# Marrying wife from cambodia how does it work?



## wantkhmerwife (Feb 8, 2015)

Hi,

I am a 24 year old male Australian citizen ( born in Australia).
I want to find and marry my future wife from Cambodia.
I would like to know what i must do so that I can marry my wife and have her live with me in Australia?
Also would like to know what kind of questions does immigration ask you during their verbal interview? as i heard you need to go through a verbal interview by phone call before they will let your wife stay with you in Australia
Also is there anything else that must be done or criteria which must be met?

Thanks


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## Valentine1981 (Sep 13, 2012)

wantkhmerwife said:


> I want to find and marry my future wife from Cambodia.


So does this mean you are not actually in a relationship,you are just looking for information??

I would suggest reading the partner visa migration booklet. There are a LOT of criteria you must meet apart from just being married. It is very complicated and very $$$$ to bring a foreign partner into Australia

http://www.immi.gov.au/allforms/pdf/1127.pdf

not all couples get a verbal interview however if you do a search on this forum I believe there are a few threads by people who have done interviews


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## wantkhmerwife (Feb 8, 2015)

Valentine1981 said:


> So does this mean you are not actually in a relationship,you are just looking for information??
> 
> I would suggest reading the partner visa migration booklet. There are a LOT of criteria you must meet apart from just being married. It is very complicated and very $$$$ to bring a foreign partner into Australia
> 
> not all couples get a verbal interview however if you do a search on this forum I believe there are a few threads by people who have done interviews


Yes, not in a relationship. Just looking for information for the future

Thanks for the reading link

Oh I see. What should I type in the search? I tried typing "verbal interview" but couldn't find anything relevant


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## Engaus (Nov 7, 2013)

An interview is the last thing you need to worry about when you arnt even in a relationship yet. Concentrate on researching what you have to do to be eligible for the visa.


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## Homesickaussie (Oct 16, 2014)

Engaus said:


> An interview is the last thing you need to worry about when you arnt even in a relationship yet. Concentrate on researching what you have to do to be eligible for the visa.


Agreed! 
Unfortunately marriage doesn't count for much these days in terms of getting a visa. It's just like registering a relationship, it only waves the 12 months living together requirement. You still have to prove evidence of shared finances and household plus long term commitment.

Most people apply for the Prospective Marriage Visa if they have not lived together as the requirements are much lower in terms of evidence. But you both will have to have met in person before applying for this visa.

Unfortunately the visa application fees are very high so this along with the costs of medicals needs to be factored into your planning.


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## NaNaCB (Sep 1, 2013)

Hi wantkhmerwife,

I am from Cambodia and currently living in Australia with my husband on a partner visa. It is a very complicated and costly process to obtain Australian visa...particularly for those who come from a high risk country like Cambodia.

Here is the summary of my visa process:

- July 2011: start dating
- 5 to 6 times: travel to meet face to face and while apart, we communicate daily
- 18 Jun 2013: Applied for Prospective Marriage Visa 300 (after dating for 2 years)
- 28 Nov 2013: PMV visa 300 Granted on Interview date (5 mth, 10 days)
- 19 Dec 2013: Arrive Australia and got married on 10 May 2014
- 21 Jul 2014: Applied for Partner visa 820/801
- 15 Jan 2015: Partner Visa 820 Granted (5 mth, 24 days)

Some key facts you need to know:
1. Foreigners who want to marry Cambodian women need to meet certain age limit and income level. i.e. if you are over 50 year old or income less than US30,600 per annum -- you cannot marry a Cambodian women in Cambodia. Please Google "Cambodian Marriage Law" for more info.

2. The process of obtaining the married approval is complicated for foreigners (obtain via Ministry of Interior and Ministry of Foreign Affairs) and very costly in Cambodia. I heard that it cost up to US$2,000 just to get those approval. FYI - the Australian Embassy in Cambodia required this marriage approval + the marriage certificate for Partner Visa on marriage ground.

3. You & your partner need to proof: the relationship is genuine, meet the health and character requirements, show commitment to share a future together as husband and wife. The good news is the Australian Embassy in Cambodia is very helpful and every visa checklist are updated and stored in their website. Please Google "Australian Embassy in Cambodia" and all the comprehensive visa requirements are there.

4. The Australian Embassy conducts interview to every applicant from Cambodia and their sponsor (long term visa) - it is part of their requirements because Cambodia is a high risk country.

5. The visa application is now around AU$7,000...this is excluded many other hidden cost like health check, character, birth and single certificate, translating documents and other cost like obtaining married approval and certificate and getting married itself.

I hope the above is helpful...

Cheers



wantkhmerwife said:


> Hi,
> 
> I am a 24 year old male Australian citizen ( born in Australia).
> I want to find and marry my future wife from Cambodia.
> ...


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## wantkhmerwife (Feb 8, 2015)

Engaus said:


> An interview is the last thing you need to worry about when you arnt even in a relationship yet. Concentrate on researching what you have to do to be eligible for the visa.


ok i will do


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## wantkhmerwife (Feb 8, 2015)

Homesickaussie said:


> Agreed!
> Unfortunately marriage doesn't count for much these days in terms of getting a visa. It's just like registering a relationship, it only waves the 12 months living together requirement. You still have to prove evidence of shared finances and household plus long term commitment.
> 
> Most people apply for the Prospective Marriage Visa if they have not lived together as the requirements are much lower in terms of evidence. But you both will have to have met in person before applying for this visa.
> ...


Oh i see . 
I would think though a benefit is getting married in Cambodia would cost less than getting married in Australia . 
Also by "Shared finances" do you mean joint bank accounts? if so is it joint bank accounts in Australia or Cambodia or both countries?


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## wantkhmerwife (Feb 8, 2015)

NaNaCB said:


> Hi wantkhmerwife,
> 
> I am from Cambodia and currently living in Australia with my husband on a partner visa. It is a very complicated and costly process to obtain Australian visa...particularly for those who come from a high risk country like Cambodia.
> 
> ...


OK. Thanks
Very helpful 
Just curious. What do you mean by Cambodia being a " High Risk country"


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## aussiesteve (Mar 16, 2012)

wantkhmerwife said:


> Oh i see .
> I would think though a benefit is getting married in Cambodia would cost less than getting married in Australia .
> Also by "Shared finances" do you mean joint bank accounts? if so is it joint bank accounts in Australia or Cambodia or both countries?


If there is a financial benefit from getting married anywhere overseas, it would certainly be outweighed by the requirement to provide far more relationship evidence than that required for a Prospective Marriage Visa, which has no joint financial provisions and only requires that you have physically met.


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## wantkhmerwife (Feb 8, 2015)

aussiesteve said:


> If there is a financial benefit from getting married anywhere overseas, it would certainly be outweighed by the requirement to provide far more relationship evidence than that required for a Prospective Marriage Visa, which has no joint financial provisions and only requires that you have physically met.


Oh, so are you saying if you go for a "Prospective Marriage Visa" you don't have to prove "Shared Finances"?
Also i read somewhere you have to meet in person about 5-6 times . Is this true?


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## aussiesteve (Mar 16, 2012)

wantkhmerwife said:


> Oh, so are you saying if you go for a "Prospective Marriage Visa" you don't have to prove "Shared Finances"?
> Also i read somewhere you have to meet in person about 5-6 times . Is this true?


That's correct no shared finances, and as far as meeting there is no specific number mentioned, obviously if you have met more than once it would strengthen you case, but it is not mandatory.


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## wantkhmerwife (Feb 8, 2015)

aussiesteve said:


> That's correct no shared finances, and as far as meeting there is no specific number mentioned, obviously if you have met more than once it would strengthen you case, but it is not mandatory.


Also i was reading

http://www.immi.gov.au/allforms/pdf/1127.pdf

it says

"A Prospective Marriage visa is a temporary visa that remains valid for 9 months from the date the visa is granted. If you are granted a Prospective Marriage visa, you must enter Australia and, after that entry, marry your intended spouse (your fiancé(e)) within the period that the visa is valid. *You may then apply for a Partner visa *when you are in Australia, *but you will have to complete another application form and pay a Visa Application Charge. "*

So are you sure applying for a "Prospective Marriage Visa" and then marrying in Australia and then applying for a "Partner Visa" is cheaper than marrying overseas and then going for a "Partner Visa"?


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## Engaus (Nov 7, 2013)

If you just marry someone from cambodia you will not have the evidence to apply
for a partner visa straight away unless you have spent a lot of time goin back and forth visiting them - joining you finances, joining your commitments etc. You need a lot of evidence for a partner visa and just having a marriage certificate won't cut it.

Have a look at the costing for the visas and you will see that applying for a PMV and then a partner visa is cheaper. The partner visa is discounted if you are already the holder of a PMV.


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## wantkhmerwife (Feb 8, 2015)

Engaus said:


> If you just marry someone from cambodia you will not have the evidence to apply
> for a partner visa straight away unless you have spent a lot of time goin back and forth visiting them - joining you finances, joining your commitments etc. You need a lot of evidence for a partner visa and just having a marriage certificate won't cut it.
> 
> Have a look at the costing for the visas and you will see that applying for a PMV and then a partner visa is cheaper. The partner visa is discounted if you are already the holder of a PMV.


Oh I see.
Thanks for clarifying things.


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## CollegeGirl (Nov 10, 2012)

If you look at the top of this forum, you'll see a link stuck to the top called "Partner Visa Wait Times & Resources." Click that link and look at the post - one of the links provided there goes to a thread on typical questions asked in an interview.


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## wantkhmerwife (Feb 8, 2015)

CollegeGirl said:


> If you look at the top of this forum, you'll see a link stuck to the top called "Partner Visa Wait Times & Resources." Click that link and look at the post - one of the links provided there goes to a thread on typical questions asked in an interview.


Cool. Thanks for that


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