Partner visas – Subclasses 820/801 onshore and 309/100 offshore

To achieve a successful Partner Visa outcome, you need to demonstrate that your relationship is genuine and ongoing. In simple terms, this means showing that you share your life together in the same way most committed couples do.

Key aspects include:

• Living together and sharing a home.

• Sharing daily responsibilities such as managing the household, raising children, or making joint decisions.

• Owning or sharing assets like a car, property, or other joint belongings.

• Presenting socially as a couple – family, friends, and the wider community should recognise your relationship.

Of course, every relationship is different, but staying within these schemes will help demonstrate the reality of your partnership, facilitate the understanding of your relationship, and support a positive visa outcome.

It’s important to understand that a joint lease or bank account alone is not enough. What matters is the overall picture of a shared life, mutual commitment, and a relationship that is open and recognised by others.

Applicants must prove they are in a genuine and continuing relationship. The Department of Home Affairs assesses this across four key pillars of evidence:

• Financial – joint bank accounts, shared bills, assets, or financial support.

• Household – living together, sharing daily responsibilities, household bills, or lease agreements.

• Social – proof that friends, family, and the community recognise the relationship.

• Commitment – long-term plans, ongoing communication, and evidence of genuine intention to remain together.

As of 1 July 2026, the partner visa cost is over $11,710 for the main applicant. Additional costs may apply for health checks, police clearances, and document translations. Prices are increase yearly on 1 July.

Potentially, yes. The 12-month minimum relationship requirement generally applies to de facto couples. It does not apply if you are legally married.

If you are not married, the requirement may also be waived where your relationship has been registered under a recognised Australian state or territory law.

In either case, you must still demonstrate that your relationship is genuine and continuing and satisfy all other Partner Visa requirements. Marriage or relationship registration does not, by itself, guarantee that the visa will be granted.

Living together is one of the strongest forms of evidence. For a partner visa based on de facto relationships, couples must usually show they have lived together (or haven’t lived apart on a permanent basis) for at least 12 months, unless they have registered their relationship in a state or territory that allows it. Married couples do not need to meet the 12-month requirement, but they must still show their relationship is genuine and continuing.

This is one of the most common mistakes. Immigration does not rely on personal statements alone. If you cannot provide evidence of shared finances, household arrangements, or social recognition, the Department may decide the relationship is not genuine at the standard required. Couples who live apart or avoid combining finances often fail to meet the commitment pillar, even if they see themselves as partners.

Evidence may include:

• Joint lease or mortgage documents.

• Joint bank accounts and shared bills.

• Photos of significant events together.

• Statements from friends and family.

• Travel itineraries, tickets, or holidays taken together.

• Written communication (messages, calls, emails) showing ongoing contact.

Please note this is not intended as an exhaustive list but just as an indicative minimum.

• Believing love declarations are enough without documents.

• Being in a relationship but not living together and providing no explanation.

• Avoiding financial ties, which weakens the financial pillar.

• Having little or no recognition from family or friends.

• Submitting inconsistent information in forms and documents.

• Yes, it is possible to apply for a Partner Visa while you are on a tourist visa. In fact, you can lodge a partner visa from almost any substantive visa, including a tourist visa, provided that your visa does not carry condition 8503 – No Further Stay. If 8503 is present, you cannot apply onshore unless the Department agrees to waive it.

  An important benefit of applying onshore is that when you lodge the partner visa from inside Australia, you are automatically granted a Bridging Visa A (BVA). This bridging visa does not start immediately but will take effect once your tourist visa (or other substantive visa) expires. At that point, the BVA will keep you lawful in Australia while your application is processed.

  The BVA issued for partner visa applicants comes with no conditions — meaning it often allows work and study rights, and in practice provides conditions comparable to those of a partner visa already approved. In addition to this, a partner visa application makes you eligible for Medicare enrolment.  

Technically, there is no difference in the visa itself — both are part of the Partner Visa subclasses. The difference lies in the basis of the application:

• A spouse visa is based on a legal marriage to an Australian citizen, permanent resident, or eligible New Zealand citizen.

• A de facto visa Australia is based on proving a genuine and continuing relationship without marriage, usually by showing at least 12 months of living together or by registering the relationship with a state or territory authority.

The procedure, costs, and processing times are the same for both. Applicants must provide evidence across the four pillars — financial, household, social, and commitment. The key variation is in the period of evidence required:

• Married couples do not need to prove 12 months of cohabitation, but must still show the marriage is genuine and ongoing.

• De facto couples must demonstrate either 12 months of living together or provide a registered relationship certificate if they have not yet reached the 12-month mark.

In practice, both visas are assessed against the same high standard: the relationship must resemble that of a married or de facto couple, going beyond casual dating and showing genuine long-term commitment.

Relationship registration may allow a de facto couple to apply without first meeting the usual 12-month relationship requirement. However, you must meet the eligibility and residency requirements of the state or territory where you register.

Recognised relationship registers are available in:

• New South Wales
• Victoria
• Queensland
• South Australia
• Tasmania
• Australian Capital Territory

Western Australia and the Northern Territory do not currently have relationship registers. If you live in WA or the NT, you may only be able to register in another jurisdiction if you meet its residency requirements.

Even with a registered relationship, you must provide evidence that the relationship is genuine and continuing, including evidence of its financial, household, social and commitment aspects.

Yes. Same-sex couples have exactly the same rights as heterosexual couples when applying for a partner visa in Australia. They must also demonstrate the relationship through the four pillars of evidence.

• Provide consistent and clear evidence across all four pillars.

• Register your relationship if you cannot show 12 months of living together.

• Prepare detailed relationship statements from both partners.

• Include statutory declarations from friends and family.

• Organise documents carefully to avoid confusion.