# Ask Mark! New 2021 Q&A



## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi All -

I'm very excited to be back on the Australia Forum after some time away - it's such a fantastic and friendly community here. I wanted to announce a new 2020 edition of my Ask Mark! thread which I've hosted previously here for some time - as before, happy to do my best to provide information to anyone about Australian migraiton. A few notes:

* I tend to focus on family/partner visas, skilled and employer sponsored visas, and complex cases such as Schedule 3, PIC 4020, health and character cases, and do cases at the AAT Tribunal and the Courts
* I don't work a lot in the areas of student and refugee visas, so may not be the best source of info for these
* I may not be able to give you specific advice for your case if it involves complex or private issues that it's not practical to go into on a public forum - will let you know in this case

In these challenging times, communicating and sharing information is more important than ever, especially with things changing so quickly as they are now with the COVID-19 situation. I'm happy to be here to help, and look forward to your questions.

Best,

Mark Northam


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## Camsum (Mar 29, 2020)

Hi Mark. What advice would you give someone with a granted Prospective Marriage Visa right now who is yet to enter Australia?
My fiance, who is a US citizen in the US right now, was granted her PMV on 24 September 2019, so it expires 24 June 2020. We have been unable to move to Australia sooner due to personal reasons, and now it's looking like it might be physically impossible to arrive by 24 June, let alone get married and submit a partner Visa application by that date. 
The information I have found suggests a PMV cannot be extended and we would have to re-apply if we can't comply with the Initial Entry Date requirement. This seems incredibly unfair. Do you think there could ever be a way around this? It would simply be heartbreaking for us to start from square one and spend god knows how much longer living apart. Thanks in advance for any advice you could provide us


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## waty (Dec 27, 2019)

Hi Mark, thanks for offering your time to answer questions. Looking forward to your posts. Do you think 820s will begin to move along a little quicker in the current situation. We have enough uncertainty as it is now...could do with out an extra layer ☹


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## Jezza (Apr 4, 2020)

Hi Mark,

Thanks for this! I have a couple of questions:

- Regarding our 309 visa, the case officer recently contacted us requesting a police certificate and additional photos, which we provided. All other documents including medicals were previously done. It has now been 14 days since we submitted the documents and we haven't heard anything back. How long can it take for them to follow up?

-Also, I concurrently have also applied for a FA600 visit visa since 39 days and have not heard back. Do you think it is likely for them to grant a 309 visa given above and the Covid situation or process a 600 visa. (FYI my partner also visited me last time on a 600 visa)

-Lastly, are they currently working on usual capacity in terms of visa grants or do you expect slower than advertised visa processing times?

Thanks so much.


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## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Camsum -

Thanks for the question, and congratulations for being the first question poster on the 2020 thread!

RE PMV, that's a great question. By law it's not possible to change the expiration date of a visa once it has been granted - it's "baked in" essentially. So I'm not hopeful that they could extend the visa. That being said, DHA may - once the travel ban is lifted - make special arrangements for people with "spent" sc300 visas that could not enter in time, perhaps by allowing them to enter on a visitor visa and then lodge the sc820/801 application onshore. The primary difference in the 820 is price discount for sc300 holders - it may be that they make this discount available for previous sc300 holders as well depending on the circumstances.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



Camsum said:


> Hi Mark. What advice would you give someone with a granted Prospective Marriage Visa right now who is yet to enter Australia?
> My fiance, who is a US citizen in the US right now, was granted her PMV on 24 September 2019, so it expires 24 June 2020. We have been unable to move to Australia sooner due to personal reasons, and now it's looking like it might be physically impossible to arrive by 24 June, let alone get married and submit a partner Visa application by that date.
> The information I have found suggests a PMV cannot be extended and we would have to re-apply if we can't comply with the Initial Entry Date requirement. This seems incredibly unfair. Do you think there could ever be a way around this? It would simply be heartbreaking for us to start from square one and spend god knows how much longer living apart. Thanks in advance for any advice you could provide us


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## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Waty -

Thanks for the question. My concern at the moment is that partner visa approvals seem to have slowed as DHA deploys their resources elsewhere to deal with COVID-19 related issues. I absolutely hope this will move along more quickly with partner visas, but I am honestly not expecting this given what's currently happening. However, don't give up hope! And dont' forget to periodically lodge new evidence with your 820/801 application - that can help keep your application visible and noticed.

Best regards,

Mark Northam



waty said:


> Hi Mark, thanks for offering your time to answer questions. Looking forward to your posts. Do you think 820s will begin to move along a little quicker in the current situation. We have enough uncertainty as it is now...could do with out an extra layer ☹


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## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Jezza -

Thanks for the note. Please see my responses below after each question:



Jezza said:


> Hi Mark,
> 
> Thanks for this! I have a couple of questions:
> 
> ...


Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam


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## JoStar (Apr 4, 2020)

Hi Mark 

I have a question about schedule 3 criteria.This is my timeline for 820 partnet visa.

- June 2018 applied partner visa 280 
- March 2019 received a letter from DHA regarding schedule 3 criteria asking for a compelling reason.
- Api 2019 submitted all necessary documents to the department.

My question is ... Is this a good sign that the department let me stay while waiting 820 onshore? it has been a year since receiving the letter and I havent heard anything from the department since Apr 19. Thank you


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## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi JoStar -

Thanks for the question. In many case, the longer it goes after you lodge your Schedule 3 response and don't hear anythign back, the better. This is because DHA typically assess Schedule 3 in the early part of the assessment process and if you don't pass that part, they will refuse on Schedule 3 reasons alone, saving themselves the time of having to look at your relationship evidence. While there's no guarantee of this in any particular case, that's a pattern we've noticed over time.

Fingers crossed they have, in your case, moved on from Sched 3 and are assessing your relationship evidence! Keep in touch and best of luck with your visa.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



JoStar said:


> Hi Mark
> 
> I have a question about schedule 3 criteria.This is my timeline for 820 partnet visa.
> 
> ...


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## JoStar (Apr 4, 2020)

Hi Mark

That looks relief !! . Thank you very much for quick reply ^.^


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## Karramy (Apr 6, 2019)

Hi Mark

Wondering if I can pick your brain. 
Have you worked with many people where the partner is from a’high risk’ country?
My husband and I applied for the 309 in August 2018. We had one RFI in November 2018, I replied to it within a few days and we’ve heard nothing since. 
We front loaded everything so my husband’s medical has expired and we both renewed our police clearances in January this year. 
My husband is from Iraq. He’s never been in trouble with the law, his health examination came back with no issues, we’ve uploaded ongoing evidence every couple of months the entire time we’ve been waiting. 
I wrote to the department last month and received a response from a senior case manager from the Beirut visa processing office advising they are still conducting relevant checks and will be in touch if they need anything else. 
In your experience how long can these ‘checks’ go on for and have you had visa’s granted that have exceeded the processing times?
Thanks so much for your help.


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## Camsum (Mar 29, 2020)

MarkNortham said:


> Hi Camsum -
> 
> Thanks for the question, and congratulations for being the first question poster on the 2020 thread!
> 
> ...


Thanks for your insight Mark. In that scenario you described, arriving on visitor Visa then applying for 820/801 onshore, would that mean she wouldn't be allowed to work until the 820 is granted? I big plus of the PMV is being free to work while waiting for 820 to be granted. 
Thanks again


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## Fufuu (Apr 1, 2020)

Hi Mark! I love your new thread! 
Here’s an overview on my 820 partner visa: 
December 2017: Applied for 820 partner visa (uploaded everything, AFP too, Medical soon after) 

-no emails/contact until December 2019-

December 2019: CO asked me to submit form 80 and up to date evidence 
-everything got uploaded soon after-

12th March 2020: CO asked for a new AFP from both sponsor and applicant and a new medical examination. 
-Uploaded on the 30th March-

Do you think I’ll get the visa soon along with 801? I’ve been waiting for almost 28 months...

Thank you.


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## Rohitha131 (Sep 25, 2018)

Hi Mark, 

Great to see your valuable inputs which is highly appreciated in the first hand. My concern is, if we have already lodged 186 ENS in March’2020 (having still 482 until August’2020 and the BVA activates after) and the employer is temporarily “stood down” (after the 186 lodgement was done) due to Covid-19 however they’ve agreed and given the consent that I’ll be still in the cadre and will be called to work once the business reinstated, is there any chance that this would delay in finalising 186 or will that affect the same in any ways ? Will they ask any document/statement from employer in this situation prior to the decision is made ? 

Thanks in advance !


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## Noorsandhu (Sep 3, 2019)

Hi mark, 
We applied our Pmv 300 on 20 june 2019 from india. We front loaded everything. Medicals were done on 2 sept 2019. We have no complexity in our application. A very straightforward application. We haven’t been contacted for any information yet. Do you think they are processing 300 right now? Since they are not allowed to come to Australia at the moment. Im very saddened by this and kinda depressed. Should we wait for the grant or we should marry as soon as the ban gets lifted and my fiance comes to india to visit me of my visa is not granted. Would that be a better option? Im very confused. 
And thanks for helping us out with all our questions, its really helpful.


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## jeremy_k (Mar 11, 2020)

Hi Mark!Thank you for taking the time to answer questions.

My question is regarding the 485 visa. I have applied for the 485, but am currently stuck overseas with this whole lockdown situation. My BVB expired due to emergency surgery, but I have an ETA that I applied for and thankfully got approved. 

I'm just wondering what your thoughts are for those of us who have applied for this visa, went home and are now stuck. I have not received any request for a medical examination yet, but am terrified to at the moment as the centre that normally does this is not conducting any health examinations for overseas visas. What happens if I get the request but am unable to meet the 28 day period to get the tests done? Is the 28 days inclusive of weekends and public holidays?

Also, what is likely to happen if the borders are not open when I need to be in Aus? Is there some sorta email I need to send out to the DHA? Will they already know the situation and not issue visas at the moment? Stressing out like crazy as I see the processing time for this visa has actually gone down not up.


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## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Karramy -

Thanks for the note. Often applications like this are held up for months or longer waiting for external security checks from various government agencies. It's not unusual at all to see application that are from "high risk" countries take 24-30 months to process - we do many of these and see this routinely. I'd keep on uploading new relationship evidence periodically as it becomes available and try to be patient - especially with what may be further delays due to the COVID-19 situation.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



Karramy said:


> Hi Mark
> 
> Wondering if I can pick your brain.
> Have you worked with many people where the partner is from a'high risk' country?
> ...


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## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Camsum -

Actually if she entered on a visitor visa, that visa would likely have a "maximum stay period", usually 3 months. If she arrived on the visitor visa, lodged the 820/801 onshore during the stay period, and then received a Bridging Visa A (BVA) from the lodgment, as soon as she "overstayed" the stay period (ie, at 3 months + 1 day from arrival), she would automatically go onto the BVA and would then benefit from the conditions of the BVA - specifically, ability for unlimited work, etc.

It can be a bit confusing, as some visitor visas have an "expiration date" of 6 months or 12 months from grant - the important date is the stay period or how long you are allowed to stay starting from the time you enter Australia - that's the key.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



Camsum said:


> Thanks for your insight Mark. In that scenario you described, arriving on visitor Visa then applying for 820/801 onshore, would that mean she wouldn't be allowed to work until the 820 is granted? I big plus of the PMV is being free to work while waiting for 820 to be granted.
> Thanks again


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## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Fufuu -

A big "YES" for your question. I would say a visa decision will be coming soon (pending any COVID-19 delays/interruptions in processing). Since grant will occur more than 2 years after the application date, normally both the temporary (820) and permanent (801) partner visas are granted. Every once in a while this doesn't happen and you have to push for it (we're doing this for a client now) however normal procedure is that both visas are granted if the grant of the temporary visa occurs more than 24 months from the date of application.

Good luck!

Best regards,

Mark Northam



Fufuu said:


> Hi Mark! I love your new thread!
> Here's an overview on my 820 partner visa:
> December 2017: Applied for 820 partner visa (uploaded everything, AFP too, Medical soon after)
> 
> ...


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## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Rohitha131 -

Thanks for your note. The key to your situation is that the nominated position "must be available" to the visa applicant at the time the nomination AND visa are approved. So as long as you satisfied the required time on a 457 and/or 482 visa as of the date of application for the 186, even if you are stood down, what matters is what the employer is willing/able to do as of the point they approve the nomination and visa - it's a forward looking criteria.

What we're unsure of currently and waiting to see how DHA handled this is a situation where a 482 holder, for instance, is stood down and waiting for their position to resume, and DHA then makes a decision on the nomination or visa - a person who is stood down still has a connection to the business (as opposed to a person who has been made redundant or laid off or fired or has quit). At this point we anticipate DHA will be fairly flexible about these situations as they have already signalled in related areas, but we'll have to see how they handle these situations.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



Rohitha131 said:


> Hi Mark,
> 
> Great to see your valuable inputs which is highly appreciated in the first hand. My concern is, if we have already lodged 186 ENS in March'2020 (having still 482 until August'2020 and the BVA activates after) and the employer is temporarily "stood down" (after the 186 lodgement was done) due to Covid-19 however they've agreed and given the consent that I'll be still in the cadre and will be called to work once the business reinstated, is there any chance that this would delay in finalising 186 or will that affect the same in any ways ? Will they ask any document/statement from employer in this situation prior to the decision is made ?
> 
> Thanks in advance !


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## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Noorsandhu -

Thanks for the questions. SC300 Prospective Marriage Visas are taking anywhere from 9-18 months to process from what we are seeing, however the COVID-19 situation may affect those times significantly, and probably not for the better. We were very disapppointed to see that sc300 holders were not being permiitted to enter Australia re the travel ban.

Depending on your circumstances, you may want to look into the option as others are of getting married prior to the grant of the sc300. I can't give you advice on this as I would need to know much more about your circumstances, however if you did marry before grant of the sc300, that turns the sc300 into an offshore 309/100 partner visa application as of the date you marry. In terms of the travel ban, you woudl then be considered a direct family member of an Australian since you are married, which would entitle you to request entry to Australia under those provisions of the travel ban. You'd still have to get a visitor or other visa to enter Australia if you do so prior to the grant of the 309/100, and converting to the 309/100 could in theory delay processing of your visa somewhat, but it could have the more immediate effect of creating a pathway for you to enter Australia during the current travel ban if you could get a visa to do so (ie, visitor).

Happy to discuss further at a consultation - please see https://nlaw.com.au/consultation/ for more information or to book online.

Best regards,

Mark Northam



Noorsandhu said:


> Hi mark,
> We applied our Pmv 300 on 20 june 2019 from india. We front loaded everything. Medicals were done on 2 sept 2019. We have no complexity in our application. A very straightforward application. We haven't been contacted for any information yet. Do you think they are processing 300 right now? Since they are not allowed to come to Australia at the moment. Im very saddened by this and kinda depressed. Should we wait for the grant or we should marry as soon as the ban gets lifted and my fiance comes to india to visit me of my visa is not granted. Would that be a better option? Im very confused.
> And thanks for helping us out with all our questions, its really helpful.


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## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Jeremy_k -

Thanks for the note. Good job on the ETA - that could be very handy. At this point it wouldn't be of much use given the travel ban which limits temporary visa holders entering Australia to direct family members of Australians. Assuming that's not the case for you, you may want to wait until the travel ban is lifted.

Re medicals, DHA is being very flexible now re the 28-day deadlines for police certificate and medicals - just keep in touch with them (the reply-to address on their emails often has the direct email of the group that is processing your application) and let them know what progress you are making towards getting the medicals done.

Re being in Australia at the time of grant (required), we expect DHA will be flexible about this as well and give you time to enter Australia once the travel ban is modified - we've seen them do this in other cases without any major issue.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



jeremy_k said:


> Hi Mark!Thank you for taking the time to answer questions.
> 
> My question is regarding the 485 visa. I have applied for the 485, but am currently stuck overseas with this whole lockdown situation. My BVB expired due to emergency surgery, but I have an ETA that I applied for and thankfully got approved.
> 
> ...


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## Camsum (Mar 29, 2020)

MarkNortham said:


> Hi Camsum -
> 
> Actually if she entered on a visitor visa, that visa would likely have a "maximum stay period", usually 3 months. If she arrived on the visitor visa, lodged the 820/801 onshore during the stay period, and then received a Bridging Visa A (BVA) from the lodgment, as soon as she "overstayed" the stay period (ie, at 3 months + 1 day from arrival), she would automatically go onto the BVA and would then benefit from the conditions of the BVA - specifically, ability for unlimited work, etc.
> 
> ...


That's interesting. I had the understanding that the conditions of the previously held Visa automatically transfer onto the Bridging Visa. In this case, visitor visa conditions transferring onto Bridging Visa. Is this incorrect?


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## Rohitha131 (Sep 25, 2018)

Hi Mark, Good day to you ! 

Much appreciated for the well explained thoughts above. 

Thanks again !


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## Rohitha131 (Sep 25, 2018)

Hi Mark, Good day to you !

Much appreciated for the well explained thoughts above. Cleared doubts &#128522;

Thanks again !



MarkNortham said:


> Hi Rohitha131 -
> 
> Thanks for your note. The key to your situation is that the nominated position "must be available" to the visa applicant at the time the nomination AND visa are approved. So as long as you satisfied the required time on a 457 and/or 482 visa as of the date of application for the 186, even if you are stood down, what matters is what the employer is willing/able to do as of the point they approve the nomination and visa - it's a forward looking criteria.
> 
> ...


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## Karramy (Apr 6, 2019)

Thank you very much for your response Mark, I really appreciate it. It also makes us feel a bit better that we're not the only ones in this situation and it can quite common for those in this situation to be waiting for a lengthy period of time for the grant. &#128522;



MarkNortham said:


> Hi Karramy -
> 
> Thanks for the note. Often applications like this are held up for months or longer waiting for external security checks from various government agencies. It's not unusual at all to see application that are from "high risk" countries take 24-30 months to process - we do many of these and see this routinely. I'd keep on uploading new relationship evidence periodically as it becomes available and try to be patient - especially with what may be further delays due to the COVID-19 situation.
> 
> ...


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## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Camsum -

It depends on the previous visa and the visa you are applying for - there is no one universal rule for this. In the case of onshore partner visa applications, if it's a BVA it's issued with no conditions, with a BVC (ie, if you lodge the onshore partner visa while not holding another substantive visa) it may be isseud with no work rights - this can be replaced with permission to work if you qualify via financial hardship.

Best regards,

Mark Northam



Camsum said:


> That's interesting. I had the understanding that the conditions of the previously held Visa automatically transfer onto the Bridging Visa. In this case, visitor visa conditions transferring onto Bridging Visa. Is this incorrect?


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## jeremy_k (Mar 11, 2020)

MarkNortham said:


> Hi Jeremy_k -
> 
> Thanks for the note. Good job on the ETA - that could be very handy. At this point it wouldn't be of much use given the travel ban which limits temporary visa holders entering Australia to direct family members of Australians. Assuming that's not the case for you, you may want to wait until the travel ban is lifted.
> 
> ...


Hi Mark, 
Thank you for your response.

I have an Australian partner and we have been dating for over a year now,but I believe we would not qualify under "special circumstances" as we do not live together, and don't plan to until after marriage.However, do you think I should try sending that email either way?

Additionally, I have a follow-up question regarding the entry which I forgot to ask earlier-would the DHA have any issue with the fact that I "let" the BVB expire? I'm just wondering if you have any idea if those coming in (later on, of course) on tourist visas (those with expired bvbs, those who forgot bvbs, etc) would be under extra scrutiny at immigration since we're all likely to say our purpose of entry is "visiting", since by right you're not allowed to use the ETA to enter for purposes other than tourism?

Also, is there any likelihood that the visa duration is reduced? For eg if I need to make an entry by June, but I am unable to do so, will that reduce the total duration of my 485?

Thank you again for your time and hard work. It is very much appreciated.


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## oktavia (Mar 23, 2018)

hi Mark.. I would like to ask some question regarding visa 801. Currently I am on stage of filling the form for visa 801.
1. Is there any time frame for me to complete the form since I received the email saying I can start my visa 801 ? How long is it since I have started to fill up the form ? 
2. One of the question on the form, ask “have the applicant visit any country since the temporary visa is granted ?” is that mean since my visa 820 is approved or since my bridging visa is actived ?
3. On question 16, it say that I need to give data about 2people that know my relationship, Can I use the same person who fill the form 888 on my visa 820 ? 
Thank you so much for helping me.


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## sia.sayali (Aug 4, 2018)

MarkNortham said:


> Hi Camsum -
> 
> Actually if she entered on a visitor visa, that visa would likely have a "maximum stay period", usually 3 months. If she arrived on the visitor visa, lodged the 820/801 onshore during the stay period, and then received a Bridging Visa A (BVA) from the lodgment, as soon as she "overstayed" the stay period (ie, at 3 months + 1 day from arrival), she would automatically go onto the BVA and would then benefit from the conditions of the BVA - specifically, ability for unlimited work, etc.
> 
> ...


Hi Mark,

My husband and I are planning to go to Australia in May and he has already received an exemption to travel.

His visitor visa expires on 1st June and his visa allows a maximum stay of 3 months. Does this mean we would need to apply for any further visas (Subclass 820) before 1st June in order for him to receive a BVA? Or can we apply at any time within his stay period, regardless of the visa expiration date?

Thanks for your help.


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## Art Vandelay (Apr 4, 2020)

Hi Mark,

Any idea how long the ban on international travel may last? Cheers


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## indomelbourne (Nov 16, 2017)

*Is this the right time?*

Hi Mark,

Hope you're well.

I'm eligible to apply for citizenship since last month. Is this the right time to do it?
Or should I just postpone it until everything gets back to normal?
Thanks!


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## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Jeremy_k -

Thanks for the additional questions - the expiration date of a visa is fixed upon grant, so re 485 that wouldn't change as long as the visa was not cancelled.

Re de facto partnership and trying to get in on ETA, sounds like you may not have sufficient evidence to prove this, especially if you haven't lived together - low chance of success based on what you've said so far.

Normally missing the return-by date on a BVB is fairly harmless and doesn't do damage to your "reputation" at DHA - this would I think be especially true given how the COVID-19 situation has disrupted people's travels.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



jeremy_k said:


> Hi Mark,
> Thank you for your response.
> 
> I have an Australian partner and we have been dating for over a year now,but I believe we would not qualify under "special circumstances" as we do not live together, and don't plan to until after marriage.However, do you think I should try sending that email either way?
> ...


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## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Oktavia -

Thanks for the note. Re 1, no particular deadline set in the law, however at some point you will normally get a 28-day letter requiring you to lodge the 801 within that timeframe. The draft will normally stay on the DHA systems for quite some time unless there is a major system update - these sometimes end up delete incomplete applications but that's pretty rare.

Re 2, that would refer to since the 820 was granted.

Re 3, that's fine - you might include any family members in Australia as well - I've seen case officers ask questions if family members are left off of that area.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



oktavia said:


> hi Mark.. I would like to ask some question regarding visa 801. Currently I am on stage of filling the form for visa 801.
> 1. Is there any time frame for me to complete the form since I received the email saying I can start my visa 801 ? How long is it since I have started to fill up the form ?
> 2. One of the question on the form, ask "have the applicant visit any country since the temporary visa is granted ?" is that mean since my visa 820 is approved or since my bridging visa is actived ?
> 3. On question 16, it say that I need to give data about 2people that know my relationship, Can I use the same person who fill the form 888 on my visa 820 ?
> Thank you so much for helping me.


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## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Sia -

I woudl need to see a copy of the visitor visa to give you specific advice for your case - they are formatted differently in some cases, and I would not want to give you incorrect advice. Please feel free to email me at [email protected] - happy to assist.

Best regards,

Mark Northam



sia.sayali said:


> Hi Mark,
> 
> My husband and I are planning to go to Australia in May and he has already received an exemption to travel.
> 
> ...


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## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Art -

Thanks for the question. No idea, but the Prime Minister has signalled a 6-month estimated timeframe for the social distancing restrictions. Given the vast majority of Australia's COVID-19 cases have been imported from overseas via cruise ship or airplane, I'm guessing that they may slowly phase back in travel capabiltiies after some point.

Australia is faced with 2 difficult choices - either keep the restrictions in place until a vaccine is found, or loosen the restrictions and try to avoid "too much" further transmission of the disease. I would hate to be in the position of having to make that choice - it's literally life & death.

Best regards,

Mark Northam



Art Vandelay said:


> Hi Mark,
> 
> Any idea how long the ban on international travel may last? Cheers


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## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Indomelbourne -

Thanks for the question. I see no reason to delay it - worst case you might wait longer for your citizenship appointment, however given that the citizenship laws have been subject to attempts to change them (for the worse, making it harder to get citizenship) over the last few years, I'd probably apply sooner rather than later.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



indomelbourne said:


> Hi Mark,
> 
> Hope you're well.
> 
> ...


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## vik-per (May 27, 2019)

Hi Mark,
Thank you so much for your time and knowledge on this fabulous forum. I have a couple of questions regarding the PMV. My fiance is from Nigeria and we are about to put in our application .... regarding our personal statements of our relationship and covering the four major points;
is 7 pages too long? 
Do we need to sign each page or is one signature at the end sufficient?
Can we still apply while this COVID-19 is happening because on immi at the moment it is saying not to apply without checking further info, but i cant find info apart from tourist visas.
Regarding chat evidence; Can i add excerpts from the whatsApp chat history or are screenshots better?

Thanking you in advance


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## Salmn669 (Feb 8, 2020)

Hi mark. 
I have read your valuable replies on people posts which is really helpfull.

I also have some questions to ask from you.Can you please shed some light on these. Here is my timeline including questions. 

I met my girlfriend in September 2018 and got married in May 2019.
Lodged my 820/801 through migration Agent on Dec2019 Uploaded most of the evidences at the time of lodging app(Except medical and AFPC)
After 3 months in March 2020/last month uploaded few more relationship evidences.
Now my questions are.

1. The processing time for 820 is between 27-32months roughly but I just want to know this 27-32months time start from the day of Marriage or start from the actuall time of lodging application? 

2. When you advise me to get medicle done,When CO ask for it or get done before I hear anything from immi And what you suggest me to add in my application except the common evidence? 

3.Because of the Covid Pandemic current situation we cannot go out like travelling, dining out, can't go to see relatives,cant see friends so because of that we are not able to make photos(realtionship evidences) Do u think having not enough relationship evidences can make application weak? 


Looking forward to get your valuable reply on my questions.
Thanks


----------



## yoongz (Mar 12, 2020)

Hi Mark.

Hope you are doing well.

Just a simple query - I was wondering whether the 482 TSS Visa is still being processed/issued at this current time?

By way of a little background info: I got into Australia on a ETA before the travel ban, so just waiting on the 482 TSS now.

Thanks!


----------



## BTW23 (Apr 5, 2020)

Hi Mark, 

I’m new to the forum so I’m not exactly sure if you can answer my question. I have an enquiry about my eligibility for Australian citizenship by descent. (Note: I don’t plan on travelling until the COVID-19 pandemic is completely over).

Both of my parents are Irish and acquired Australian citizenship by naturalisation in the early 1990s, having lived in Australia for 5+ years. I was born in Ireland in 1997 and have never lived in or visited Australia. Is citizenship by descent a viable option for me who wants to live and work in Australia in the near future?

Best wishes 

Daniel


----------



## Sairanadeem (Apr 4, 2020)

Hi Mark,

I wanted to get bit information regarding 491 visa(provisional) offshore applicant. 

1. Iam standing at 70 total points are they enough for nomination?or do you suggest to increase score by giving IELTS/PTE again?? 
2. Current situation will affect the 491 Visa application time period?
3. Academic ielts is acceptable for immigration purposes or only general ielts will be required? I have given academic ielts (L-8, W6. 5,R-7.5,S-7) and my occupation would go under agriculture related field. Please clarify.
4. after ITA is OK to wait for grant or there could still be chances for rejection?

Any help would be appreciated


----------



## eeva (Jan 6, 2020)

Hi Mark,

I have a question about transitioning from a 482 visa.

I have applied for a 461 visa and resigned my sponsored position however I have been advised that the 482 still will not expire until its original expiry date of October 2021. I know that my options are 1) find another sponsor, 2) be granted another visa, 3) leave the country.
I intend to go down route 2) - what visa options do I have? Ideally I want to be able to work in some capacity & I have already held the working tourist visa.

Thanks,

Elen


----------



## JMM (Apr 2, 2020)

Hi Mark,

I'm in the process on starting an application for a partner visa (820 onshore) and I have a few questions regarding the P80 form.

Question 4 - Have you been known by any other name(s)? Include name at birth, before or after marriage, adoptive/foster, alias or pseudonym, cultural or tribal, preferred name, other spellings.

If you your name was "Daniel" for example (on all your official documents like passport etc), but your social media and conversations with your partner and people who know you are under "Dan" would you need to list that? 

For our relevant police checks we have used our name as per our passport as this have never legally changed since birth.

I don't see a real difference between Dan vs. Daniel and personally wouldn't feel the need to list it as it's just a shortened version of your legal given name.

On my working holiday visa I said NO to being know by another other name.

Question 45 - Do you have siblings? They list siblings as Full, Half and Adopted. I'm assuming then I wouldn't need to list a step-sibling as they don't specifically ask for it?

Under the parents question (q44) they do make you list your step parent(s).

Any general advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
JMM


----------



## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Vik-per -

Thanks for the questions - happy to help. 7 pages is probably pushing it a bit - I'd aim for 4-5 or so. Signature and date at the end on the last page is fine. Re chat evidence, suggest you provide a sampling over the course of the relationship to show how it evolved naturally. Re applying, outside of COVID-19 related delays, no reason I see to delay lodgment at this point - the worst DHA can do is delay it until they have the resources to process it.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



vik-per said:


> Hi Mark,
> Thank you so much for your time and knowledge on this fabulous forum. I have a couple of questions regarding the PMV. My fiance is from Nigeria and we are about to put in our application .... regarding our personal statements of our relationship and covering the four major points;
> is 7 pages too long?
> Do we need to sign each page or is one signature at the end sufficient?
> ...


----------



## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Salmn669 -

Thanks for the note. The 27-32 month estimate might as well be thrown out the window at this point due to COVID-19 - however prior to all the chaos, it referred to the time from the date of application to the date of decision. Re 2, I'd wait until DHA asks for medicals and police certificates as they expire 12 months from the date of issue. Re 3, I'd maximise whatever evidence you can re photos of you being together and doing things, even if at home, etc.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



Salmn669 said:


> Hi mark.
> I have read your valuable replies on people posts which is really helpfull.
> 
> I also have some questions to ask from you.Can you please shed some light on these. Here is my timeline including questions.
> ...


----------



## Salmn669 (Feb 8, 2020)

Thanks Mark.


----------



## vik-per (May 27, 2019)

Thank you Mark


----------



## cmamjay (Apr 11, 2019)

Hi Mark, I am onshore using a visitor visa but have a 309/100 pending. I want to extend my stay because of COVID. Do i apply vistor visa or bridging visa?


----------



## jeremy_k (Mar 11, 2020)

MarkNortham said:


> Hi Jeremy_k -
> 
> Thanks for the additional questions - the expiration date of a visa is fixed upon grant, so re 485 that wouldn't change as long as the visa was not cancelled.
> 
> ...


Thank you, Mark.

I just have one last question, this is for a friend actually. My friend's student visa expires sometime in April,and she left Australia towards the end of February to get married here in Malaysia.

She had planned to return to Australia by the third week of March (with plenty of time to return on the student visa while waiting out the same 485 visa), but with Malaysian citizens not being allowed to leave the country, she is pretty much stuck here at the moment with no visa, not even a bvb. If she applies for the ETA like I did, would the same "reputation" issue arise at all? Can she enter the country on a tourist visa with a pending 485 like me?

Thank you once again! Really appreciate your responses.


----------



## Illuxzaah (Mar 18, 2017)

Hi Mark,

First of all thank you very much for doing this Q&A with all of us members, I'd like to ask you if you think the department is it still processing Tourist Visa 600 because after a month my wife's application is still marked as received despite previous Tourist Visas we applied were granted in a week usually. 
Mistakenly we left Australia without applying for BVB since she was BVA holder due to the 820 we lodged last year and now we're trying to let her get back through the 600, if can help her nationality is from the Philippines.

Thank you again and I hope you're keeping safe at home.

Regards,

Bart


----------



## Noorsandhu (Sep 3, 2019)

Hi mark , thanks for answering our questions. I would like to ask that after how long we should provide new evidences. Like we uploaded new pictures in march in our 300 application when my fiance came to visit me in india in feb. We uploaded recent money transfers too. But didn’t upload any phone call history recently. I have 3 months of call history with now. Should we upload it? And our date of intended marriage is 24 may 2020, should we change it or wait for the department to ask us to reschedule it. Thanks in advance.


----------



## polina (Mar 12, 2019)

Dear Mark, huge thank you for offering this opportunity to ask you questions.

As to my situation: my Australian husband and me are married for almost 3 years now and have two kids who were born in other country, but received their Australian citizenship by decent. We all live outside of Australia.

So my questions are: 

1) I am confused about Non-migrating members of the family unit and migrating members of the family unit.

Is my understanding correct that I need to state my husband and kids in the NON-migrating members of the family unit (as they are not applying to migrate with me, as they are already Australians)? And I do NOT write anyone in the migrating members of the family unit?

2) My husband and I don't have a joint bank account here outside of Australia, but we both contribute to our relationship financially. Will it be a problem? 

3) My relatives and friends can write statements in support of our relationship, but they don't know English very well. Should their statements be translated and then notarized or the translation itself is enough?

Thank you very much again for any advice. 

Polina


----------



## vik-per (May 27, 2019)

Hi Mark thanks so much. Can I please ask another question?
Regarding the chat evidence..how much is too much? lol. Do i add 4-5 conversations per month ie one pdf = feb, one = march etc?

Thanking you in advance



MarkNortham said:


> Hi Vik-per -
> 
> Thanks for the questions - happy to help. 7 pages is probably pushing it a bit - I'd aim for 4-5 or so. Signature and date at the end on the last page is fine. Re chat evidence, suggest you provide a sampling over the course of the relationship to show how it evolved naturally. Re applying, outside of COVID-19 related delays, no reason I see to delay lodgment at this point - the worst DHA can do is delay it until they have the resources to process it.
> 
> ...


----------



## grandiax (Apr 8, 2020)

Fufuu said:


> Hi Mark! I love your new thread!
> Here's an overview on my 820 partner visa:
> December 2017: Applied for 820 partner visa (uploaded everything, AFP too, Medical soon after)
> 
> ...


we are similar timelines.
finger crossed
G


----------



## Vijaysandy (Apr 29, 2019)

Hi mark i applied partner visa 820/801 application in june 2017 still waiting my question is m i eligible for cronavirus package or this is only after you get PR please share your views
Thanks


----------



## felipeolaondo (Oct 10, 2015)

*Partner 820 application question*

Gday Mark,

I have a very singular question.

When applying to a Partner 820 ONshore, do I need to upload all documents and evidence in order to get the bridging visa A or it comes at an earlier stage after paying and writing the paragraphs on the nature of the relationship? This is crucial to me because I have a months left on my current visa and some of the documents (police checks, marriage certificate from registry, etc) may take longer than a month! Thanks!!! Phillip


----------



## apurvwalia (Mar 28, 2020)

Hi Mark,
I have got my tourist visa for NZ rejected due to the following reasons, while I was already on a tourist visa in Australia and waiting for a Partner visa 309. Will this rejection of NZ tourist visa have a negative impact on my Australian 309 application (lodged about 10 months ago)? 


NZ visitor visa rejection:
We are not satisfied that you have a genuine intent to come to New Zealand as a visitor and
meet the conditions of any visa granted to you.
• We are not satisfied that you have strong employment commitments in your home country.
• We are not satisfied that you have strong financial commitments in your home country.

As I showed NZ immi that I am not working in Australia due to the Australian tourist visa conditions.


----------



## Sunshine26th (Apr 9, 2020)

Hi,,
Hope you are doing good.
My husband just got 485 visa,,post work stream,,2 days back,,,n he is in australia,,now i want to apply for subsequent entry visa 485 n i m in pakistan,,,but i cdnt find any online application for it n i searched but cdnt find the details about the process for lodging subsequent entry visa 485,,,if u can kindly help me how its done i wl b thankful,,,if its nt a problem.


----------



## emma89 (Feb 7, 2020)

Hi Mark,

My husband, 9 month old and myself are looking into the Visa 491 (my husband would be the main applicant). Just had a few questions!

- Do I apply for the Subsequent Visa Applicantion (491) or am I added to my husbands application as an applicant over 18 years of age?
- If we need to apply separately, who should I add our son under and does it make a difference?
- If I am to be an applicant over 18 years of age on the main application, will I still be able to work?

Thanks so much!


----------



## L4ur3n (Apr 11, 2020)

Hi Mark 

I am a new poster what a lovely offer to answer questions during this uncertain time! 

I am wondering if you know if applicants sent to VACCU for character checks are still being processed during COVID19 and what is included in these checks? 

My application went to the VACCU in Dec 19 and I have had no further communication. 

Thanks,
Lauren


----------



## achmatxforbes (Jan 17, 2020)

Hi Mark, 

My partner and I have been together for over 2 years now. We want to apply for the 820 but I would just like some clarity on the sponsor requirements. What kind of assets are required? Is there a specific amount of money needed in your account etc? 

Many thanks, 
Achmat


----------



## Shabazkhan (Jul 17, 2019)

Hello sir
Please make it clear : my 309 visa is under process since sep/2019 and we get married out of Australia in 2016 , I haven’t got to Australia yet, but before marriage my partner has requested for Centrelink payments as being single person after marriage until today she didn’t have idea to change status since we not married in Australia we were married outside and Australia law doesn’t count it register marriage when couples married outside.

will it lead to a refusal ?

If now she change status will Centrelink ask for the payments back and penalties?
Please help


----------



## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Yoongsa -

Thanks for the note. Best indication at the moment is that 482s are continuing to process for onshore applicants. The challenging part may be the nomination, given the genuine position requirements - with all the unemployed Australians, it may become difficult to demonstrate the need to employ someone from overseas. However that's all speculation at the moment - it's unclear exactly how nominations are going to be handled with the current employment situation - from what we can see, 482 nominations are being processed very slowly at the moment.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



yoongz said:


> Hi Mark.
> 
> Hope you are doing well.
> 
> ...


----------



## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Daniel -

Thanks for the question. I can't give you specific advice for your case without knowing a lot more about your and your parents' circumstances, but from what you've said it sounds like unless there are any other issues that may cause a problem, you meet the basic requirements for citizenship by descent. Depending on how and under what legislation your parents became citizens there may have been regulatiosn in place about being in Australia for 2 years prior to becoming citizens, etc however with 5 years time in Australia they may have met those if those regulations were relevant to their case.

Happy to discuss further at a consultation - please see https://nlaw.com.au/consultation/ for more information or to book online.

Best regards,

Mark Northam



BTW23 said:


> Hi Mark,
> 
> I'm new to the forum so I'm not exactly sure if you can answer my question. I have an enquiry about my eligibility for Australian citizenship by descent. (Note: I don't plan on travelling until the COVID-19 pandemic is completely over).
> 
> ...


----------



## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Sairanadeem -

Thanks for the note.

Re 1, impossible to predict - depends on how the states are processing their nomination requests, especially considering any current slowdowns based on COVID-19 related issues.

Re 2, impossible to tell at the moment. My guess likely, yes.

Re 3, DHA accepts either version of the IELTS test - you might check with the skills assessor as applicable for any more specific requirements;

Re 4, plenty of opportunities for refusal after invitation issued - for instance, if you cannot justify all the points you have claimed with proper documentation, health or character problems, etc.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



Sairanadeem said:


> Hi Mark,
> 
> I wanted to get bit information regarding 491 visa(provisional) offshore applicant.
> 
> ...


----------



## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Eva -

Thanks for the note. The challenge is that it's hard to say what the processing time for the 461 visa will be - recently they have been rather long (12-24 months).

If you work for an employer other than your 482 nominator you will be in breach of your visa conditions, and if you are not re-nominated by another employer within 60 days of ceasing employment with the nominating employer, your are also in breach of your visa conditions, This is important because of a requirement of the 461 visa;

_"If the application is made in Australia, the applicant has complied substantially with the conditions that apply or applied to the last of any substantive visas held by the applicant, and to any subsequent bridging visa."_

I would imagine if DHA brings this up during the 461 processing, that using the COVID-19 situation as a reason why you were not able to abide by your visa conditions may have a reasonale chance at avoiding a refusal of the 461 due to breach of your 482 conditions, however I'd plan ahead and see what you can put in place re documentation to show that you had no good choice other than breaching the 482, and that you chose to stay in Australia to be with your NZ partner. If they cancel your 482 due to breach prior to the 461 being granted, you could look at applying for a Bridging Visa E to remain in the country while the 461 is being considered. Interestingly, the BVE - if you could show financial hardship and add work rights to it - would likely not have the same work limitation (that you can only work for your sponsoring employer) that the 482 now has - it would actually allow more working rights than the 482 now does due to lack of that limitation.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



eeva said:


> Hi Mark,
> 
> I have a question about transitioning from a 482 visa.
> 
> ...


----------



## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi JMM -

Thanks for the note. I agree with you re "Dan" - no need to list as an additional name, especially if you have never been referred to in any official document as "Dan".

Re Q45, that's correct - "step" siblings are not included in that question.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



JMM said:


> Hi Mark,
> 
> I'm in the process on starting an application for a partner visa (820 onshore) and I have a few questions regarding the P80 form.
> 
> ...


----------



## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Cmamjay -

Thanks for the question. Normally you would apply for a visitor visa in this circumstance. That being said, there is an interesting provision in the Bridging Visa B legislation that allows for an onshore application for a Bridging Visa B tied to a previously applied for 309/100 application.The result, if it works, is that you would have a BVB that would allow you to remain in Australia until a decision is made on the 309/100,

The legislation is too complex to go into here where we have time for quick Q&A, but happy to discuss further at a consultation - please see https://nlaw.com.au/consultation/ for more information or to book online.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



cmamjay said:


> Hi Mark, I am onshore using a visitor visa but have a 309/100 pending. I want to extend my stay because of COVID. Do i apply vistor visa or bridging visa?


----------



## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Jeremy_K -

Thanks for the note. ETA might work if she has a direct family member (ie, spouse or de facto partner (lots of evidence required for these currently)) in Australia, however short of that the travel ban would currently prevent her from entering Australia.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



jeremy_k said:


> Thank you, Mark.
> 
> I just have one last question, this is for a friend actually. My friend's student visa expires sometime in April,and she left Australia towards the end of February to get married here in Malaysia.
> 
> ...


----------



## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Bart -

Thanks for the note. We're only hearing anecdotal evidence, however it appears that they are slowly processing these. Many offshore posts where these are usually processed are closed or running on severly reduced staff levels, which is contributing to the delays.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



Illuxzaah said:


> Hi Mark,
> 
> First of all thank you very much for doing this Q&A with all of us members, I'd like to ask you if you think the department is it still processing Tourist Visa 600 because after a month my wife's application is still marked as received despite previous Tourist Visas we applied were granted in a week usually.
> Mistakenly we left Australia without applying for BVB since she was BVA holder due to the 820 we lodged last year and now we're trying to let her get back through the 600, if can help her nationality is from the Philippines.
> ...


----------



## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Noorsandhu -

Thanks for the question. We're hearing that sc300 Prospective marriage visas are not processing quickly these days, since sc300 holders are still not allowed into Australia under the current travel ban. I'd upload new evidence every 2 months or so depending on how often you have new evidence.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



Noorsandhu said:


> Hi mark , thanks for answering our questions. I would like to ask that after how long we should provide new evidences. Like we uploaded new pictures in march in our 300 application when my fiance came to visit me in india in feb. We uploaded recent money transfers too. But didn't upload any phone call history recently. I have 3 months of call history with now. Should we upload it? And our date of intended marriage is 24 may 2020, should we change it or wait for the department to ask us to reschedule it. Thanks in advance.


----------



## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Polina -

Thanks for the questions! Please see my responses below in your questions at ***:



polina said:


> Dear Mark, huge thank you for offering this opportunity to ask you questions.
> 
> As to my situation: my Australian husband and me are married for almost 3 years now and have two kids who were born in other country, but received their Australian citizenship by decent. We all live outside of Australia.
> 
> ...


----------



## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Vik-per -

Of course! Multiple questions welcomed. A nice sampling spread over the timeline of the relationship is a good idea, however I would avoid sending more than 20 pages or so.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



vik-per said:


> Hi Mark thanks so much. Can I please ask another question?
> Regarding the chat evidence..how much is too much? lol. Do i add 4-5 conversations per month ie one pdf = feb, one = march etc?
> 
> Thanking you in advance


----------



## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Vijaysandy -

Thanks for the note. Currently the JobKeeper payments are payable to Australian citizens and permanent residents, plus NZ citizens on 444 visas. This is always subject to change, however I don't see how you would qualify at the moment if you are only holding a bridging visa for an 820.801.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



Vijaysandy said:


> Hi mark i applied partner visa 820/801 application in june 2017 still waiting my question is m i eligible for cronavirus package or this is only after you get PR please share your views
> Thanks


----------



## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Felipeolaondo -

Thanks for the note. The general policy is that the "bulk" of the documents need to be uploaded at the time of application for an 820/801 - that is, a bare-bones 820/801 with only 2 888 forms and passport, etc runs the risk of a quick refusal. Marriage from registry not an issue, especially if you have the "informal" certificate you probably got at your marriage - I'd upload that while waiting for the state-generated one. Don't worry about health or police certificates - most people wait to do those until DHA requests since they expire in 12 months and partner visas are generally taking longer than 12 months to process. I'd load up as much relationship evidence as you can with the intiial application - try to make sure you have some in all 4 categories (household, social, financial, commitment) and then upload more as it becomes available. Do make sure you lodge your 820/801 while you still hold a substantive visa in Australia (ie, don't lodge when on a bridging visa only or when unalwful) to avoid the dreaded Schedule 3 criteria which can be a big issue.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



felipeolaondo said:


> Gday Mark,
> 
> I have a very singular question.
> 
> When applying to a Partner 820 ONshore, do I need to upload all documents and evidence in order to get the bridging visa A or it comes at an earlier stage after paying and writing the paragraphs on the nature of the relationship? This is crucial to me because I have a months left on my current visa and some of the documents (police checks, marriage certificate from registry, etc) may take longer than a month! Thanks!!! Phillip


----------



## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

WARNING: This was not my post - someone else answered the question here, and the answer was not entirely correct. Please see my response just posted. I have deleted the post.



felipeolaondo said:


> Thanks Mark!! I thought so! So in order to get in the bridging its only paying and writing? Any documents needed in that very first stage previous to pay? Thanks!!


----------



## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Apurvwalia -

Thanks for the note. Normally that would not have a negative impact on your partner visa application, however I would suggest reviewing your application form for the 309/100 (including Form 80) to make sure there are no questions re visas refused for countries other than Australia - if so, you should look at lodging Form 1022 (Change of circumstances) to advise DHA of the refusal to update your 309/100 application.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



apurvwalia said:


> Hi Mark,
> I have got my tourist visa for NZ rejected due to the following reasons, while I was already on a tourist visa in Australia and waiting for a Partner visa 309. Will this rejection of NZ tourist visa have a negative impact on my Australian 309 application (lodged about 10 months ago)?
> 
> NZ visitor visa rejection:
> ...


----------



## rumesh (May 13, 2014)

Hi Mark,

I am in Australia on TSS (482) two years visa currently and going to finish two years by end of 2020. My current employer will renew the visa. 

However, my current employer will not sponsor for PR under TRT (186) visa. I have ONLY TRT(186) visa option in my case. So I am planning to join a new employer and transfer / apply for TSS. 

My question is:

Do I have to be with the same Australian employer for the qualifying period (3 years) to be eligible for TRT? 

OR 

Is working in Australia for 3 years enough to be eligible for TRT? (regardless of number of employers) 

Thanks in advance.


----------



## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Sunshine26th -

Thanks for the note. Subsequent Entrant sc485 applications are paper applications - you can look on the DHA website under the 485 visa, under the section "When you have this visa". Form 1409 is the main application form, check the DHA site for required documents, info and fees.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



Sunshine26th said:


> Hi,,
> Hope you are doing good.
> My husband just got 485 visa,,post work stream,,2 days back,,,n he is in australia,,now i want to apply for subsequent entry visa 485 n i m in pakistan,,,but i cdnt find any online application for it n i searched but cdnt find the details about the process for lodging subsequent entry visa 485,,,if u can kindly help me how its done i wl b thankful,,,if its nt a problem.


----------



## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Emma89 -

Thanks for the note. Sorry am a bit confused - if your husband is the main applicant, normally all of you would be on the same application form - he as main applicant, you and any children as secondary dependent applicants. Normally bridging visas for these include work rights, however your circumstances may affect this. Happy to discuss further at a consultation - please see https://nlaw.com.au/consultation/ for more information or to book online.

Best regards,

Mark Northam



emma89 said:


> Hi Mark,
> 
> My husband, 9 month old and myself are looking into the Visa 491 (my husband would be the main applicant). Just had a few questions!
> 
> ...


----------



## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Lauren -

Thanks for the note and kind words! Yes, VACCU (Visa Applicant Character Consideration Unit) processing appears to be continuing, although maybe slower than before. This can take many months, so I'd be patient but do make sure DHA has your current contact info and make sure no emails from them end up in your junk/spam email box and not seen.

Also, re VACCU, it's likely that they will request as much documentation as possible about any offences that they are looking at - we do quite a few of these types of cases, and it can be a good idea to prepare in advance by ordering any court records, police records, police certificates, etc as you can to try and get as much evidence about the offence(s) as possible once VACCU starts actively working on your case.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



L4ur3n said:


> Hi Mark
> 
> I am a new poster what a lovely offer to answer questions during this uncertain time!
> 
> ...


----------



## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Achmat -

Thanks for the note. Under the current legislation there is no specific income or asset test for partner visa sponsors, however you must be able to show that you "would be able" to financially support your partner for the first 2 years after they are granted a visa. Often payslips from previous work (if you are not employed currently) or current employment info, resume, etc can be helpful here.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



achmatxforbes said:


> Hi Mark,
> 
> My partner and I have been together for over 2 years now. We want to apply for the 820 but I would just like some clarity on the sponsor requirements. What kind of assets are required? Is there a specific amount of money needed in your account etc?
> 
> ...


----------



## apurvwalia (Mar 28, 2020)

Thank you, Mark, I did not upload form 80 and form 1221 initially with my bulk upload. Yes, there is a question re visa refused for countries other Australia.
I have recently filled it with additional information answering this question and will upload it this week. Should I still upload form 1022?



MarkNortham said:


> Hi Apurvwalia -
> 
> Thanks for the note. Normally that would not have a negative impact on your partner visa application, however I would suggest reviewing your application form for the 309/100 (including Form 80) to make sure there are no questions re visas refused for countries other than Australia - if so, you should look at lodging Form 1022 (Change of circumstances) to advise DHA of the refusal to update your 309/100 application.
> 
> ...


----------



## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Shabazkhan -

Thanks for the note. Your question is too complex to be answered online here as there are overlapping issues. DHA does look at if/when a sponsor has declared the marriage to Centrelink so that is a potential issue. Also, Australia recognises marriages outside Australia as long as those marriages were civil marriages (ie, not just a religious ceremony with no registration with the local government, etc) and would have been legal in Australia had the marriage been performed in Australia. I would need to discuss your circumstances in detail at a consutlation in order to give you specific advice for your case - see https://nlaw.com.au/consultation/ for more details and to book online.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



Shabazkhan said:


> Hello sir
> Please make it clear : my 309 visa is under process since sep/2019 and we get married out of Australia in 2016 , I haven't got to Australia yet, but before marriage my partner has requested for Centrelink payments as being single person after marriage until today she didn't have idea to change status since we not married in Australia we were married outside and Australia law doesn't count it register marriage when couples married outside.
> 
> will it lead to a refusal ?
> ...


----------



## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Rumesh -

Thanks for the question. Under the current regulations, and assuming you did not have a 457 application pending as of 18 April 2017 that was later granted, you would generally fall under the 3 year rule (would need to consult with you to get more information about your case in order to give you specific advice for your case). This rule states that you must spend 3 years with the SAME employer while holding a 457 and/or 482 visa in order to qualify for the TRT stream. There are many other aspects to these regulations, so it's important to check the regulations very carefully or consult with a Registered Migration Agent or Immigration Lawyer in order to get specific advice for your case.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



rumesh said:


> Hi Mark,
> 
> I am in Australia on TSS (482) two years visa currently and going to finish two years by end of 2020. My current employer will renew the visa.
> 
> ...


----------



## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Apurvwalia -

No need for Form 1022 unless there was a question on something you *already lodged* (ie, main application form, etc) that needs to be corrected now that your circumstances have changed.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



apurvwalia said:


> Thank you, Mark, I did not upload form 80 and form 1221 initially with my bulk upload. Yes, there is a question re visa refused for countries other Australia.
> I have recently filled it with additional information answering this question and will upload it this week. Should I still upload form 1022?


----------



## L4ur3n (Apr 11, 2020)

Thanks Mark, that provides some positivity. We have been waiting since Dec 19 and have had no communication yet it seems like a very slow process.

I am from the UK do you know where I can get access to the documents I may need? 

Thanks again.


----------



## Vijaysandy (Apr 29, 2019)

Hi mark i have applied 820/801 in june 2017 police check health has been submitted even for 80 also been submitted we always updated information 
Hasn't heard any thing yet I'm from India high risk country can you please share your views
Thanks


----------



## emilym1964 (Mar 6, 2020)

Hi Mark, 

Thanks for taking the time to help us all out!

I'm in the early stages of getting our documentation together in order for my partner to apply for the partner visa. I am beginning to ask friends and family to complete a stat dec or form 888 for us. My parents (who are Australian citizens) live in the US - so are they able to complete a form 888 and have it notorised in the States? 

Thanks for your assistance!


----------



## 382759 (Aug 16, 2019)

Hi Mark, thank you very much for your help and all answers you bring to everybody !
I have a very small question. 
My company want to sponsor me for an intra company transfer (TSS 482) 
What is the best thing to do with the current situation ? do you think we can start the application process or is it a waste of time ?


----------



## paxk (Mar 30, 2017)

Hi Mark

Can you please shed some light on what is expected in the write-up for the 2000 characters required for "nature of commitment to each other".


----------



## Brit_in_aus (Apr 1, 2020)

Hi Mark! Quick question. My Aussie partner has already sponsored an ex partner. She was from Europe and the relationship ended more than fifteen years ago.

Because it was so long ago he has forgotten the date he lodged the sponsorship for her. I know we will be asked this information at the application, so just being organised!

Can he call Home Affairs or IMMI for this info? Thanks for your time! 🙂


----------



## vik-per (May 27, 2019)

Hi Mark, 
Thank you again for answering my questions so far its greatly appreciated.
So we paid our fee and it was approved today and now im uploading documents to the immi account. From what i can see a lot of our documents will be in the "relationship" requests and it only accepts 10 files. Can the rest be uploaded onto the sponsors section? )if that makes sense. The "other" documents uploads section at the bottom is that just for documents the CO requests or can more be uploaded there?
Im thinking i might have to merge some pdf's together cos we have a lot of evidence to attach lol.


----------



## Shushuk (Mar 21, 2020)

Dear Mark
Thank you so much for offering your knowledge and expertise with us.
A few questions: 

1) I lodged 309 today and soon after got an email requesting biometrics and health check. One month ago i had these done for a 600 but my 600 was refused. Do i need to redo biometrics/health check.

2) if i do need to do these what do i do about meeting the 14 day deadline. Everything is in lockdown in my country.

3) i noticed the website says translators outside Aus do not need to be accredited but they must state their qualification. Does this mean anyone of any priofession can translate our docs? Do they need to have done any english proficency tests or is simply knowing english enough? 

4) my wife lives in australia so we have no joint accounts or shared expenses etc. We are financially stable and never needed to send each other money. We only lived together for 3 months after our wedding in december. We lived with my parents. We do plan on sharing living expenses once living together. In the meantime what evidence can we provide for the financial aspect.


----------



## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Lauren -

Can you advise specifically what documents you are referring to? If it's involving a court matter, then the UK court file or sentencing remarks of the judge, etc can be helpful.

Best regards,

Mark Northam



L4ur3n said:


> Thanks Mark, that provides some positivity. We have been waiting since Dec 19 and have had no communication yet it seems like a very slow process.
> 
> I am from the UK do you know where I can get access to the documents I may need?
> 
> Thanks again.


----------



## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Vijaysandy -

May be stuck in external security checks - that's often the reason why these things are delayed a long time. Also could be DHA is investigating the relationship more closely. With India, site visits to parents etc in India are becoming more frequent (at least before the COVID-19 crisis) so you might look into that. Also would suggest lodging any updated relationship evidence (ie, new bank statements, etc that come about over the passage of time) from time to time to keep the evidence current.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



Vijaysandy said:


> Hi mark i have applied 820/801 in june 2017 police check health has been submitted even for 80 also been submitted we always updated information
> Hasn't heard any thing yet I'm from India high risk country can you please share your views
> Thanks


----------



## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Emilym1964 -

Yes. Suggest having it witnessed by a notary public in the USA. While technically the witnessing may not meet the federal laws where an 888 must be witnessed on Australian soil since those who are empowered to witness an 888 (or stat dec) onlly have that power whilst on Australian soil (including embassies overseas, etc), DHA traditionally has not invalidated 888s for that reason. I would, however, make sure that you have at least 2 Form 888s witnessed in Australia the "proper" way by a JP, solicitor, etc from the list of people who are authorised to witness a Commonwealth statutory declaration.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



emilym1964 said:


> Hi Mark,
> 
> Thanks for taking the time to help us all out!
> 
> ...


----------



## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Easyrimka -

Thanks for the note. You may have a tough time getting into the country at the moment assuming you are overseas, as 482 holders are not exempted from the travel ban currently unless they are a direct family member of an Australian citizen or permanent resident, or are able to get an exemption on compelling/compassionate grounds related to one of the specified areas on the exemption form (ie, essential services, etc - see the DHA form for more info). I don't see an issue with starting the process - however I expect DHA might delay grant of the visa until the travel ban would permit entry.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



easyrimka said:


> Hi Mark, thank you very much for your help and all answers you bring to everybody !
> I have a very small question.
> My company want to sponsor me for an intra company transfer (TSS 482)
> What is the best thing to do with the current situation ? do you think we can start the application process or is it a waste of time ?


----------



## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Paxk -

Great question. Commitment evidence for partner or fiance visas has to do with showing that the couple considers the relationship to be a long-term one, one that they are planning on having for the rest of their lives. A big part of this can be including a paragraph or 2 at the end of your relationship statements about your future plans together in as much detail as you can - ie, where do you plan to live, work, travel, do you plan to have kids, do you plan to buy a house, etc etc. Other good commitment evidence can be evidence of a long-term nature such as life insurance policies, wills, and each party listing the other as their beneficiary for superannuation or retirement fund purposes in the event of their death. Any sort of long term evidence or plans can be helpful in this area.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



paxk said:


> Hi Mark
> 
> Can you please shed some light on what is expected in the write-up for the 2000 characters required for "nature of commitment to each other".


----------



## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Brit_in_aus -

Thanks for the question. They likely won't be able to help her via phone, however she could lodge (on form 424A) a Freedom of Information request for that time period requesting a copy of any application she lodged. Alternatively if the date is required on the form, you could put "01 Jan 1900" which is the "recognised" date that can be entered into a field on some visa applications when a date is required but is not known by the applicant despite best efforts. You might also include a note with the application explaining that she doesn't have the date, if she remembers the year then she could put that in the note, etc.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



Brit_in_aus said:


> Hi Mark! Quick question. My Aussie partner has already sponsored an ex partner. She was from Europe and the relationship ended more than fifteen years ago.
> 
> Because it was so long ago he has forgotten the date he lodged the sponsorship for her. I know we will be asked this information at the application, so just being organised!
> 
> Can he call Home Affairs or IMMI for this info? Thanks for your time! &#128578;


----------



## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Vik-per -

That screen can be confusing - you can only upload 10 files at a time, however you generally have a total of 100 files (see indication at the top) total. Merging PDFs is a good idea - just make sure how you merge them is logical (ie, you could merge all the photos, tickets and evidence from a particular vacation trip into one file) - also note the 5MB size limit - you will make friends with your PDF shrink/compress/optimise software before long!

Note that you get 100 files for the sponsor and 100 files for the applicant, which changes once the sponsor is "approved" midway through the process - at that point you don't get to upload any more for the sponosr, so definitely consider loading up the sponsor section with anything related to the sponsor. Other files are for files you want to submit that do not fall into any of the categories that are available, so feel free to use that as appropriate.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



vik-per said:


> Hi Mark,
> Thank you again for answering my questions so far its greatly appreciated.
> So we paid our fee and it was approved today and now im uploading documents to the immi account. From what i can see a lot of our documents will be in the "relationship" requests and it only accepts 10 files. Can the rest be uploaded onto the sponsors section? )if that makes sense. The "other" documents uploads section at the bottom is that just for documents the CO requests or can more be uploaded there?
> Im thinking i might have to merge some pdf's together cos we have a lot of evidence to attach lol.


----------



## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Shushuk -

Thanks for the note - see my responses below after each question at ***:



Shushuk said:


> Dear Mark
> Thank you so much for offering your knowledge and expertise with us.
> A few questions:
> 
> ...


*** You might show evidence you both contributed to the bills/expenses when you lived together for the 3 months, evidence you paid for gifts or wedding expenses that benefitted both of you, etc

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam


----------



## Brit_in_aus (Apr 1, 2020)

Thank you for such a quick reply, Mark. This was very helpful and reassuring. He remembers his ex's full name, date of birth and the year, so it shouldn't be too difficult for the CO to find it.

He will wrote a note to explain he cannot remember the date exactly due to time passing, but this is all the info he can give to best of his ability.

Cheers again, Mark. You are a diamond for all the time you put into helping people!


----------



## sauzer (Apr 20, 2020)

Thank you for all your help Mark!
What is your personal view about the actual travel ban ? What is your guest about the end date? Do you think they can allow visa holders to enter Australia , and keep tourism banned ?


----------



## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Brit_in_aus -

Thanks for the kind words! Glad I could help, and with the info you said you have, shouldn't be an issue.

Best regards,

Mark Northam



Brit_in_aus said:


> Thank you for such a quick reply, Mark. This was very helpful and reassuring. He remembers his ex's full name, date of birth and the year, so it shouldn't be too difficult for the CO to find it.
> 
> He will wrote a note to explain he cannot remember the date exactly due to time passing, but this is all the info he can give to best of his ability.
> 
> Cheers again, Mark. You are a diamond for all the time you put into helping people!


----------



## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi Sauzer -

Thanks for the note. I hope I'm wrong, but I expect the travel ban will be one of the last government restrictions to be lifted. As to when, I'm guessing sometime towards the end of this year or beginning of next, but that's entirely dependent on a couple of things:

Vaccine - if a vaccine is developed this year, that could hasten the end of the travel ban or lifting of parts of it - people who are vaccinated may be more easily allowed to travel to Australia.

New spike in infections - if the social distancing rules are lifted in Australia and that results in a spike (increase) in cases, that could push back the lifting of the travel ban considerably

Politics - students represent 9% of Australia's gross national product, and a reduction in students will put the education sector under tremendous pressure. This combined with the overall lower infection/severity rate of younger people (no medical evidence here, that's based on news stories, etc) might push the travel ban to open sooner for students.

Overseas situations - if containment is not effective in major countries overseas, that could push the travel ban back.

The NZ "bubble" - given New Zealand's world-leading efforts and success at containing the virus, I'm guessing we might see the travel ban lifted first for NZ residents who have not traveled overseas.

All of this is just guesswork - we'll have to see how things develop over the coming months.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam



sauzer said:


> Thank you for all your help Mark!
> What is your personal view about the actual travel ban ? What is your guest about the end date? Do you think they can allow visa holders to enter Australia , and keep tourism banned ?


----------



## Shushuk (Mar 21, 2020)

MarkNortham said:


> Hi Shushuk -
> 
> Thanks for the note - see my responses below after each question at ***:
> 
> ...


Thank you so much for the info. 
Regarding translating can we translate lettrs and texts we wrote each other ourselves but have legal documents eg. Birth certificates done with a proper translator from my home country


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## grandiax (Apr 8, 2020)

Hello, Mark, I have some questions.It would be grateful if I could get some answers because it has been very stressful since I got the request more info e-mail.

This is my timelines:
March 2016, Met my Australian same sex partner.
July 2017 Visited him in Australia.
March 2018, Started living together.
Aug 2018, Married.
22 Aug 2018, Lodged application online,including police certificate for my partner and no criminal record certificate from my own country. 2 form 888 from family and friend etc.
22 Aug 2018, Completed health check later on same day.
Kept uploading evidences of relationship, photos, holiday tickets,beneficiary of each other's super etc from time to time.
22 Aug 2019, computer generated letter-application is being processed.
Kept uploading evidences of relationship, photos, holiday tickets,beneficiary of each other's super etc from time to time.
18 Feb 2020, Request for more information(Sponsor's police check only and evidence of relationship)
19 Mar 2020, Uploaded sponsor's police check and statements from family and friend and more photos.
31 Mar 2020, computer generated letter-application is being processed.

Application status: further assessment.
Sponsorship status: submitted.

My questions are:
1. My partner is Australin born, never married before, no criminal history, why is the sponsorship still submitted, not approved yet?
2. Before I moved in with my partner,I have many oversea travel history due to work, at least twice a month for the past 15 years, is that going to be a problem?
3.When I received the e-mail from the case officer on 18 Feb, it is from ,e-mail is from vistoria permanent partner processsing centre, not temperary partner processing centre, is that normal?
4. the e-mail said no assessment has been done yet, but the case officer did not ask for my AFP certificate, only aske for my partner's, is that normal too?
5. There is big age gap between me and my partner, is that a problem?
THank you very much for your precious time.
G


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## Boz2112 (Jan 21, 2019)

Hi Mark, 

My wifes visa is being processed in Fiji, we got the request for the medical right before the Virus started to blow up, the medical is cleared according to the account, have you heard of anyone getting a 309/100 grant lately from Fiji? 

Boz


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## ssingh357 (Apr 20, 2020)

Hi mark

Hope you are doing great 

i am applying for my wife subclass 100 visa via immi account. I have submitted the file successfully. When i click on attach document category, it is only asking for photograph-other ( Recommended ) and other documents ( Additional documents ).

i have already called immigration helpline. But it just turn out to be time wastage

how should i submit other documents ( evidence of relation, nature of commitments , financial , social aspects and so on ) ????

when my friend submitted his wife subclass 100 visa in 2017. He said under attach documents, there was full list of documents. He just submitted each document under each category like joint bank account statement under evidence of financial aspects, rent lease under evidence of couple living together, marriage certificate under evidence of marriage and so on.

In my case , it is only showing two category - photograph and additional documents. Any suggestions what should i do ?

Thanks


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## Karrarmohsin (Apr 21, 2020)

Hi
I hope you answer me regarding my visa condition where i have a visa type 489 on 3/11/2019 and it is expired on 3/11/2023 and for first entry it is 3/11/2020 and with the current situation of travel ban it might be impossible to travel to Australia to validate my visa so will the visa be canceled if I couldn't travel to Australia by 3/11/2020 or it still valid until expiry date and i am currently in my home country 
Thanks


----------



## babyshark (Jun 26, 2019)

First of all Mr. Mark, thank you so much for your contribution to this thread. Your answers are all very helpful and what did we do to deserve you?

My partner and I lodged subclass 309 visa in October 2019. We have our commonweath bank joint account together but we're not currently using it and it's only there costing us managing fee. We're looking to close the bank account as we've already submitted necessary documents. Would this be a problem later on?

Thank you so much


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## Salmn669 (Feb 8, 2020)

Hi Mark.
First of all I would like to say thank you to you for constantly replying over people quries.
My question is.
I have applied my 820 visa in December 2019 and currently holding student visa,i am wondering that am I eligible for any welfare amount? i am from Pakistan.


----------



## vik-per (May 27, 2019)

Thank you for your answers Mark! So much appreciated. We have uploaded all documents and submitted . woohoooo! Now the waiting game begins .


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## Brit_in_aus (Apr 1, 2020)

Hi again, Mark! I have stumbled on what could potentially be a problem for me. 

Last year when I applied for my Student 500 visa I did it in a bit of a rush. I have been looking through this application to get information for my upcoming 820 application. 

I answered the question "Have you ever been denied or refused a visa or entry to another country?" as 'no' when it is actually yes. I'll explain.

In 2017 I applied for a Canadian WHV (I am British) and it was rejected because I have one drink driving conviction from 2009. This is my one and only offence on my record. Canada doesn't allow anyone with one drunk drive into the country until ten years after their 'punishment/sentence' ends. So I was refused the visa and told I wouldn't be be eligible to enter Canada until August 2020. I have never tried to enter Canada.

I have never been refused a visa, been deported or overstayed anywhere.

I stupidly forgot all about the Canada application as I did, admittedly, rush and didn't read the application properly. Thankfully all the rest of my 500 visa is correct. Goes without saying on my 820 application I will answer this question as 'yes' and explain about Canada. I never want to deliberately be untruthful.

Australia knows all about my conviction. I have had a Student 500 in 2012 and currently, a WHV in 2014 and an eVisitor in 2019 and I declared it every single time on those applications. All were granted no problem.

I am just so afraid that my 820 will be rejected for me answering a question dishonestly on a previous visa, even accidentally. Really cross at myself right now.

Am I snookered, or can I do anything to fix this? Cheers, Mark!


----------



## bhaby_chiq (Apr 23, 2020)

Hello Mark, Thank you for giving me an oppurtunity to ask you 🙂 My questions are:

1st: Can my Partner's (defacto) visa be granted even if I lived with my Partner before every 3 mos for my previous visa which is TV. I lived with him every 3 mos since 2016 (in and out OZ) until we applied for my Partners Visa. (0ct.6,2018). We were defacto since Dec 2016.

2nd: If I get a Refusal Letter from them and lose the tribunal, can we still apply for another PV?

Thank you so much Mark ! Godbless you


----------



## Anastasia10 (Feb 6, 2020)

Hi Mark,hope you doing good! I wanted to ask you,Me and my husband lodged the prospective marriage visa in december 2019,i went for the Biometrics in February 2020,and now due to covid19 i think they have stopped working on the visa.Our agent is telling me to make an appointment for medical checks,but from the imi office we haven’t heard something for medical check,do you think that i should make an appointment or should i wait for them to ask it? Also do you know if Australian citizens can travel overseas,as i live in Albania,and my husband in Australia? Thank you in advance ☺


----------



## Treloar (Apr 24, 2020)

Hi Mark, thanks so much for offering to help answer questions! I have what are probably very basic questions but I'm finding it all overwhelming and I'm anxious not to interpret things incorrectly.

I am the sponsor and am an Australian who is living in the UK and have done so for the last 20 years. My husband and I have been together over 10 years and we have a house, mortgage, 2 young kids etc

1. My husband (the applicant) is the main earner. Does the fact I am currently at home with the kids count against us as I am technically his sponsor? We have financial assets which we would utilise to help relocate. 

2. on the form do we put that I am migrating with him? Or is it just him that is technically migrating even though we would be moving there together? Our kids have already got citizenship by descent so would they be classed as migrating or not?. 

3. Do the applicant and sponsor's written statements need to be witnessed and signed? I've seen that some couples just self-sign plain word documents (not legal Statutory Declarations) with no witness and have still been approved. Would this be acceptable especially given covid-19 is preventing us from getting near anyone to witness our documents?

4. As a result of covid-19 we didn't get a chance to sort all our documents after lodging our application so we are a little behind in uploading everything. Is it possible that our application will be rejected prematurely because not everything is up there yet? Its been about 6 weeks since we lodged the application.

Thank you so much if you can shed any light on the above!


----------



## canaususa (Apr 24, 2020)

Hi Mark,

I have a 309 visa, and recently got the notice that I can apply for the 100. As my Australian husband's work circumstances have changed, we are currently living in the US (I am Canadian). I am wondering how long I can continue to hold the 309 visa if I don't submit my 100 application? My understanding is I will be given a certain (~1 year) period to enter Aus once the 100 is granted, and can travel freely for 5 years after I enter. I am worried that with all the Covid-19 things happening, I won't be able to return to Australia, and am nervous about the timing of things!

As well, will the fact that I am in the US affect the decision?

Brand new to this forum, so I hope I am writing this in the correct space! Also thank you for being so lovely and answering so many questions for people!

Thanks!!


----------



## alsarge (Apr 25, 2020)

Renouncing Australian citizenship

Hi Mark,

Was wondering if you or any members here have any experience with renouncing Australian citizenship. I am a single mother and have been living in Germany for the past 7 years in Germany. I have sent my application for myself and my kids to renounce citizenship and paid a hefty 615$ to do so.

Does anyone know how long this process takes? Are there any complications that I should know about? We are dual British citizens already but now we're doing this (renouncing Australian citizenship) as it is the last step we need to do before becoming German citizens.

Any information would be greatly appreciated!

Anna-Lisa


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## Salmn669 (Feb 8, 2020)

Anastasia10 said:


> Hi Mark,hope you doing good! I wanted to ask you,Me and my husband lodged the prospective marriage visa in december 2019,i went for the Biometrics in February 2020,and now due to covid19 i think they have stopped working on the visa.Our agent is telling me to make an appointment for medical checks,but from the imi office we haven't heard something for medical check,do you think that i should make an appointment or should i wait for them to ask it? Also do you know if Australian citizens can travel overseas,as i live in Albania,and my husband in Australia? Thank you in advance ☺


Hi. 
Your lodgment of application is similar to mine.i lodge my application in Dec2019.
Can you tell me that either you been asked by DHA for biomatric or you just did?
Thanks


----------



## vevocheck (Apr 27, 2020)

*Answered from MARA in private


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## Lewis2017 (Jan 12, 2017)

vevocheck said:


> In the weeks following immediately after lodgement, we uploaded 5x 888s, utilities notices from March-June 2019, BDM Registration in July 2019,


You registered your defacto relationship after your application date? I would probably consult a migration agent ASAP


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## vevocheck (Apr 27, 2020)

Lewis2017 said:


> You registered your defacto relationship after your application date? I would probably consult a migration agent ASAP


Thanks for your input.

_"Migration Regulation 2.03A(5) provides that r.2.03A(3) does not apply if the de facto relationship is a relationship that is registered under a law of an Australian State or Territory government.

Notably, there is no requirement in the Migration Regulations for the registration of the relationship to have taken place prior to the date of the visa application.

The registration of a relationship can satisfy r.2.03A(5) if it takes place at any time up until the time of decision, as long as it continues at that time.

The Immigration Department's policy states the following in relation to Regulation 2.03A -

Unlike regulation.2.03A(3) which explicitly requires the 12 month relationship criterion to be met at the time of visa application, regulation 2.03A(5) is silent on when the relationship must be registered. As such, an applicant who registers their de facto relationship after the application is made but before it is decided is taken to have met regulation 2.03A(5).

So, it is best to register your relationship as soon as possible, if you need to register your relationship."_


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## JandE (Jul 17, 2015)

Lewis2017 said:


> You registered your defacto relationship after your application date? I would probably consult a migration agent ASAP


To be fair. This particular thread is specifically for Mark, a registered migration agent, to answer.

Effectively a free consultation with a migration agent.


----------



## Arya111 (Apr 28, 2020)

Hey there ,
I have come to Melbourne in March 2018 on 489 family sponsored visa. Now I have completed my 2 years here and have worked on 3 full time jobs. I worked in permanent roles. Now I would like to apply for 887 visa. When I consulted my agent, he said there is a problem with the payslips. Apparently I have taken some sick leave in certain weeks and those won’t be calculated . But those are all full time works and they have paid me the salary since sick leaves should be paid. Will that affect my 52 weeks? Those weeks with paid sick leaves won’t be calculated?


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## Bcky12 (Apr 28, 2020)

Hi Mark! 

My husband and I have submitted our 309/100 application on 27/4/2020. I am currently based in Malaysia and he is a PR in Australia. 
I have received the email requesting for biometric check and health assessment. However, with the current COVID19 situation, Malaysia is currently on a movement restriction order and I am unable to process any of the above within 28 days - VFS office not open, hospital not doing health assessments. 

1) Do I need to upload a document/declaration onto immiaccount informing them of this or email them? Where should I upload it? If by email, whom do I email to? 

2) other documents have already been prepared, such as form 888, proof of communication, etc - should I proceed with uploading these anyway for the time being? 

Thank you for doing this! Hope you are keeping well.


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## Sal_Chan (Feb 23, 2020)

MarkNortham said:


> Hi Vik-per -
> 
> That screen can be confusing - you can only upload 10 files at a time, however you generally have a total of 100 files (see indication at the top) total. Merging PDFs is a good idea - just make sure how you merge them is logical (ie, you could merge all the photos, tickets and evidence from a particular vacation trip into one file) - also note the 5MB size limit - you will make friends with your PDF shrink/compress/optimise software before long!
> 
> ...


Hi what do you mean half way through the sponsor gets approved? I am a sponsor and have uploaded everything I need to also my police clearance. Is there something else I need to do as sponsor ?


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## Ausinaija (Jan 28, 2019)

German police check: Hi Mark, 
Just wondering if you might be able to help me. My fiancé and I have applied for PMV 300 on 19 April 2018. He had been requested to provide an updated Police check from when he was in Germany, now in Nigeria. When we applied for the police check everything was still open and we managed to post all information according to the requirements on their website in the end of February with our lawyer. All contact information they provided is not going through and we have not received the police check back. 
Is it possible that the immigration can process our application without this last piece of requested information?

Cheers


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## raindrop94 (Apr 30, 2020)

*Visitor 600*

Hello Mark! 
I am currently in Australia and due to the situation not able to go home. I came here with Student Visa, then applied for Visitor 600 and suppose to leave. Now my visa is coming to an end and wanted to ask if I really need to pay $1065 for another visa 600? Can I apply for Bridging Visa E and hope to leave in next 28 days? What is best to do? They should not charge that much as it is not visitors fault they have to stay here. Shame they did not follow New Zealand. Looking forward for your reply. Thank you!


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## AndrewTruong (Sep 7, 2015)

Mi Mark !
First of all, thanks for your time and much appreciated .
My question is i currently having an Interim Intervention Order for Personal Safety ( IVO) against me from my former employer Which is due to face court in 3 months for final decision ( court may decide to have final order - withdraw or undertalking ).

My question is : 

Do i have to declare it in my citizenship application because it is civil matter or i have not been charged by police or found guitly by court ?

Thank you very much in advance
Daniel


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## erillant (Apr 30, 2020)

Hi Mark,

Thanks for answering everyone's questions!
I tried posting before, but as a new member have no idea what I was doing & the post seems to have disappeared! So I apologise if this comes up twice!
I have noticed that in a few of your replies, you are against front loading applications, but just wanted to pick your brain irregardless to see if you may think differently in different circumstances.
So our circumstance is this: We have lodged my partner's 820 Visa Application 2 days ago, We have uploaded all evidence & necessary paperwork already, the only things we haven't done as yet is the health check. We have even ordered our AFP & ACRO police checks (although haven't received them yet, but did upload evidence of applying for them).
The reason we are thinking of front loading is because I am currently pregnant with both our first child & am worried that once that child gets here, we will be too sleep deprived & busy to organise anything else. My partner is also from the UK, which from my understanding is considered a very 'low risk' country. We are both quite young & as such also have a lot of life to give in Australia as contributing citizens.
The only thing stopping us from getting the health check at the moment is the cost (& the fact that bookings don't reopen till tomorrow), as first time parents, the health check is quite expensive, so we don't want to pay for it twice if it could be avoided; but at the same time, we'd be willing to risk it a little if there is a chance that our CO may approve us quickly. (Ps. My partner doesn't drive & once bub is born late July, Early August; chances are we won't be able to travel easily for the first few months to go to Sydney to visit a BUPA clinic, so I'm worried if we don't do it now, we may not have a chance to do it till at least October 2019). Or am I being too overly optimistic & should just settle in & accept we may be in for a long 29 month wait?
Cheers & Thanks for your input!


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## Jenny10 (Apr 17, 2020)

Hi Mark. Hope you well. I would like to ask you about my PR 801 case. I start my application since 2015, i got 820 granted on 7/2017 and applied for PR 801 on 9/2017. And I still wait for til now. I have call immigration department to ask about my case. She said its processing. I would like to ask whether my case is assessed or not? I dont know what I can do to get 801 approved quicker. Can you please give me some advices? Thank you so much


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## ausway (May 6, 2020)

*sponsor upload file*

Hi Mark,

on previous post, you advised that: "Note that you get 100 files for the sponsor and 100 files for the applicant, which changes once the sponsor is "approved" midway through the process - at that point you don't get to upload any more for the sponsor, so definitely consider..."

Should I submit AFP police check for sponsor asap or wait until DHA asks police certificates as they expire 12 months from the date of issue?

thank you


----------



## alsarge (Apr 25, 2020)

SEARCH IN THE CURRENT
AND SHOW ME
Load Previous
alsarge
Junior Member
Join: Apr 2020
Posts: 2

Apr 25, 2020 · #121
Renouncing Australian citizenship

Hi Mark,

Was wondering if you or any members here have any experience with renouncing Australian citizenship. I am a single mother and have been living in Germany for the past 7 years in Germany. I have sent my application for myself and my kids to renounce citizenship and paid a hefty 615$ to do so.

Does anyone know how long this process takes? Are there any complications that I should know about? We are dual British citizens already but now we're doing this (renouncing Australian citizenship) as it is the last step we need to do before becoming German citizens.

Any information would be greatly appreciated!

Anna-Lisa


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## NTAu (Jan 6, 2019)

Hi Mark, 

I am a secondary school teacher working full-time on 489 visa. I'm starting to gather evidence for 887 visa application. 

My questions: 
- Although I'm working at 1.0 full-time ordinary hours (as indicated in my employment contract; employer can provide employment reference letter for this), my working hours is listed as 32hrs/week in my payslips. 
May I know if this would still satisfy the 887 visa work requirement? 

- I'm actually living in my friend's house as a house carer, free of rent. No rental agreement etc. Will a statutory declaration from my friend, insurance bills, bank statements, and mobile phone bills suffice as residence evidence? 

Looking forward to your reply. 

NTAu


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## annrobert (May 30, 2020)

Hi Mark, I'm just new here, and I just want to ask if it is okay to apply PMV 300 online despite of the pandemic? Would the embassy/immigration accept my application if I will apply? Thanks


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## aussiebloke (Jul 27, 2018)

Hi Mark

My wife's partner visa has been granted this year and now a citizenship which is a relief but now it is my friend's turn who want to sponsor his wife to Australia. I know first thing she needs to do is apply ETA first before applying Partner visa 820 but it seems like it cannot be done due to the outbreak travel restriction?
https://www.eta.homeaffairs.gov.au/ETAS3/etas

Any thoughts?
When you choose apply and country, it states:

Important notice
Strict travel restrictions are in place for all countries due to COVID-19. You should not apply for any visa until checking the latest information.

Does it mean that she cannot travel to Australia now?
Or she has to apply for exemption?
Even so, is it likely that due to the current status, most likely it will imposed the No Further Stay restriction as well?


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## Ramsus (May 31, 2020)

Hi Mark.
We are a family of 3 from Tunisia.
I am interested in immigrating to Australia to leave there and we dont know or how the Visa to apply .
we do not found where to start.
Ps: we have all the necessary skills.
Thanks in advance.


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## irti3 (Feb 17, 2019)

Hi Mark,

My wife and i have applied for subclass 489 visa on April 23rd 2019. We had one contact from CO back in October 2019 asking for my wife’s recent payslips.It has been excruciatingly painful waiting all these months to get some sort of reply.Although Australian immigration has informed everyone not to make any future decisions until there is an outcome but we are living in limbo.
I am aware COVID-19 hasn’t ended yet but does this lengthy process has got something to do with us applying from a high risk country.We are applying from Pakistan and your response will be highly appreciated Mark !


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## Aliki (May 24, 2020)

Hello Mark
I applied for partner visa 309 on 21 of March 2019.
My wife is from Morocco and our case is in Australian embassy in Cairo.
We submitted almost all the required documents, such as photos, mariage certificate, tickets airline, western union receipt, whats app chat...
We got two RFI one on October 2019 and other on February 2020.
They asked on the last one for police clearance, statutory declaration for my wife and some questions on form 80.
We asked for an expedite on March for the visa but we received an email from Australian embassy in Cairo and they said that the visas are suspended Due to the Covid-19.
Last week we sent an email to them and asked when the visas will be on process again and they said that a small number of cases will be on processed but they didn't mention my case are included or not.
My question is : is it true that Cairo visas processing has been transferred to Onshore processing office due to the local lockdown? They reduced the processing time from 21 to 17 months, do we have the right to talk to them if they didn't grant my wife visa after the 17 months?



MarkNortham said:


> Hi All -
> 
> I'm very excited to be back on the Australia Forum after some time away - it's such a fantastic and friendly community here. I wanted to announce a new 2020 edition of my Ask Mark! thread which I've hosted previously here for some time - as before, happy to do my best to provide information to anyone about Australian migraiton. A few notes:
> 
> ...


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## Vanessababa1 (Jun 3, 2020)

*Citizenship by Descent*

Hi Mark,

I hope you are well? and thank you for all of your help and advice.

In March 2020 from the UK, I applied for Citizenship by Descent (my father was born in Adelaide and has an Australian birth certificate). On my Immi Account it is showing as "Received" but nothing else, would you know roughly how long these types of visa's are taking to be processed?

Also, if I may ask when I become a Citizen would the process be quicker for a Child 101 visa? I think normally can take up to 14 months but if we were to make the move, whould it be better to apply for a tourist visa then apply onshore?

Many thanks & take care


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## daredevil (Jan 26, 2020)

Hi, I am a professional in Australia and like a pharmacist. As a sponsor, can I also be a notary witness for the applicant?


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## daredevil (Jan 26, 2020)

MarkNortham said:


> Hi Achmat -
> 
> Thanks for the note. Under the current legislation there is no specific income or asset test for partner visa sponsors, however you must be able to show that you "would be able" to financially support your partner for the first 2 years after they are granted a visa. Often payslips from previous work (if you are not employed currently) or current employment info, resume, etc can be helpful here.
> 
> ...


Hi Mark, you have been a great help in answering questions here and there. Further to the evidences provided, which documents like joint account, pay slips need to be sighted by JPs as true copies of the originals to be submitted to DHA?


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## daredevil (Jan 26, 2020)

Hi Mark,

Just a simple question, In overseas, who are the notary public that is recognised to signed or certified documents?

Thank you


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## deck11 (May 17, 2020)

*462 visa*

Hi Mark,

Appreciate you taking the time to answer questions.

Just wondering if you have any insight on 462 visa approvals at the moment. I am an Australian returning from the US due to a change in work and am looking at options to bring my American partner back also. We are getting married before the move but would like to have some experience living in Aus together before moving forward with a permanent resident visa.

Our other thought was the visitor 600 visa - how do they determine the length of stay? Is a 3 month 600 visa any different than an ETA? She currently has an active ETA which we could fall back on.

Thank you!


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## Christianb (Jun 4, 2020)

*38 months after my application*

Hi Mark, thanks for all your help in this forum. What a wonderful initiative. I am Sorry to bother you with my case but I feel like a need a bit of help with my application.

I'm Colombian and my partner is Australian. We PAPER lodged our application more than 3 years ago and we haven't received any other email, letter or call about our process so I am still in Bridging A and No medical examinations have been requested or 820 have been granted yet. Here is my time line:

April 2016: relationship started with my Australian partner
Sept 2016: started living together
March 2017: our relationship was registered and Bridging Visa A granted 
April 2017: we applied for our visa subclass 820/801
Jan 2019: Bridging Visa B granted for 3 months to go to Col
June 2019: Bridging Vida B approved for 1 year to go to Vietnam. It will expire next month

Could you please advise me in how to proceed. I have written several emails and responses from [email protected] are always an automatic response with no more than links and links that take me to the same spot, waiting longer or the online immi account. Whike trying to do it there it doesn't allowed me with an error that says I'm not entitled yet to do it and/or my paper lodged application can't be processed online.

Thank you for your time and any idea or suggestion is greatly appreciated.
Cheers


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## apurvwalia (Mar 28, 2020)

Hi Mark, 
Found the answer so deleting this


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## John Clip (Jul 21, 2016)

Hi, Question removed as I found the answer & Marks time is important.


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## Motunrayo (Jun 23, 2020)

Hello mark
Thanks for your time, am on pmv my fiancee is Australia citizen, we are dating for more than 4year, but he break up with me of recent, if I still grant the visa, can I still travel to Australia or I should just forget the visa, thanks


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## Hannah404 (Oct 18, 2018)

Hi mark! I really appreciate your help on this forum. I'm currently in Australia on a subclass 476 and my visa is due to expire in a month and a half. The situation back home is really bad in terms of the pandemic. I am currently working in the food industry. 
What are my chances of getting the temporary activity visa and will my case have chances of being accepted?


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## Salmn669 (Feb 8, 2020)

Hi Mark.
"Posting this Post on behalf of someone"
This lady who just came back from overseas(Pakistan) after 2 years which her husband didnt want her to come here but she came in Australia anyway and she holds Permanent residency which she got in 2016 along with her husband and from 2016 until 2020 she did only 3 visits and the longest visit was in 2018 which was for 4months only.Now from 2018 until 3 weeks ago her husband didn't contact her through any sort which made her broken so she came back to Australia for finding out that what's actually happening and after arriving here she went to her husband place which he Is renting but she been kicked out by her husband without any reason(she said from my husband behaviour it feels like he doesn't want relationship anymore) She is not living with her husband and she have a plan to stay here.
Now my questions are
1. How she can monitor her martial status?
2. What benefits she can have from her husband(they don't have any kids)
3. For separation do both have to fill any form or report immigration about not living together even though you both are in same city?
4. Any Possiblilty that her husband divorced her already which she doesn't know cause she was in overseas and wasnt get in contact with husband.
Kindly need advise.


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## KarenP (Mar 14, 2019)

*Ask Mark! New 2020*

Hi Mark,
Is the department still processing TSS 482 visas at the moment due to the high unemployment rate in Australia at the moment? 
Thanks


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## JMM (Apr 2, 2020)

Hi Mark,

I wanted to get some advice on the location change for the 417 visa.

As we all know, the 417 visa comes with a 6 month work limitation (8457) for the same employer.

I was reading that you do not need to notify the department and can work with one employer for up to 12 months as long as work in one location does not exceed 6 months.

Therefore, if you worked for an organisation that had multiple offices in a city, you could re-set the 6 month limitation by moving to another office?

For example, if you worked for an organisation in Perth and spent 6 months in one office and then moved to another office with a different address (which was in another suburb also in Perth), you could work for that same company for up to 12 months?

Many thanks,
Matt


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## Aeai13 (Jul 9, 2020)

Hi Mark, I am messaging on behalf of my friend. She applied for 820/801 partner visa, but then she had abusive threat from her husband when she was pregnant. Her husband is the one who offered her to sponsor the visa after married. They married for almost 1 year and he has changed since her wife got pregnant, he betrayed her and did so many abusive threat which made my friend worry about herself and her pregnancy. She decided return to her country to give a birth there to get support from her family. I am looking for some informations for her:

She is now with BVB and her visa nearly expired, she want return to Australia with her baby, she has a good career here as Early childcare educator. But, the travel restriction makes her plan to come back before her BVB expired will be impossible.

If she apply for 600 visitor visa with her baby, is it possible for her to reinstate her Bridging Visa and continue her partner visa? As I read from some information that her circumstance for DV and has child from their marriage, she might can get the visa granted.

Before she left Australia, she reported all the DV that she got from her husband, she had all the evidences.

She already reported to the Immigration regarding her relationship breakdown and Immi asked her to write down her information about it with time frame 28 days. Since the Covid19 kicked in, she has no response anymore from Immi.

I am really appreciate if you can give all the information about what to do next on her situation. Thank you in advance.


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## Rapha17 (Jul 12, 2020)

*Skill Assessment Documentation*

Hi Mark,

Appreciate that you are opening up this thread for us who are seeking advice.

Situation : Application of Skills Assessment for 190 Visa in Engineers Australia.

Question 1: Should I choose the purely Qualifications Assessment, or both Qualifications Assessment + Relevant Skilled Employment Assessment?

Question 2: What supporting documentation are the minimum requirement for the Relevant Skilled Employment Assessment?

Grateful for any reply or kind of advice.

Rapha


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## Abedin (Sep 5, 2014)

*Tourist Visa Re-apply COVID19*

Hi Mark,
Great to see you are back as you helped me a lot with your expertise during my PR application back in 2013.Hope to get your insights once again.

This is regarding reapplying my Parents Tourist visa (Passport: Bangladesh). They are also waiting on offshore 173 visa applied on OCT 2016.

1. Arrived: 4 Oct 2019 (6 months stay)
2. Applied onshore tourist visa on March 2020 - as border restrictions came into effect
3. Granted on May and Stay granted until 4 Oct 2020 (12 cons months)

Current Visa conditions: No work and Max 3 months Travel

Although they do not have any other conditions, I believe they were granted only 5 months visa and until 4 Oct because of the condition - maximum CONSECUTIVE stay of 12 months in Australia.

Now, with the restrictions and sever covid situation do I reapply:

1. Tourist Visa - (pay onshore fees+subsequent TAC) what are the chances of getting approved as their stay will be beyond 12 consecutive months?

Or, 2. Apply Covid 408 visa (no cost)- as this is the last resort visa if the chances of getting tourist visa is low.

Thanks in advance for your great help.

Regards,
Abedin


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## ellie.198 (Jul 29, 2020)

*onshore 482 app*

Hi Mark!

Firstly, thank you for giving up your time to answer our questions.

I did start a new thread with my question, but chances are you'll probably be the best person to give me advice (hopefully!)

From my thread;

I'm wondering if anyone has been in the same position and could offer me advice on where I stand.

So, a little background, I am currently employed with the business who wishes to sponsor me for a 482 visa (currently on a 417 working holiday visa, expires October 2020) for a Short-Term TTS. We have completed the SBS application and it has been received by immigration. Job adverts are out for labour market testing etc. so that ball is rolling. I'm now in process of getting everything together for what I need submit the nomination/application. I've seen noted on multiple agency sites that the SBS, nomination and application can all be submitted together. Obviously, we need to complete LMT, but am I correct in assuming that once the 28 days has elapsed, I can submit nomination/application if the SBS is still pending approval? The current processing time is 62-79 days, which takes me dangerously close to the end of my visa.

My ANZSCO code indicates I do not need a skills assessment.
My issue is that, although I have the required minimum 3 years work experience (no degree, unfortunately), the company I gained the most experience from has liquidated and I have no way of contacting my manager to be a referee as they do not use social media. I mean, I can go down the route of contacting people I knew she was friendly with when I worked with her, in hopes they have contact information and are willing to pass it along, but its been over two years now, so I'm not sure that's a viable option.

I know I could submit a statutory declaration, but if I go this route, what evidence is best to submit with it? All my tax return and end of year statement paperwork is buried somewhere in my mothers loft (or my partners dads, I can't remember!), I have access to HMRC's my Gov PAYE information where it shows where I was employed and my income information, but I cannot create a downloadable report for this, would screenshots suffice? Likewise for payslips, since the company is liquidated, I cant contact HR and the online portal they used to distribute payslips has since been deactivated. I could kick myself for not downloading everything when I had the chance!

I feel like I'm between a rock and a hard place, all the evidence and information I'm claiming is genuine, but I think I'll have a hard time proving it. I'm just apprehensive to allow my employer to spend thousands of dollars if the risk is too great.

Does anyone know is immigration accepts screen shots or would even accept such wishy-washy information?

Any advice is greatly appreciated! Apologies for the sheer volume of information!!

thank you


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## alicevisahell (Jul 29, 2020)

*Partner secretly kept visa*

Hi Mark,

I applied for a partner visa with my partner at the time in 2018. By 2019 it had not been granted. He had worked all over the world and so we had to get police checks for each country. He was getting angry with all the papers needed so I tried to get them all for him, contacting his old employers and paying chinese agents for paper work for when he worked in China.

Finally he said that he wanted to be with other people until the visa came through. I was heartbroken but I had hoped that the visa would be granted before he could act on this. Then I found out that he had been using all the documents I had been getting so he could apply for a 2 year working visa in Canada. So I broke it off with him but I told him to cancel the visa as I had done so much. He said he would.

I later found out he didn't cancel the visa, it was granted and he didn't tell me and he was using it as a backup for if his canadian one didn't go through. I confronted him and he made up some silly excuse about it being too hard.

He said he was going to canada anyway and that he had to be in Australia by 5 July 2020 for it to be valid. But the other day a friend was asking what would stop him coming in on the visa anyway and I wasn't worried as that date has passed and I know he is still in Canada.

But when I logged in to our immi account even though it says first entry must be before 5 July 2020 it doesn't expire until 2024.

I called immi today and they can't tell me anything he has done on his end. I wish I had cancelled the visa myself before it was granted but I was heartbroken and was hoping pathetically that he would change his mind.

I want to withdraw my sponsorship but I can't see how? I don't want him entering the country on my sweat and so many tears. But I can't upload anything to our immi account.

What can I do?


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## Jaskm26 (Aug 27, 2018)

Hi Mark. 
Hope you are well during this time.
Looking for some advise regarding a dependant child 445 visa.
Looking to complete a 445 visa, however my wife's child is currently offshore. I believe we must apply via VFS in Jakarta however due to COVID the office is currently closed, would you know if we can forward an application to the Perth DHA office or would we be best to wait until VFS re-opens or is there another way we should be approaching this?
My wife was approved for her 820 partner visa Tuesday this week.
Any information you can provide is greatly appreciated.
Thanks Jason


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## Mimi2018 (Jun 14, 2019)

Hi Mark

Holders of Prospective Marriage Visas are not being granted travel exemptions at this time and as such may not be able to abide by the enter by date visa condition. As there a reprieve from immigration to alter the enter by date or one would have to reapply for a new visa when that happens.


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## MaryM11 (Aug 7, 2020)

Hi Mark,

I am in need of some advice regarding PMV 300

My fiance and I are in the process of applying for the PMV 300.
We are stressing about whether now is a good time to apply for it, due to the lockdown but we also want to make the most of this time and rather use it to wait for the visa.

He is still in Aus and I had to come back to South Africa (SA) and we haven't seen each other in almost 5 months now.

I have a few questions and would really appreciate it if someone could help us get clarity on a few things.

Due to the lockdown in Aus and SA, he is not able to get the Stat Decs signed and I also have to do a health and police check.
How soon after submitting the application and paying the money do we need to add all the documents? We have all the photos, Whatsapp/call logs ready, but not the stat decs, police checks, or health checks.

I also read online that Aus might be planning to open for Jan 2021 - June 2021 (not sure if how true this is) but I am scared that if we apply now, and 12 months from now borders close again and then we get the grant - would we be able to apply for an exemption? (I read a few sad stories of couples getting their exemptions denied and their visa time running out and about to lose the money and visa)

Any advice would be highly appreciated as this is such a big step and with so much uncertainty, any clarity would be really great.

Thank you so much in advance.


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## Umbreon (Nov 27, 2016)

Hi Mark,

Thanks for doing this thread again, I know it's helped a lot of people in the past!

I wanted to ask a couple of questions about my partner visa (on shore) application:
I applied in Feb 2020 and immediately (literally straight away) it flagged that I should get health checks. I ignored this as I figured it would take ages to get a case officer etc and I didn't want it to time out, with the departments website even saying you should wait until near the end of the average processing time, but now, 6months on, with it still stuck on 'received' with the action required flag, I wondered if I should get my health checks done? I haven't received any info from the department and my application's last update is 'payment received'. Really don't want to waste $500 on health checks if I'll need a new set next year. 

Also when I generated my referral letter for a medical exam through immi it says my Visa is an 801 Spouse Permanent. Does this mean I would be heading for an immediate permanent visa rather than doing the 820 - 2 years - 801 route, or do all 820s just take an 801 medical exam? Don't want to get my hopes up but that would be marvelous!

Thanks for any help!


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## smemon (Sep 25, 2020)

*Help in deciding the right visa; carer visa or visit visa*



MarkNortham said:


> Hi All -
> 
> I'm very excited to be back on the Australia Forum after some time away - it's such a fantastic and friendly community here. I wanted to announce a new 2020 edition of my Ask Mark! thread which I've hosted previously here for some time - as before, happy to do my best to provide information to anyone about Australian migraiton. A few notes:
> 
> ...


Hi Mark,

I hope you are doing well. Thanks for providing your valuable time in guiding the community over here. I have couple of questions and would appreciate your help in this regard.

My 11 months daughter is unfortunately suffering from one of the rare neurological disorder which impact her overall development. She practically needs support and care for it 24/7. We have another daughter 2 and half year old who is growing and obviously need attention all the time. Its really challenging for mum to look after both the babies at the same time. I am doing full time doctorate studies and part-time driving to support the family so its very difficult to me to be with my daughter for caring purposes all the time.

We fortunately have my parents here at the moment on visit visa. They came to visit us on the birth of my daughter and are living with us from that time. Their presence and support is what has helped us so far in managing our daughter successfully. Unfortunately, their visit visa is expiring this month. They dont have any 'No further stay condition' and now I have to decide which visa will be best for them.

I came across this carer visa recently. I personally think, we fulfill the criteria. But going through this forum and internet, it seems this visa is very complicated. I have already gone through the BUPA assessment for my daughter who have issued a positive certificate in our favour. *However, there is another important point for this visa which is if we have sought the support in Australia and why the care requirements can not be met in Australia* Thats where I would appreciate if you can share your thoughts with me.

My understanding is as my daughter has high care needs and require support 24/7 for a longer period of time (as supported by BUPA as well), its literally impossible for any organisation to provide at-home support for such a long duration. The support organisations are able to provide respite for few hours a week but not more than that. and to hire a personal carer will be too expensive. These sort of care requirements can only be met by someone from the family and hence I would like to sponsor my mother for this purpose. She is already caring for my daughter for last 11 months and is well aware of her illness and the her caring requirements.

*Considering the above scenario, what do you think of our carer visa application? Is it strong enough to be launched or you will prefer a normal visit visa instead?

Is my understanding above of why the care requirements can not be met in Australia correct? Will a letter from my social worker from hospital stating these facts will be a good enough evidence or will I need other evidences to support it?

What I am worried about is the risk that their application is rejected straight away and I even lose the opportunity to launch their visit visa. If their carer visa application is rejected, it means they will have to return back home immediately which will be a disaster for us as we really need their support. So, I am really keen to know if the case is strong enough to have atleast BVA granted for some time.

Also, in case if their application is rejected and we go to the tribunal which is also rejected and they have to go back to the home country. Will it have any impact on their future visit visa applications? So far their record is 100%, they have been granted visit visa every time they have applied and have always met the visa requirements. Will the rejection of this visa, put them in a black list and reduce their chances of getting a visit visa in the future.*

Sorry for the long post but I will appreciate if you can share your valuable experience with me in this regard.

Thanks


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## Vijaysandy (Apr 29, 2019)

Hi Mark i ask couple time but haven't recieved any response from you I have applied 820/801 visa in June 2017 still waiting for approval 820 what could be the reason behind delay I m from India i have upload all the updated documents time to time its very painful time we going through. Can you please tell us about your experience


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## Salmn669 (Feb 8, 2020)

Hi Mark! 

Firstly I would like to say this platform is really helpfull to get sorted partner visa related issues.

Now my question is related to police clearance. 
My partner who is Australian received her Police clearance recently and I sent to my Agent for uploading on file but my agent refused to do it because this police clearance says "Partial Disclosure" but FPC states that no any offence recorded in Federal, State and in any territories.
And applying again is waste of money. 

Now I would like to know that this police clearance is not the right one? Also if agent Upload this than it can effect on my partner application in negative way? 

Thanks.


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## Aus21 (Oct 6, 2020)

Hello Mark,
I'm a permanent resident, I won't apply for a citizenship because Germany won't allow me to have dual citizenship (I have the german and another citizenship already)

Can I live indefinitely in Australia without ever applying for a citizenship and apply for a Resident Return visa (RRV) every time I want to travel?


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## sexy_chef (Oct 6, 2020)

Hello Mark i'm just new here in the forum and i wanted to ask if possible for me to apply for a tourist visa subclass 600 because i wanted to visit my husband.


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## Aus21 (Oct 6, 2020)

Hello Mark,
I received the permanent residency trough a partner visa 2 years ago, since then I broke up with my partner who sponsored me.
I want to apply for the citizenship, would it be an issue that I'm not longer with the person who sponsored me in order to obtained the citizenship?
I've been living in Aus for the past 6 years, and I've been a permanent resident for the past 2.

Regards


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## Manchester (Jul 19, 2020)

Hey Mark 

I am trying to send you a private message it isn't going through. 

Presently I am working on lodging an onshore partner visa but there's is need to meet schedule 3 criteria. Can you send me your contact let's discuss in private.

Thanks.


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## Ibadat (Dec 14, 2020)

Hi mark we applied 309 offshore in feb 2020 and last month we applied tourist visa twice and its rejected both time just want to know that refusal is going to make a bad effect on my 309 visa or not and we have a newborn baby also from this marriage. 
Thank you


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## maskii2018 (Jun 10, 2018)

Hi Mark! 

Thank you for taking out time to answer questions.

My fiance moved to Australia for studies in Feb 2020 and her student visa expires in March 2020. I asked her to marry me after her move here. We had a long distance relationship and when she moved to Melbourne, I was in Tasmania finishing my course but was unable to visit her during holidays (as planned) due to covid related border closures. My course ended in July and finally in Dec I was able to go to Melbourne and stay with her after state borders opened. I am on her lease in Melbourne. We plan to get married in Jan 2021 and apply for the partner visa in Feb 2021. We have already registered our relationship with Births Deaths and marriages Gov. When I visited her in Dec we took a lot of pictures and hung out with friends. We dont have pics from before that. We have a joint account and I have been putting in money every month for her rent and living expenses since she moved to Melbourne. We are doing a registry style wedding as due to covid all my savings have been used up and I was on job keepers till Nov. I only have one friend in Melbourne as I am mostly on ship for work, and so does she, because she has been under lock down since she moved there. We will also not be able to move into our own place till May, hoping for a promotion and raise by then to be able to afford our own rental.

-I would like to know will not being able to meet her from Feb till Nov due to covid be counted as a negative thing in our situation? 
-Do you think our case is strong or weak?
-Any advice on how to make our case stronger?
-Also, what are the timelines for getting the TR and PR these days.

Thank You,

Ali Masky


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## StaceyManchester (Dec 8, 2020)

Hi Mark,
I am in England with my 5 year old daughter. My fiance is in Australia where he works as a fifo worker. He has duel citizenship for australia and UK. He was born in England but has been living in Australia for ten years.

We went to high school together and we began a long distance relationship and have been together for almost 2 years visiting each other. My daughter calls him daddy andbhe classes her as his daughter. Covid and the travel ban has been a nightmare for us. We class ourselves as family but had to apply for 300 visa as we did not have evidence for partner visa.
We are three months into our wait now. The time apart us terrible. Is there anything we can do to be together? Are they currently processing my visa type from the UK at the moment. I am hoping once its granted to apply for exsemption. We have wills in each others names im named on his pension and life insurance and we transfer money to each other send gifts video call daily. 

I am aware that he can apply to leave to the UK for 3 months or longer but we are in the process of having our home built in Oz and that would mean him taking alot of time off work to be with us. He is planning to do this once hes saved uo enough money hooefully March but this is a huge financial strain on us as a family. 

We are at a bit of a loss and the wait time is unclear. Are you able to give and help/ guidence on how we can be together? Or how long wevare likely to wait for this visa and ifbgranted our chances on an exsemption? 

Thank you for your time any help greatly appreciated,

Stacey.


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## paulhand (Apr 15, 2017)

StaceyManchester said:


> Hi Mark,
> I am in England with my 5 year old daughter. My fiance is in Australia where he works as a fifo worker. He has duel citizenship for australia and UK. He was born in England but has been living in Australia for ten years.
> 
> We went to high school together and we began a long distance relationship and have been together for almost 2 years visiting each other. My daughter calls him daddy andbhe classes her as his daughter. Covid and the travel ban has been a nightmare for us. We class ourselves as family but had to apply for 300 visa as we did not have evidence for partner visa.
> ...


The current quoted processing time for this visa is 16-29 months. Many 300 holders have struggled, and will likely continue to struggle for some time, to get travel exemptions, hence the recent announcements around extensions and refunds for this visa class.


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## StaceyManchester (Dec 8, 2020)

Thabks for your responce Mark and taking your time to reply. I know from my immi account the 16 to 29 months I just wondered if there was any chance of sooner than rhis and how accurate it was? I appreciate there are many in the same position as ourselves. I am taking from what you are saying we just have to be patient and wait. There is nothing we can do. Our wedding is booked for October im guessing from the wait times this is going to have to be pushed back. 
I hope you are well and coping ok in these uncertain times.
Many thanks 😊


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## Jess0618 (Feb 18, 2015)

Hi Mark, I don't know anyone personally for an year to sign the identity form 1195 for citizenship. 
I have permanent residency for 2 years now.. I work  in retail services and have no connection with the members listed in form 1195...

I have been to docters but couple of times a year for 4 years with same docter.. I'm not sure if she would sign it... Does she need to know me personally or professionally like a client to verify my identity??


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## mycmyc (Apr 10, 2017)

Hi Mark, I would like to know how an assisted citizenship looks like? Have any of your clients gone through that process? What do they mean by 'assistance'? As in do they read the questions for you? Or do they interpret the questions in your language? Please give your insights into this topic. Thanks


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## karenlouis (Dec 21, 2020)

Hi Mark,

Thank you for sharing your expertise with us!

I (a British citizen) applied for 309 in May 2020 from London UK and still waiting for the outcome. However, my husband and I (married for over 2 years) would really need to travel to Sydney in March / April 2021, and ideally be able to stay for 9-12 months. With the travel restrictions, I understand that as a married partner I could travel with my husband as long as I have a valid visa.

Could we apply for tourist visa, either a eVisitor (651) or tourist visa (600)? Will applying for a tourist visa while waiting for the outcome affect my 309 application status? The tourist visa (600) has a processing time of 5-7 months so I’m not sure if we could wait that long.

Any advice or insights would be much appreciated, thanks in advance!


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## Alexisruby (Dec 23, 2020)

Hi Mark, I'm new to the group and I'm looking for an answer for 461 Visa missed health insurance. My visa will be expired September 2021 and will renew it but I missed 2 years of my health insurance due to a personal reasons. Should I get a migration agent or a lawyer to act on my behalf.

TIA 😊


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## Sahil Maan (Oct 9, 2020)

Hi Mark 
I have explained my situation before in the forum.
I am still living with my wife and I have been granted 801 recently. 
Can I get citizenship on behalf of 801 visa if I get separation from wife and start living my own ? or should I still live with her to get citizenship aswell ?
or will there be an problem ? 
please guide thanks


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## alexsa (Dec 23, 2020)

Hi Mark,

Thanks a lot for your contribution and your time. I´m sure it´s much appreciated by everone

I have a bit of a silly one. 

In the form 80, question 35 when it says "The type of visa you travelled on (examples given include visitor, student, business, etc)", if I was on a working holiday visa, what would you put as type? "working", "temporary worker"?
And also, if while on my 2 years of working holiday I came in and out Australia a couple of times, would you note every time you entered and exited the country or it´s only relevant the first time you come into the country on a certain visa?

Thanks in advance


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## MeatHead (May 30, 2020)

StaceyManchester said:


> Hi Mark,
> I am in England with my 5 year old daughter. My fiance is in Australia where he works as a fifo worker. He has duel citizenship for australia and UK. He was born in England but has been living in Australia for ten years.
> 
> We went to high school together and we began a long distance relationship and have been together for almost 2 years visiting each other. My daughter calls him daddy andbhe classes her as his daughter. Covid and the travel ban has been a nightmare for us. We class ourselves as family but had to apply for 300 visa as we did not have evidence for partner visa.
> ...


You can see by the recent banning of people from UK into Singapore etc, that if your partner went to the UK he may have serious trouble getting back.

Speak to an agent about better options to the 300.


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## Kiwiaussie (Dec 26, 2020)

Hi Mark, I am a New Zealand Citizen and am looking at Moving to Australia with my Partner. I would like my partner to apply for the 461 visa which is fine as we meet the requirements but she has used all of the available visas she can already for Australia, do you know if she was to come over on a 3 month visitor visa and bridge to the 461 visa? I can't find the information online. ( edit: if anyone else knows this information that would be great)


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## phucanh_mraz (Jul 14, 2013)

Hi Mark,

Merry Christmas and Happy new year 2021 to you and your family!

My wife is on bridging visa to 820 and been recently requested police check, baby due date and health check from CO. She needs to do a chest X-ray but this X-ray is not good for her pregnancy. DHA allows her to defer it until after birth and by then she would probably qualify for 801 (more than 2 years since initial application).

My question is: "How do we request for 801 processing? Is there a mailbox / email address that handles this request? "
Over boring months of 2020, we've been nagging DHA @ [email protected] to prioritise our application and received a few responses from DHA via this email address.


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## Floria (Dec 29, 2020)

Hi Mark,

Hope you are doing well. I am from China Mainland, and I am applying 820 partner visa at the moment. I just received an email saying I should attach Police Check with my application. My situation is a lil bit awkward. I lived in the U.S. for 3 years and rest of time I lived in China. I actually attached my police check from both of the countries, however, the tricky thing is I changed my name when I was 3. The immigration department wants police check that also contains my previous name or documents showing that I changed my name before I turned to 16.

"Please note that the AFP and Police Clearance certificates should cover all the names theapplicant has been known by since turning 16 years old.Or evidence showing that applicant changed the previous name before turning 16 years old".

So two decades ago, all the document was hand written in China, and my parents lost the official change of name document. I managed found a travel document issued by Chinese government when I was 15 years old. It matches my current legal name, which means I am using my current name since I was 15 at least.

Could it be an evidence to submit to immigration department that I changed my name before 16 years old? 

Thank you so much and happy new year.


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## Bam (Dec 30, 2020)

*143 visa sponsorship*

Hi Mark. My wife and I are both applying for 143 visa for our parents. I applied for 143 visa for my parents in 2018. There was a sponsorship question my wife and I signed. I haven't heard back from the department since I applied. Now my wife is applying for 143 visa for her parents. She wants me to sign the same sponsorship/assurance of support thing for this application. I have 3 concerns about this.

1. Can my signature for her parents' 143 visa application in any way negatively impact my parents' 143 visa application, which my wife and I signed as sponsors back in 2018?

2. Due to COVID-19 I lost my job this year. Currently searching for a new role, but it is unfortunately not very easy in my field. Can my lack of job create a problem for my parents' application submitted in 2018 or for my wife's parents' application she is about to submit this year?

3. I am not prepared to sign this sponsorship for her parents at the moment. My marriage is in a difficult phase and I am concerned about my career/finances. I feel pressured into signing this, and I certainly don't want to be liable for her parent's Centrelink payments should they claim any in the future. Is there any way around it? Maybe I can contact the department, or submit a statement/affidavit to them? I am really afraid of my wife's reaction. It seems unfair that I have to be forced to financially vouch for someone I barely know in my current situation because I am her partner.


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## Tmoncur (Dec 30, 2020)

*Partner visa (offshore)*

Hi Mark. Thanks so much for offering your time to answer questions!

My husband is applying for his partner visa 309 (offshore) we are in Canada right now. We have two kids who were born in Canada and coming with us when we eventually move to Australia (I'm Australian citizen) I want to apply for citizenship by decent for them after we arrive in Australia. 
Do I need to add them to my husband's application form as a non migrating family member?
And do we also need to complete a 47a dependent child form?

Thanks!


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## tinki (May 4, 2020)

Hello Mark
I have written to you before , what are your fees for thee imagination process to bring my partner over from Thailand .I am with her and been in Thailand for 10 years with her. I am semi -disabled and need her to help me daily ..is there special circumstances to get the visa quicker .Please let me know if you can do out visa case ..

Thankyou
Tinki


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## coco123 (Jan 5, 2021)

Hi Mark,

Thank you for opening this Q&A thread!

My question is:

Do you know if you can lodge different visa application (eg. subclass 600) while your sponsor's 407 nomination application outcome is still pending? 

Thank you very much for your help.


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## Mtalha711 (Jan 6, 2021)

Hi Mark, Happy New year and thanks for giving us your valuable time.

My question is, how long is AAT taking on average at the moment to review the Schedule 3 Waiver. 
Kind Regards


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## MaryG (Jan 6, 2021)

Hi Mark, I would like to ask for help and get more information about the requirements and process needed for PR application. My husband is holding a Subclass 457 visa. Thanks in advance.


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## FrankM (Jan 22, 2021)

Hi Mark,

My wife applied for a subclass143 visa for her Mum in Dec 2016. She did not apply for her Dad at the time because of the cost. The application has not been touched yet by the Dept. Her Mum now has an aggressive cancer and a 20% chance of living for 5 years. My wife doesn't know what to do. Should she add her Dad to the application on the basis that if Mum dies Dad might be allowed in? What are the chances of a health waiver for Mum? My wife is an only child and they would love to be reunited as a family. Are there compassionate grounds? Would future visitor visas be denied because of the cancer?

Thanks in advance for your help
Frank


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## Cannon (Oct 10, 2020)

My relationship has ended, I have a kid am on a bridging visa A,can I get PR ??how??how long it takes?


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## TrixDivergent (Mar 19, 2015)

Hi Mark,

I need some advice for following please:

I came here under 457 (valid for 4 years, expired Sep 2019). My former boss is my partner, we fell in love few months after my employment, then become de facto Dec 2016. I brought my son (born in 2001) on March 2017 as dependant under my 457. 
Aug 2018, my partner sold the business, I transfered the 457 to the new owner. 
April 2019 we lodged 820/801. 
After 21 months, we received RFI a week ago asking new Police Certificates for all of us (applicant, sponsor and my son), and also evidences that my son is still my dependant.
Bear in mind, when we lodged, my son were only 17 years old and still studying at senior high school (year 11), he graduated Dec 2019. Because it’s too expensive to continue study under bridging visa, he then started to work since Oct 2019. He works 32-36 hours a week, earn $1200-1400/fortnight after tax. Still casual though. Still live with me and my partner, never once moved out. 
He was being stood down on March 2020 and returned to work again on May 2020.
He is now 19 years old, will he still considered as dependant??
I prepared Statutory Declaration, copy of his high school invoices and proof of payment. 
I tried to google and am now panicking, worried he may not be eligible as my dependant any longer.

Please help!!!!


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## Manchester (Jul 19, 2020)

Is Mark still participating in this forum ? I have been trying to reach him with no positive response.


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## paulhand (Apr 15, 2017)

Manchester said:


> Is Mark still participating in this forum ? I have been trying to reach him with no positive response.


I don't believe he is ... maybe it's time to close this tread...?


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## tinki (May 4, 2020)

paulhand said:


> I don't believe he is ... maybe it's time to close this tread...?


I do not think he answers anyone , how does he stay is business.I have asked two questions and wanting to get his services , now I found another one ..who is professional


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## paulhand (Apr 15, 2017)

tinki said:


> I do not think he answers anyone , how does he stay is business.I have asked two questions and wanting to get his services , now I found another one ..who is professional


Mark is very professional... if you want his services, just get in touch direct.


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## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi All -

My apologies for the absence - workload has been over the top. Going forward, I'll be back on the forum at least once a week answering questions. The previous questions are mostly out of date I'm guessing, however if any questions still need answers, please repost and I'll start answering any questions posted after this message appears. Hope all are doing well, and it's great to be back.

Best regards,

Mark Northam


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## Sue1234 (Mar 22, 2021)

MarkNortham said:


> Hi All -
> 
> I'm very excited to be back on the Australia Forum after some time away - it's such a fantastic and friendly community here. I wanted to announce a new 2020 edition of my Ask Mark! thread which I've hosted previously here for some time - as before, happy to do my best to provide information to anyone about Australian migraiton. A few notes:
> 
> ...


HI MARK ,
First of all God Bless You for your genorosity on this Forum. We need more humans like you around. 
Secondly i applied for a carer 836 visa on shore 
The applicants sponsor his mother underwent a Bupa assesment getting 40 points impairmwnt and satisfied the carer visa requirements. 
However they requested more information to prove no goverment or non goverment , welfare organisations hospitals or sevices australia could provide the care instead of her son. 
He was refused on 18th march 21 and has 21 days to apply for aat or 35 days to leave as the evidence wasnt sufficient enough for dept. 
Can i please ask for your help in any avenue i can try to contact to gather the information requested, i have contacted aged care shes not old enough and NDIS has not even vontacted us since applying in Nov 2020.


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## Krizzy (Mar 22, 2021)

Hi Mark, my student visa expired before I could lodge my visa 485. It was an oversight on my part and it was expired for two days so my visa 485 application didn't push through. I am now on BVC, can I still lodge my visa 485 with BVC? All my documents are complete.


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## Sadia Haroon (Feb 10, 2021)

Hi Mark,
My partner is an Australian citizen and residing in Australia.We are in long distance relationship since 2018.Meet in 2019 and have applied my 309 visa application in Feb 2020 ,still waiting and not even received any RFI or email. I have uploaded all the required documents and evidence. It has been 14 months we haven't seen eachother because of Covid restrictions.We have applied for Tourist visa in January 2021 but no response. My age is my biggest concern as i am 38 and he is 42.We want to make family but this wait is ruining everything.


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## Madan99 (Mar 23, 2021)

Hy mark.i lodged 585 visa on 22 march.My student visa expiry date was also 22 marcah but I could not lodge visa 485 early because my uni published the result on 22 march.They gave me the course completion letter on 22 march and I had all other document ready so I lodged the visa.But I am worried because the I have the course completion date, student visa expiry date and new visa 485 lodgement date same which is 22 march.Doea it affect my visa


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## Samyuri (Mar 11, 2021)

Hi Mark 
I'm still married ( separated almost 5 years) in the process of partner visa 
Applied August 2020 and recently was asked to provide evidence of separation of previous partner. It asks for divorce certificate or equivalent 
As divorce isn't finalised any ideas of what I can provide to immigration. 
TIA


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## skyblue90 (Mar 28, 2021)

Hi Mark,
Do you happen to know the email address to send a withdrawal of partner visa sponshorship? It is for an onshore partner visa, lodged in QLD.

Thanks heaps in advance.


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## Cannon (Oct 10, 2020)

Do you have a link or inquiry form for 801??
That goes to Vic


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## Zana89 (Nov 18, 2020)

Hi Mark.

I'm holding BVC right now, for Protection Visa appeal at AAT. Recently applied for Partner Visa, and still waiting.

The BVC for Partner Visa is not active yet, because BVC from Protection Visa is still active. Should i withdraw the AAT appeal for Protection Visa, and let my BVC from Partner Visa kicked in? Or i just leave it like that.

I was planning to apply for work right. If i apply it now, will my work right attached to both BVC or only the BVC that i am on now?

Thank you Mark.


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## sillymilly (May 19, 2021)

MarkNortham said:


> Hi Lauren -
> 
> Thanks for the note and kind words! Yes, VACCU (Visa Applicant Character Consideration Unit) processing appears to be continuing, although maybe slower than before. This can take many months, so I'd be patient but do make sure DHA has your current contact info and make sure no emails from them end up in your junk/spam email box and not seen.
> 
> ...


Trolling thru this site looking for any indication of VACCU processing times or a contact address etc., they are a hard organization to get any intel on and they have not responded to my email. Came across this conversation so thought I would comment from my perspective. I currently have a subclass 600 visa application in. I am NZer, I was sentenced to 7 years jail and have been out 11 years My first 600 visa was granted for 1 year in 2016 it took 9 months to get processed and I was advised that part of the processing was by VACCU. The second granted for 2 years took 3 weeks to process and I got no notification if VACCU looked at it then. None of my circumstances have changed since the first application was granted in 2016 e.g. same employer, residence and no new convictions. My current application has been sitting in further processing 3 months, no further documentation request has been made and I have no idea if it is still with a case officer, VACCU or if it is sitting in Suva (under covid lock down) due to AU Home Affairs moving out of NZ to Fiji. Advice from me is to make sure all your paper work to support your application is sent incl. character ref., consent to police records, invitation to visit, funds for trip, copy of passport showing compliance at any other boarders


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## Monika Follie (May 20, 2021)

MarkNortham said:


> Hi All -
> 
> I'm very excited to be back on the Australia Forum after some time away - it's such a fantastic and friendly community here. I wanted to announce a new 2020 edition of my Ask Mark! thread which I've hosted previously here for some time - as before, happy to do my best to provide information to anyone about Australian migraiton. A few notes:
> 
> ...


Hello Mark,
I'd appreciate your advise as I am unable to find this information anywhere online.
I am planning to apply for 143 Contributory parent visa for my mother and later 835 for my sister as a remaining relative.
Do we need to wait until my mother gets PR to apply for 835 for my sister or once 143 is granted?
Thank you.


----------



## Danielpadillia (May 28, 2021)

MarkNortham said:


> Hi All -
> 
> I'm very excited to be back on the Australia Forum after some time away - it's such a fantastic and friendly community here. I wanted to announce a new 2020 edition of my Ask Mark! thread which I've hosted previously here for some time - as before, happy to do my best to provide information to anyone about Australian migraiton. A few notes:
> 
> ...





MarkNortham said:


> Hi All -
> 
> I'm very excited to be back on the Australia Forum after some time away - it's such a fantastic and friendly community here. I wanted to announce a new 2020 edition of my Ask Mark! thread which I've hosted previously here for some time - as before, happy to do my best to provide information to anyone about Australian migraiton. A few notes:
> 
> ...


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## Danielpadillia (May 28, 2021)

Hi Mark,

I am holding BVA 482, Employer sponsorship. My student visa expired the same day when I got the BVA 482. But, I have new CoE from a school. Is it possible to cancel my CoE and not continue to study. It is too hard to pay for schooling and my BVA at the same time. If I cancel my CoE is it affect my BVA 482?

Cheers!
DP


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## tishzzzzz (Jun 1, 2021)

hi Mark, Will my BVA start showing expiry date if my applied partner visa is refused?


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## pancakestrudle (Jun 11, 2021)

Hi Mark, 
I am in a tricky scenario and would like some advice:
I am in NZ, left Australia on a BVB to come and apply for the 651 visitor visa. I applied and it got refused as I have spent 3.5 consecutive years in Australia only 30 overseas, so I did not meet the GTE. The reason why I have not left Aus is due to covid and I was working and my employer put in an application to sponsor me that I had to withdraw due to no LMT conducted. 
I have reapplied for the 651 visa this time including a letter stating my circumstances that I have an Australian partner, we wish to apply for defacto, new house lease just singed etc and I also submitted my ties to my home country such as a bank account and car ownership. 

Am I likely to be refused again? BVB running out soon and I need to get back to Aus before it expires.
If the 651 is rejected I am going to lodge an offshore partner visa from here and return before july on my BVB, not ideal.

Thanks for your help


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## Vijena (Aug 11, 2018)

Hi Mark, 

I am hoping you can give me some advice. I'm on a 485 until Feb 2022. My husband's visa finally got approved few weeks back after getting refused twice on my student visa. But there are now Covid border restrictions. It's been almost 3years that we are living apart now. I want to apply for an exemption. Do you have any advice please? 

Vijena


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## whvisaq (Jun 16, 2021)

Hi Mark,

I am curious about the impacts of applying for an 820 partner visa and uploading documents after the fact. i.e.. 1/2 months after the application has been submitted.


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## JR1 (Jun 16, 2021)

Hi Mark,

Thanks for offering this very noble service. 

My circumstances as follows:


Myself Australian PR from the UK
Wife Australian Citizen

We have a baby due in 4 weeks time. 6 - 8 weeks thereafter we would like to travel to the US and UK for 6 months, work and family related reasons. Is it worth engaging an Immigration Lawyer to assist with an exemption to travel application or indeed worth applying at all as things stand currently. I completely understanding it's a moving feat but if chances of success are very slim it would be great to know before incurring professional fees. If anyone here has any experience first hand on this would be great to know. 

Thank you


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## EnciV (Jun 19, 2021)

Hi Mark and Everyone,

I'd like some clarification as the mixed news are very confusing... we hear about closed borders but we also hear about critical shortage lists and exemptions, and EOI's still going at a lower rate.. anyhow...

So first of all, are people being sponsored through employers and brought over from offshore via EOI invites or not these days?

Also, We are getting our skill select via engineers Australia and hit a roadblock, it seems that there are major differences between Canada(where we are) and Australia in terms of proof... we don't seem to be able to provide some of the papers (apart from the trillion proof we gave tax slips, employment letter, tax assessment, record of employment etc) simply as they don't exist here the same way, so we are not sure what to do and why all the stuff we given isn't just enough...any tips ? Appreciate anything that could be helpful. Also for the current record he would need some serious extra info from HR and it is hard to explain without raising a red flag to his current employer.. and we can't say that it is for a loan or bank cause they don't need those infos so it would be an obvious lie. EA also critiqued his actual employer letter and job description that they need a more detailed one... well there isn't one, we literally sent his contract outlined with his job details.... tough.. To be fair not sure why we need it in the first place as my partner (main applicant) has worked as an engineer in Australia for 2 years already...

Thank you for any help!

E.


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## ShermD (Feb 5, 2016)

Hi Mark,

My Permanent Residency visa was granted in 2016 and should I wait for 4 years or 2 years before Citizenship? I have lived in Australia only 2 years for the past 4 years.

The "citizenship act 2007" says 4 years residence period needed before apply for the citizenship. But it was mentioned as 2 yrs for the people who got the grant in 2016. But I can't find it anywhere now. So for people who got the grant in 2016 also should wait for 4 yrs? or can we just apply it after 2 yrs in Australia?


Federal Register of Legislation - Australian Government




Thank You
Sherm


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## ShermD (Feb 5, 2016)

Hi Mark,

I intend to apply for Citizenship. My 189 permanent resident visa was granted in June 2016 and I arrived in Australia Jan 2017 (for the first entry) and left Australia after a week to my home country, then again arrived in Australia on Jan 2019 and have been living here since then.

Is my "Lawful residence" the day I first arrived for my first entry?(Jan 2017) (I just stayed only for 7 days).
Or is it Jan 2019 ? (I have lived in Aus for years since then)

it's bit confusing here as they don't state how many days or months should I stay in Australia to count it as the start of "Lawful residence"





Residence Calculator


This calculator will assist you to determine whether you satisfy the residence requirements for an application for conferral of Australian citizenship.




immi.homeaffairs.gov.au





Thank You
Sherm


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## Skye B (Jul 15, 2021)

RE: Visa 491 to Visa 191 - 3 years condition

Hi Mark,
Just a quick question: 
I applied for visa 491 in April 2020 and got my Bridging visa A while waiting for the visa 491 to be processed. I waited for ONE year and finally, in April 2021, they have granted me the actual visa. 

My question is: Will my income/time from the time I was on Bridging visa be counted as year 1 as part of the 3 years (the min 3 years condition to be eligible for PR visa 191)? or it has to start from the time I get the actual 491 visa. If thats the case, i have wasted 1 year waiting (even if income met the condition). Hope to hear from u soon.

S.


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## Marco Ferraro (Feb 7, 2020)

Mark hasnt been on for over 4 months. Maybe he's been really busy or unwell.


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## Skye B (Jul 15, 2021)

No wonder no response.


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## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi All - Happy to say I'm back here on the Australia Forum - my sincere apologies for not having been able to keep up my intended visiting schedule. Things have been very busy here, but the Forum is very important to me as this forum has a vibe all its own, something you don't see on most other migration forums - it's a friendly, welcoming kind of place and it's where I got my "start" online almost 10 years ago. I think all migration agents and immigration lawyers should give back to the community as they can, and this is something I want to prioritise going forward.

I'm going to go back and grab the questions from the last 60 days and answer them, making an assumption that something older than that probably isn't relevant anymore. However if you have any questions, PLEASE go ahead and ask even if it was posted earlier. My work tends to focus on family visas including partner visas, parent and child visas, plus employer sponsored and skilled visas. I don't work much with student visas or humanitarian (ie, protection visas), and these days am doing a lot of AAT Tribunal and court work as an immigration lawyer for difficult cases. As always, I work with Schedule 3, PIC 4020 and health & character cases as a special focus of my practice.

I look forward to being here much more often now, and hope all of you are doing OK in these challenging times.

Best regards,

Mark Northam
Northam Lawyers


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## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

pancakestrudle said:


> Hi Mark,
> I am in a tricky scenario and would like some advice:
> I am in NZ, left Australia on a BVB to come and apply for the 651 visitor visa. I applied and it got refused as I have spent 3.5 consecutive years in Australia only 30 overseas, so I did not meet the GTE. The reason why I have not left Aus is due to covid and I was working and my employer put in an application to sponsor me that I had to withdraw due to no LMT conducted.
> I have reapplied for the 651 visa this time including a letter stating my circumstances that I have an Australian partner, we wish to apply for defacto, new house lease just singed etc and I also submitted my ties to my home country such as a bank account and car ownership.
> ...


Hi Pancakestrudle -

I'm just back on the Forum and wanted to respond to your post. I like your strategy of reapplying for the 651, however the eVisitor visa is often subject to an "instant" sort of refusal logic where individual circumstances may or may not be thoroughly examined by DHA. I need to know more about your partner visa strategy - also, you should know there is a special part of the BVB regulations that addresses people who have lodged an offshore partner visa application. In a nutshell, these regs MAY (need to confirm all details) allow you, if you lodge an offshore 309/100 while holding a BVB, to then come back to Australia and if you can get another BVB, the second BVB can be tied to the offshore partner visa you previously lodged. This technique is called the "BVB Switcheroo" and can be used in some (but not all) cases where an applicant has an onshore matter pending that may not have a likely successful outcome, but wants to lodge an offshore partner visa (perhaps to avoid Schedule 3 etc) but has a BVA or BVB. Let me know if you'd like to discuss the matter further.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam


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## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Vijena said:


> Hi Mark,
> 
> I am hoping you can give me some advice. I'm on a 485 until Feb 2022. My husband's visa finally got approved few weeks back after getting refused twice on my student visa. But there are now Covid border restrictions. It's been almost 3years that we are living apart now. I want to apply for an exemption. Do you have any advice please?
> 
> Vijena


Hi Vijena -

I'm just back on the forum and wanted to respond to your post. Assuming your husband was approved as a secondary applicant for a sc485 visa, he would have not automatic exemption from the travel restrictions since you are not (yet) a permanent resident of Australia. That only leaves the compassionate circumstances pathway through the travel restrictions - I would try to make a list of all the negative impacts on you that your husband being so far away from you is creating, and really try to think "outside the box" as to how it is affecting you. Consider your mental health, physical health, work productivity, how your sadness/loneliness is substantially more than people "normally" feel when apart for extended periods, and why communicating by video etc is not enough. Bottom line: it's very tough to get these approved, however it's worth a try. Sometimes, people have to try multiple requests (had one client who succeeded on try #23 after 22 rejections) but try to keep your head up high and always look forward.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam


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## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

sillymilly said:


> Trolling thru this site looking for any indication of VACCU processing times or a contact address etc., they are a hard organization to get any intel on and they have not responded to my email. Came across this conversation so thought I would comment from my perspective. I currently have a subclass 600 visa application in. I am NZer, I was sentenced to 7 years jail and have been out 11 years My first 600 visa was granted for 1 year in 2016 it took 9 months to get processed and I was advised that part of the processing was by VACCU. The second granted for 2 years took 3 weeks to process and I got no notification if VACCU looked at it then. None of my circumstances have changed since the first application was granted in 2016 e.g. same employer, residence and no new convictions. My current application has been sitting in further processing 3 months, no further documentation request has been made and I have no idea if it is still with a case officer, VACCU or if it is sitting in Suva (under covid lock down) due to AU Home Affairs moving out of NZ to Fiji. Advice from me is to make sure all your paper work to support your application is sent incl. character ref., consent to police records, invitation to visit, funds for trip, copy of passport showing compliance at any other boarders


Hi Sillymilly -

I realise your post is a few months old but wanted to respond as I'm just getting back on the forum. VACCU processing times typically run from 3mos to 12mos or more, depending on their caseload, the severity of the character issues, and how much supporting documentation is provided so that VACCU doesn't have to do a lot of research to get to the bottom line (ie, facts) of the case. One important thing to remember if you're dealing with the VACCU is that they put a lot of weight on "authoritative" 3rd party documents - especially sentencing remarks from the judge(s) and related documents from the court file. Essentially they will often give far more weight to the judge's description of the events that occurred re the offending, than any other description including from the applicant themselves. You can sometimes speed up VACCU consideration of a case by making sure that character-specific documents such as character references you provide (that state they are familiar with your offences), judge's sentencing remarks, other court documents that are relevant, etc are included with the application from the beginning. In your case where you will automatically be deemed to have a substantial criminal record due to your time in jail, you can assume you're headed to the VACCU and make their life easier by loading up all the character documents in the beginning.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam


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## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

whvisaq said:


> Hi Mark,
> 
> I am curious about the impacts of applying for an 820 partner visa and uploading documents after the fact. i.e.. 1/2 months after the application has been submitted.


Hi Whvisaq -

The bulk (ie, a good representative amount) of relationship evidence, plus your Form 888s (at least 2), and passports/IDs should be uploaded at the time of application at a minimum. Also don't forget a critical rule: if you are onshore and applying after a refusal or cancellation, and only hold a bridging visa (or no visa) at the time of application for your onshore 820/801, there is a little-known bit of law that requires your 2 888s to be lodged at the time of application and be no more than 6 weeks old, plus your online sponsor form (40SP) must be lodged at the time of application, plus your Form 888s in question 4 should state the TYPE of relationship, ie "I believe that Bob and Mary's de facto partner relationship is genuine and continuing. I believe this because ..." - if de facto and the words "de facto" are not included in Q4, it can in some cases result in an invalid application if you are applying as described here after a cancellation/refusal and while holding a bridging visa or no visa.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam


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## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

tishzzzzz said:


> hi Mark, Will my BVA start showing expiry date if my applied partner visa is refused?


Yes. And also will be reset to no expiry date if you make a valid application to the AAT for review of the refusal.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam


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## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

EnciV said:


> Hi Mark and Everyone,
> 
> I'd like some clarification as the mixed news are very confusing... we hear about closed borders but we also hear about critical shortage lists and exemptions, and EOI's still going at a lower rate.. anyhow...
> 
> ...


Hi EnciV -

I'm just back on the forum and wanted to respond to your post. At the current time, we are seeing invitations to apply for skilled visas being generated, albeit at a much slower rate than before the pandemic. Employer sponsored visas, especially for onshore applicants, seem to be getting priority at the moment (August 2021). Re documents, if you've provided the usual set of employer reference letter, current contract (and previous ones for time claimed for points) and payslips, sometimes - depending on the organisation you're asking - it can be helpful to simply ask what specific document(s) they are looking for. Re current employer finding out, that's a challenge that I have yet to find a surefire way to avoid.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam


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## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Skye B said:


> RE: Visa 491 to Visa 191 - 3 years condition
> 
> Hi Mark,
> Just a quick question:
> ...


Hi Skye B -

I'm just back on the forum and wanted to respond to your question. Unfortunately the regulations re the subclass 191 visa have not yet been released, which means there's no good way to know for sure whether time spent on a BVA waiting for the 491 will count. My prediction is that it may indeed count, assuming they structure the 191 visa similar to the 887 visa which it is essentially replacing for the 491/494 cohort of regional applicants. The three year requirement of the 191 re income and living in a designated regional area is key in addition to having held the 491 etc visa for 3 years - let's hope DHA does the right thing and includes waiting time for a BVA from a 491 application in that period. It certainly would be in the spirit of what they are trying to do with that visa - ie, compel people to live and work in regional areas.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam


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## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Zana89 said:


> Hi Mark.
> 
> I'm holding BVC right now, for Protection Visa appeal at AAT. Recently applied for Partner Visa, and still waiting.
> 
> ...


Hi Zana89 -

I'm just back on the forum and wanted to respond to your post. As a quick reminder: if you've applied for a partner visa onshore while holding only a bridging visa, you will need to meet the Schedule 3 criteria or show "compelling reasons" why it should be waived in your case. We do a lot of Schedule 3 cases, let me know if you have any questions about this.

Re your BVC questions, if you apply for work rights and are successful, the work rights (ie, removal of the no work condition 8101) will be actioned to the current BVC you hold that is live. If/when that visa transaction is finished and the BVC ceases, so will the work rights linked to that visa. I don't know enough about your circumstances to give you specific advice for your case, however there may be some benefit in discontinuing the protection visa application if you have decided it has no reasonable chances of success - happy to discuss further.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam


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## Ja2021 (Aug 21, 2021)

HI Mark,

Thank you for offering some advice! I have a quick few questions if you have time to answer that would be awesome!
We have just submitted by partners 820 application (we have been living together 10 years in Canada before moving to Aust). He is currently on a WHV-417 but has received the BVA to begin on 31 Dec. He would like to stay at his current employer- it is a tourism and hospitality job. The immi website says approval is not needed to work for longer than 6 months in this area, but his actual position (Assistant Manager) isn't listed so we have filled out a 1445 and are ready to send it. Manager positions and bar tender positions are listed so I know that his position would be included, but we want confirmation he isn't breaking visa conditions.
Q1- Are immi going to get mad for requesting approval on a 1445 when it says not required? And since he is currently stood down, does this time count toward his 6 months? I assume so as he is still employed there.
Q2- We have had to apply for the disaster payment and I hope this doesn't affect his application either? We tried to wait it out but its now 2 months of lockdown....
Q3- We also haven't been able to get fingerprinted to send off for our Canadian Police Checks since the police department doesn't consider it essential. I am hoping the application won't even get viewed for another 6 months or so, so we will be fine but should I be uploading a note about this in the meantime?

Thank you for your time in answering these questions. Sometimes they keep me awake at night worrying!!


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## MarkNortham (Dec 19, 2012)

Ja2021 said:


> HI Mark,
> 
> Thank you for offering some advice! I have a quick few questions if you have time to answer that would be awesome!
> We have just submitted by partners 820 application (we have been living together 10 years in Canada before moving to Aust). He is currently on a WHV-417 but has received the BVA to begin on 31 Dec. He would like to stay at his current employer- it is a tourism and hospitality job. The immi website says approval is not needed to work for longer than 6 months in this area, but his actual position (Assistant Manager) isn't listed so we have filled out a 1445 and are ready to send it. Manager positions and bar tender positions are listed so I know that his position would be included, but we want confirmation he isn't breaking visa conditions.
> ...


Hi Ja2021 -

Thanks for the questions - re Q1, rather than deal with any potential issues re the hospitality job details, you would also qualify for the 6mo extension based on having lodged the partner visa application, so I'd put the 1445 form in listing both circumstances - hospitality sector job AND having lodged a partner visa. I don't see how they would be upset at that.

Re Q2, no linkage I know of between any sort of government payments re the pandemic and partner visa assessment. 

Re Q3, there's no harm in uploading a note saying you plan on getting the police checks as soon as fingerprinting services resume

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam


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## Apy07 (Aug 20, 2021)

Hi Mark,

I would really appreciate if you could answer some silly questions for me.

I am planning on commencing the ACT 190 visa soon. Currently, I am on my TR and my partner is a citizen of Aus. I have already applied for the civil union. 

On the canberra matrix guidelines it states that both me and my partner need to get a statutory declaration, is this document supposed to be made before I submit the canberra matrix or after my matrix gets selected??

My other question is, if I have been working as a Staffing Coordinator for a recruitment company since past 5-6 months, will I qualify as a Recruitment Consultant on the critical skill list with my current role?? As my duties are similar to that of a Recruitment Consultant.

Any suggestions will be highly acknowledged.


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## Rik_karman (Aug 24, 2021)

Hi Mark.

For a 190 skilled visa I need a skills assessment.
I'm a cabinet maker from the Netherlands. According to the Job list on the immi website, I have to go through TRA for that skills assessment.
However what is unclear whether I need 3 years work experience post graduation. A lot of immigration agents are saying I don't need that amount of work experience..
Could you clarify this for me?

Thank you so much for your time.


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## zacshelby (Nov 2, 2017)

Hey Mark!

Quick question about the 309 & 100 visa grants.

We got the 309 granted this month Aug 2021.
We had submitted the 309 application back in Sep 2019.
At the time of application, we were in a relationship for just over 2 years, and married for 1.5 years.
At the time of application, our child was 6 months old.

Shouldn't the department granted us the 100 too along with the 309?


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## JamesHarris (Aug 25, 2021)

Hi Mark I made a seperate thread (Had relationship problems with my spouse who is on...) but I'll paste it here for your ease of reference:

I sponsored my wife on a 309 visa two years ago (we were married three years back) and everything was going fine until COVID hit us both hard financially.

I got into a big argument with her a few weeks back and in the heat of the moment sent a letter to the immigration saying our relationship had ended. I really regret sending that letter as we worked out our differences just two days after and became much stronger as a married couple. I sent another letter to the department apologising for sending that initial letter and we were still together and we even finished working on our 100 application by doing stat decs, uploading evidence etc a week later.

This morning I receieve a letter saying they aknowledge that our relationship has ended and they removed my access to the immi login and asked her to make a new account for privacy reasons. We are following all their instructions but can anyone please assist me regarding this mess I created.

I wish to reverse this withdrawal and as you can imagine we are all stressed about our future. We don't have any children, and there is no domestic violence or such, just relationship strains as many married couples have and I regret what I did.


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## Ja2021 (Aug 21, 2021)

Thanks for the reply Mark! I really appreciate you taking the time to answer and calm my mind!


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## Brit86 (Aug 2, 2021)

Hi Mark, 
Firstly just want to express my thanks for you to take the time out of your day to respond to everyone's questions. 
My question is slightly complex. I will do my best to explain the situation I'm in and ask some specific question regarding my potential options if any. 
My current visa situation is im on a employer sponsored 457 visa which is due to expire on the 14th September 2021, my partner was a secondary applicant. My partner has been offered a sponsorship for a tss 482 short stream visa with myself being a secondary applicant. We have lodged the application a few months back and have a bridging visa which has the same visa conditions of my 457 and will come into affect after the 14th September. The main one being I can only work for my sponsor (current employer) and if I leave my employment with them have 60 days to find another sponsor or leave the country.
I want to leave my current employer but also want to work in a different role (not sure what yet but want a change) which I am not sponsored in. 
My question is are there any options to allow me to have unrestricted work rights until my partners visa is approved or do I have to stick with my current job until visa is approved which once it is I will have unrestricted work rights. 
Thanks Jim


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## Sydneyguy1 (Aug 31, 2021)

Hi Mark and everybody else,

Firstly want to say, finding this forum and reading about other's experiences has been incredibly informative as my partner and I are intending to begin the process of applying for a partner visa so that he can move to Australia. Thank you and great to see this community out there.

I do have a question and would be grateful for some feedback or advice from anyone out there.

I am Australian and my partner is Russian, both male and in our 30s. We met whilst I was visiting Russia in 2018 and until covid hit in 2020, we met up three times in various countries throughout 2018/2019 in order to spend time together. Since then it has been a long distance relationship where we haven't seen each other and we have decided that we want to take the next step and live together with him coming to live with me in Australia.

We have never lived together however we intend to do so for the rest of our lives and eventually get married. We are just unsure about which of the three partner visas we should aim to apply for, the 300 prospective marriage visa, the 309 offshore partner visa or the 320 onshore partner visa. Any general advice or similar experiences from others would be much appreciated.


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## Vivek 9977 (Sep 2, 2021)

Hi Mark,

I have applied for partner visa subclass 300. I have to apply for 309 subclass, I got confused and applied for 300 subclass. Is there any way or chances to request department to change subclass in application ?

Thank you in advance.


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## yash 2021 (Aug 30, 2021)

Hi Mark,

My partner applied for Subclass 476 Skilled—Recognised Graduate visa in June 2019 and we applied for Subclasses 309 and 100 Partner visa in March 2020 (as we got married in Jan 2020 in Sri Lanka). We have had no luck in either visas and my partner was awarded with a PhD opportunity at an Australian university to start studying in Feb 2022. The PhD is funded by Australian Research council. *Is there way to contact immigration and sought an exemption to get either one of above visa's to be granted *with the PhD evidance and as he need to come to Australia to do the research (as PhD can't be started online without proper lab facilities); rather than we applying again for a student visa? 

Secondly, would there be negative impacts on existing visa applications if we applied for a 3rd visa (student) ?

You assistance is greatly appreciated! 
Yash.


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## halegna (Oct 18, 2021)

Hello Mark,

My partner(Australian) has already sponsored 2 of his previous partners. ( last one was 2014)

Now we are in a defacto relationship for exact 23months now. We are currently living in my place in Turkey. I ve never been in Australia.
Our relationship is genuine. We have many evidences to prove everything by photos, screenshots , documents, joint bank accounts, travelling overseas together, we made an investment(house) in turkey together etc.

We believe we have a really strong case.

But the only problem is that it will be his 3rd sponsorship. ( the other sponsorships were also genuine.They broke up. The one is still in Australia got PR, the other one is in Canada now. couldn't get his PR)

But we are confused when we should lodge the application for 309 visa.?
Being in relationship for 24months is enough or should we wait for our relationship to be 3 years to make it long standing relationship to waive? (bcs we dont have child but we have 2 kittens )

Additionally we are discreet gay couple in a conservative country. Sometime it s really challenging for us to live here.
And my partner's all family is in Australia. And his father is taking cancer treatment recently.

Could you please tell us if we have any chance to get granted being in a relationship for 2 years or not?

I would appreciate. 

Thanks a bunch


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## DoubleCoatTT (Dec 24, 2021)

Hi Mark,

This may be a very simple question, but I can’t seem to find the answer anywhere…

We were granted the 820 visa recently and were wondering if we (mainly the sponsor) need to submit new police clearances when we apply for the 801 later on.

thanks!


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## impious.rocker (Nov 17, 2021)

Hi @MarkNortham,
I applied for Visitor visa 600 (family sponsored stream) in Feb 2020 which is still under process and we just received another request to get medical examination done. 
My question is is it going to impact this application if I apply for 870 Sponsored Parent (Temporary) visa as well?


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## sillymilly (May 19, 2021)

MarkNortham said:


> Hi Sillymilly -
> 
> I realise your post is a few months old but wanted to respond as I'm just getting back on the forum. VACCU processing times typically run from 3mos to 12mos or more, depending on their caseload, the severity of the character issues, and how much supporting documentation is provided so that VACCU doesn't have to do a lot of research to get to the bottom line (ie, facts) of the case. One important thing to remember if you're dealing with the VACCU is that they put a lot of weight on "authoritative" 3rd party documents - especially sentencing remarks from the judge(s) and related documents from the court file. Essentially they will often give far more weight to the judge's description of the events that occurred re the offending, than any other description including from the applicant themselves. You can sometimes speed up VACCU consideration of a case by making sure that character-specific documents such as character references you provide (that state they are familiar with your offences), judge's sentencing remarks, other court documents that are relevant, etc are included with the application from the beginning. In your case where you will automatically be deemed to have a substantial criminal record due to your time in jail, you can assume you're headed to the VACCU and make their life easier by loading up all the character documents in the beginning.
> 
> ...


Hi Mark not been on here a while but quick update. Having had 2 previous visitor visas granted despite having criminal convictions my 3rd application for a visitor visa made in March 2021 was granted in June 2021 for two years (yay).


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## shyammadheshiya (5 mo ago)

Hi @MarkNortham,

It's amazing seeing you helping everyone. I needed and advice too and would really appreciate it.
I am on Bridging visa B (previously held student visa). I have already graduated and my new student visa hasn't been approved yet. I am applying for 485 but since it will come with Bridging visa C and no work rights. How do I get that removed and how long will it usually take? I have been offered a job and they want me to join immediately.

Many Thanks
Shyam


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