You have an option to apply for a Partner Visa if you are in a relationship with an Australian citizen, Permanent Resident, or eligible New Zealand citizen.  

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

Visa Conditions and Duration

Once your initial Partner Visa is granted, you can stay in Australia on a Temporary Visa with full work rights, travel rights, and access to Medicare.

After two years, the Department of Home Affairs will consider your application for a Permanent Partner visa. The Temporary Partner Visa holders are asked to provide evidence of the ongoing spousal relationship at this stage.

Visa Criteria

To be eligible for a partner visa, you must meet the following criteria:

Genuine Relationship

Before a visa is granted, the Department of Home Affairs conducts an assessment. The visa applicants must show that they are in a genuine relationship and are committed to a shared life together, to the exclusion of all others.  

When applying for the Permanent Partner Visa, the applicant and the sponsor must provide evidence that they are living together, or at least not living apart permanently. 

The Department of Home Affairs can conduct investigations, including interviewing partners and/or examining additional relevant documentation.

The Department of Immigration will look at various aspects of your relationship, including:

• Cohabitation: Usually evidenced through showing correspondence (e.g. utility bills) addressed to both of you at the same address
  
• Financial Interdependence: For example, joint bank accounts, joint ownership of property, and joint financial commitment such as leases, mortgages, and insurance policies.
  
• Social aspects of the relationship: Joint travel, joint social activities, joint participation in cultural or sporting activities.

Health & Character

You will need to provide health and police checks. If you do have a medical condition, a waiver of the usual health requirements is possible where the cost to the Australian community of treating the disease is not undue.