I wouldn't want to take the risk of him being denied entry in that case. I don't think he is eligible for a working visa however I'll look into that. How does the prospective marriage visa work? I appreciate your assistance

[_shel]

To get the visa you only need to show you have met and intend to marry. Which means putting marriage plans in place, booking it with a celebrant.
He then enters Australia and has 9 months in which to marry then apply for a spouse visa before his visa runs out. He can work whilst on the prospective marriage visa.

[_shel]

To add, not sure on the rules of marrying in the USA, you would have to ask on the USA section. But that could be another option, then apply for the spouse visa offshore from the US where it is cheaper and quicker to grant.