Legal advice and representation for couples building a life together in Australia
Partner Visa Lawyers Australia
Applying for an Australian partner visa is about much more than proving you love each other.
Your relationship history, where you are both living, previous visas, children, timing, evidence and future plans can all affect how you approach the application.
At TranQuill Legal, we help couples understand the right pathway for their circumstances and can manage the partner visa process from strategy and evidence through to lodgement and permanent residency.
We’re based in Canberra and work with couples across Australia and internationally.
Before you apply, make sure you’re taking the right pathway
You may already know you want to apply for a partner visa, but what is often less obvious is how and when you should apply.
- Should you apply while you’re in Australia or from overseas?
- Are you already eligible as a de facto couple, or would registering your relationship change your options?
- Should you marry first?
- How will previous visas affect the application?
- Should your child be included in the visa application, or could another pathway be more appropriate?
- Is there anything in either person’s immigration, relationship or sponsorship history that needs to be dealt with before lodgement?
These are the kinds of questions we work through before an application begins.
Because with a visa this important — and this expensive — we would much rather identify a problem before you lodge than discover it afterwards.
Partner visa advice based on your relationship, not a generic checklist
Two couples can both be applying for a partner visa and have completely different matters.
You might be:
- married and living together in Australia
- in a de facto relationship and trying to establish whether you meet the requirements
- living in different countries
- engaged and planning to marry
- trying to decide between an onshore and offshore application
- bringing children into the application
- dealing with previous relationships, sponsorships or visas
- already partway through an application and unsure what happens next
- worried that the evidence you have isn’t enough
- dealing with circumstances that don’t fit neatly into the standard checklist
Our first job is to understand your situation as a whole.
From there, we can explain the pathway available to you, identify anything that needs particular attention and give you a clear plan for moving forward.
How TranQuill Legal can help with your partner visa
Start with a clear strategy
Every new matter begins with a Migration Strategy Consultation.
We take the time to understand your relationship, immigration history, current circumstances and longer-term plans before recommending how to proceed.
This isn’t a short sales call.
It is dedicated time with an immigration professional to properly work through your situation and answer the questions that are specific to you.
Full partner visa representation
If you decide you would like us to manage the application, we can represent you throughout the partner visa process.
That can include:
- developing the strategy for your application
- preparing tailored document and evidence checklists
- reviewing and organising your relationship evidence
- preparing the required forms and supporting material
- lodging the application on your behalf
- managing correspondence from the Department of Home Affairs
- responding to requests for further information
- keeping you updated while the application is processed
- assisting with the permanent stage of your partner visa pathway
Our aim is to prepare the application properly from the beginning, with the information and evidence needed to clearly demonstrate your circumstances.
The evidence isn’t just about having enough of it
This is one of the biggest areas of confusion we see with partner visas. People often arrive with hundreds of photos, years of messages and folders full of documents and ask: “Is this enough?”
The better question is whether the evidence clearly tells the story the Department needs to understand. Partner visa applications generally involve evidence relating to areas such as:
Financial aspects
This may include shared accounts, expenses, assets, financial commitments and the way you manage money as a couple.
Your household
Evidence can help demonstrate where and how you live together and how household responsibilities are shared.
Social aspects of your relationship
This can include evidence of how your relationship is recognised by family, friends and your wider community.
Your commitment to each other
Your relationship history, communication, future plans and the way your lives have become connected can also be relevant.
Which Australian partner visa could apply to you?
Australia has several partner visa pathways depending on your relationship and circumstances.
The Department of Home Affairs currently provides partner pathways for spouses, de facto partners and prospective spouses of Australian citizens, Australian permanent residents and eligible New Zealand citizens.
Applying from within Australia
Partner Visa subclasses 820 and 801
The subclass 820 is the temporary stage of the onshore partner visa pathway, followed by the subclass 801 permanent visa.
The subclass 820 application is generally made while the applicant is in Australia.
Applying from outside Australia
Partner Visa subclasses 309 and 100
The subclass 309 is the provisional stage of the offshore partner visa pathway, followed by the subclass 100 permanent visa.
The subclass 309 pathway is for eligible spouses and de facto partners applying from outside Australia.
Engaged but not yet married?
Prospective Marriage Visa subclass 300
The Prospective Marriage Visa may be available to eligible couples who intend to marry before progressing through the partner visa pathway.
Whether this is the most appropriate option depends on your circumstances, so it is worth getting advice before assuming that being engaged means subclass 300 is automatically your best pathway.
Partner visas are a significant application to get wrong
The government application charge alone is substantial and there can also be additional costs for things such as health examinations, police certificates, translations and other requirements.
But cost isn’t the only reason to prepare carefully.
A partner visa affects where you can live, whether you can build your life together in Australia and, eventually, a pathway to permanent residency.
It’s worth understanding what you’re doing before you press submit.
What full representation with TranQuill Legal looks like
Book your Migration Strategy Consultation
We start by getting across the full picture: your relationship, immigration history, current visas, where you’re each living, your plans and any concerns you already have.
We’ll discuss your available pathway and what we recommend doing next.
Decide whether you want us to represent you
If you’d like TranQuill Legal to manage your partner visa application, we’ll provide a clear cost agreement outlining the work involved.
There is no obligation to proceed with full representation simply because you had a consultation.
Build your application and evidence
You’ll receive tailored guidance about what we need from you.
Rather than leaving you to work out what documents belong where, we help you gather, organise and present the evidence relevant to your particular relationship.
We prepare and lodge the application
Our team prepares the application, reviews the supporting documentation and lodges it on your behalf.
We manage the matter while it’s being processed
When we’re representing you, Department correspondence comes through us.
We deal with requests, keep you informed and guide you if circumstances change during processing.
Processing times vary, and the Department advises that Partner visa applications may experience longer processing times depending on demand and other factors.
We help you through the next stage
Partner migration is generally a staged process.
Where we continue to represent you, we’ll help you understand what needs to happen as you progress toward the permanent stage of the pathway.
Why couples choose TranQuill Legal
There are plenty of firms that will take on your visa application. Here’s why our clients tend to stay with us — and refer their friends.
You get a team that actually gets to know your matter
We’re a small, experienced immigration law team.
You aren’t simply another application moving through a large processing system. We understand the history behind your matter and the people whose lives are affected by it.
We don’t assume every partner visa is straightforward
A genuine relationship doesn’t necessarily mean a simple application.
Previous visa issues, sponsorship histories, periods living apart, children, previous relationships and unusual circumstances can all introduce questions that need careful consideration.
We regularly work with matters that don’t fit neatly into a standard template.
Specialist immigration experience
TranQuill Legal’s immigration team has decades of combined experience and is led by an Accredited Specialist in Immigration Law.
That experience becomes particularly valuable when something about your circumstances isn’t straightforward.
We’ll tell you where you actually stand
We don’t make promises about outcomes we can’t control.
If we see an issue, we’ll explain it. If we think something needs to be handled differently, we’ll tell you why.
Frequently asked questions
Not sure whether you’re ready to apply?
That’s exactly what the first consultation is for.
You don’t need to arrive knowing your subclass, having all your evidence organised or already knowing what you want us to do.
Bring us the situation.
Start with a Migration Strategy Consultation
Get dedicated time with our immigration team to understand your partner visa pathway and what your next steps should be.
Pricing: $363 payable at the start (secure link to your phone)
Not quite ready to book?
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How Much Evidence Do You Need for an Australian Partner Visa?
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