Sponsorship for a Partner to Migrate to Australia: completing the sponsor section of the 820/801
Last Updated on 7 April 2026
If you’ve been following along on all my 820/801 Partner Visa application posts, you’ll have already read my lengthy post detailing every single question of the online application. This current post is essentially the same thing for the sponsor’s application, providing you with all the questions and some tips on the application before your partner actually sits down to start typing.
Read my whole series on applying for the 820/801 Australian Partner Visa for more information about preparing your evidence, lodging your application, and the next steps. If you’re just beginning, start with this post to get an overview (and to read about our story). And, as always, please remember that I am not a migration agent or affiliated with Home Affairs in any way, so all the information provided in these posts and in the comments below is based entirely on my own experience and my own understanding of the application process.
How to begin the sponsor application online
By this point, you will have already submitted your 820/801 application, paid the fee, and recorded the Transaction Reference Number (TRN) for your application. You can now give this number to your partner and get them started on their application, Sponsorship for a Partner to Migrate to Australia. They can create their own account to do this, but it’s definitely easier to just complete the application within your existing IMMI Account so you can keep tabs on everything in one place.
From the “My Applications” main page, click the link to begin a “New Application“, select the “Family” tab, and then choose “Sponsorship for a Partner to Migrate to Australia (300, 309/100, 820/801)“. Your parter will agree to T&Cs before getting to the first set of questions.
What questions will your partner be asked
This is an overview of the questions that appear on your partner’s online application, Sponsorship for a Partner to Migrate to Australia. Questions displayed may vary according to personal circumstances (i.e. answers to previous questions), but this should give you a general idea of the information your partner will be asked to provide.
Application Context
This short section just asks your partner to provide information about your visa application. Specifically, the Transaction Reference Number (TRN) for your application (which you can find on the My Applications page of your IMMI Account), your birth date (not your partner’s DOB!), and when you lodged your application.
Sponsor
Your partner is now asked to fill out personal information similar to what you provided on this section of your own application, including full name, DOB, passport details, country of birth, relationship status, and citizenship details.
This is where your partner will need to specify whether you are applying for the Partner Visa as a de-facto, engaged, or married couple and reference the day your relationship began (which needs to be the same date you listed in your application!).
Critical data confirmation
For this page, your partner will be asked to review their personal details (including name and passport information) and confirm that it is correct before proceeding.
Sponsor’s contact details
This section just requires the residential address, mobile number, and email address of your partner.
Applicant
Your partner needs to give your full name, sex, and DOB, presumably to further confirm linkage to your application.
Applicant’s contact details
This section now asks for your residential address, mobile number, and email address.
Reducing violence in the community
The following statement is provided before asking your partner to confirm that they understand the information: The Australian Government is committed to reducing violence in the Australian community, including family and sexual violence. As part of this commitment sponsors are required to disclose criminal convictions they have had and/or charges awaiting legal action. Sponsors must also give the department permission to disclose any or all of the convictions to the visa applicant (s).Sponsors and partners should access more detailed information about Reducing Violence in the community in order to complete this form.
Sponsor’s relationships
After confirming that you and your partner are not related and that you have met in person, your partner needs to provide additional details about your relationship.
Most of these questions are identical to those you already completed on your own application, so you should be able to help them if there is any confusion! Essentially, your sponsor will provide details of when and where you first met, the date a committed de-facto relationship began (or the date of your marriage), and the date you “committed to a shared life together to the exclusion of all others”. This is in addition to the date you began dating, which you supplied earlier. I gave a more detailed explanation of all these dates in a previous post, but just make sure that these dates align with the ones you provided on your own application.
Your partner is also asked Has the applicant lived separately and apart from the sponsor for any periods of time since committing to a shared life together to the exclusion of all others? and will need to provide a brief explanation of this. Again, I talked about this in a previous post, but just make sure your sponsor discloses the same information that you disclosed on your application.
And now, your partner also gets to enjoy the fun bit of putting your entire relationship under the microscope! They are given these instructions and then asked to describe the major aspects of your relationship in the boxes provided (2000 character limit):
In the following questions, details of the relationship between the applicant and sponsor must be provided and should form the basis of the applicant’s claim that their relationship with their sponsor is genuine and continuing. The information provided also needs to be supported by relevant evidence. This evidence may be such things as photographs, receipts, bills, legal documents or anything else to demonstrate the nature of the relationship the applicant has with their sponsor. This evidence can be uploaded after the submission of this application.
- Financial aspects of the relationship: How do you pay for food/bills/rent/mortgage? Do you have joint assets or financial responsibilities? How do you share money? How do you support one another during times of financial hardship?
- Nature of the household: How do you share cooking/cleaning/shopping/house maintenance responsibilities? Do you rent or own a home together? What is your living situation (e.g. housemates, living with family, etc)?
- Social aspects of the relationship: Do you attend social events together or travel together? Do your friends and family have knowledge of your relationship? How have you made your relationship “official” (e.g. marriage, de-facto registration, facebook, etc)?
- Nature of the commitment: How have you provided emotional support to one another? What are your future plans together? How have your lives become intertwined? How have you committed to one another (e.g. will, beneficiary of super, marriage, de-facto registration)?
- Development of the relationship: When did you become committed and how has your relationship progressed?
If your sponsor has already written signed statements to upload as evidence, it’s possible to just write “see XXXX in uploaded evidence” rather than writing the same statement in this very limited box.
Previous relationships
Your sponsor is asked to indicate whether you (the applicant) have been in any previous relationships with anyone other than your sponsor— specifically, this is asking whether you’ve been married or in a de facto relationship with another partner previously.
Sponsor’s previous relationships
As with the previous section, the sponsor now needs to indicate whether they have been in a previous marriage or de facto relationship with anyone other than you, whether they have ever sponsored a previous partner/spouse for this visa, or whether they have ever been sponsored by a previous partner/spouse for this visa. Presumably, there will be follow-up questions if they answer yes to any of these statements.
Source of income
From a dropdown menu, your partner needs to specify their main source of income. This is important because your sponsor becomes legally obligated to support you financially during the course of this visa, so Home Affairs wants to suss out where this support is actually coming from (salary, government benefits, retirement payments, etc).
Migrating members of the family unit
Is your partner also sponsoring your son/mother/etc for migration to Australia on the same application?
Countries resided/visited
Your partner unfortunately has to complete the same ridiculous list of every country they’ve ever visited over the last 10 years with exact dates that you had to complete for your own application. Ugh.
Character declarations
This section is a long series of yes/no questions regarding any criminal convictions/charges that have been brought against your partner.
Sponsor declarations
The final page of the sponsor application is a series of declarations about the honesty of information your partner has included, their understanding of the visa grant process, and their agreement to support you by providing housing for up to 2 years from the grant of this visa.
What’s next?
The next step is to actually upload all of your evidence to your application and then get started on your health and police checks:
- UPLOADING EVIDENCE TO OUR 820/801 AUSTRALIAN PARTNER VISA APPLICATION
- COMPLETING YOUR HEALTH CHECK ASSESSMENT FOR THE 820/801 AUSTRALIAN PARTNER VISA
- COMPLETING AFP NATIONAL POLICE CHECKS (NPC) FOR YOUR 820/801 AUSTRALIAN PARTNER VISA
- FBI POLICE CHECKS FOR AMERICANS APPLYING FOR THE 820/801 AUSTRALIAN PARTNER VISA
I hope this information has been helpful and I wish you so much luck on your Australian Partner Visa journey! Feel free to ask any questions below and I will do my very best to answer them.
* I am not a migration agent or affiliated with Home Affairs in any way, so all the information provided in these posts and in the comments below is based entirely on my own experience and my own understanding of the application process.
If you found this post helpful and want to contribute to some of the costs associated with running the blog, I would be infinitely grateful!
You can use the PayPal button below to donate whatever you feel this information is worth. If you aren’t able, don’t worry— I will always keep my posts free and accessible for everyone!
UPDATE: A MASSIVE THANK YOU to everyone who’s commented to let me know that you found these posts helpful— I can’t tell you how much it means to me to read your success stories! I worked incredibly hard to compile all of this information (while getting my PhD & teaching), but it’s genuinely been worth it to make even a small difference for my fellow immigrants.
More importantly, though, THANK YOU to everyone who has shared their own experience or answered questions for other readers in the comments below! We are building a wonderful & supportive community of Partner Visa applicants here, and every comment and question is a resource for others.
If you felt like these posts helped with your application, I’d encourage you to come back after your visa is granted (or even after various milestones) and let us all know what happened— it might mean the world to someone else struggling with this process! Best wishes to you all xx bb
The Comments
Dawn Mitchell
Hi I’m a little late at this , I only have 30 days till my visa is up ,I’m needing to get my application in and paid for so I know I won’t be on the plane .to begin with with what are the bare essentials to start the process and have the bridging visa begin ?since I only have 30 days I’ll do the rest after wards .my defacto partner is the resident here .never left AU was married 50 yrs si I think his will be easier than mine.will his need to be provided at the time I send in mine ? So many questions ,I’m old ans slow don’t understand all this computer stuff
Anonymous
Hi – regarding the 820 application, besides uploading info on social, financial and househould evidence, there is one regarding “character history – evidence”, does this refer to a police certificate? There is a Form 1563 which is a list of questions of possible crimes (tick yes or no), is this sufficient, ie no need for police certificate?
Andrew
Hi Brooke, thanks so much for all of the helpful advice. My partner has successfully submitted the partner visa application and it is paid for… Now I am trying to complete the sponsor section but cant get past page 4 Critical data confirmation
For this page, your partner will be asked to review their personal details (including name and passport information) and confirm that it is correct before proceeding.
It keeps saying there is an error but I can’t find an error anywhere…. Any experience or advice…?
Jamilah
Hafa Adai Brooke,
Just wanted to say Si Yu’us Ma’ase for this extensive explanation you’ve given and sharing your story
What an Amazing Life!!!!
Just your posts have helped me understand the process a bit more as I felt Lost shuffling through
all the information out there.
Appreciate all your efforts
Jamilah from Guam
(Aussie to Be God willing)
Kandace
Hey Brooke! First off VERY helpful blog. Question: What do you think is better, writing a statement for EACH pillar like on separate documents or combing all 4 pillars in 1 statement. Also does the sponsor have to write one on each too, or can they be joint statements but do separate development of relationship ones?
Michelle
Do you still as a sponsor need to complete the part ” Sponsorship for a partner to migrate to Australia”? It appears you don’t but I am a bit confused now! Thanks for a great and helpful post.
brooke brisbine
MichelleHi Michelle, as far as I’m aware, the sponsor still needs to complete an online application after the main applicant submits their portion.
Best of luck!
xx bb
Janielle Beh
Hi Brooke,
Thanks so much for your posts on this visa. I’m applying as a sponsor for my spouse who is from Rwanda. We currently live together in Rwanda. Under Countries Resided (in my sponsor application), I’m wondering how I should indicate that I reside in Rwanda currently. There is no option to say Date From and Date To (as present). I have to put specific date, month, and year. So I’m wondering if I should include Rwanda in the list of countries resided. I was thinking I could also just write a letter explaining that I couldn’t include this detail in the application form.
Does the sponsor also have to fill and attach a Form 80?
Janielle Beh
Janielle BehAlso wanted to add: I also realized that if I fill Form 80 and Form 40, as sponsor, then I can attach a statement at the end to explain my countries of residence, and that I always return to Australia except for 2021 covid time. I continue to state my residential address as my Melbourne address because all my Australian bank accounts are in that address. It is my family home and it is the home we will stay in for some time when my spouse gets the partner visa and we travel back to Australia together. (We have decided to stay and work in Rwanda together until he gets the visa. We do not want to live separately while waiting for the visa, that’s why I’m not back in Australia.)
brooke brisbine
Janielle BehHi Janielle, many apologies for the delay in responding to your comment, I’m sure you’ve long since submitted your application! In case another reader has a similar question, though, yes I think writing a letter is always the best way to clarify anything you worry might be confusing about the application, including your issue with not being able to indicate current residence on the form.
And secondly, Form 40 is for the applicant only, but there is a sponsor-version called 40SP 🙂
Hope that helps!
xx bb
Cao Nguyen
Good day
I am sponsorship fill in the form 40sp but I can not remember the date application lodged for previous sponsorship and the dade visa was grant in Question 29. Do you know where and How I get that information or I put it blank. Thanks
Kelly
Hi Brooke,
I’d love if you could help me out. We followed your other Blog on ‘Completing the 820/801…’ with me as the applicant and my partner as the sponsor. My partner and I collectively wrote and signed the Joint Statements for the financial, social aspects etc. However, our main concern here is that we wrote them with me as the first person. So now that my partner has to do a Sponsorship application, we are wondering whether it is okay for us to upload the same Joint Statements (signed by both him and me) but adding a little note in the section to explain. This is what we are going to say:
(Applicant) and I collectively wrote a very detailed ‘Joint Statement on the Financial Aspects of our Relationship’ at the time of her initial application. This Joint Statements is signed by the both of us. Please note that while this Joint Statement refers to her in first person, this is purely for ease of reading purposes and all details were collectively accumulated and presented by the both of us. Please see evidence of the financial aspects of our relationship in the attached document titled ‘Joint Statement on the Financial Aspects of our Relationship.’
I would love to hear your thoughts Brooke.
– Kelly x
brooke brisbine
KellyHi Kelly, I am SO sorry for the slow reply to your comment, I’ve been inundated with thousands of questions and haven’t managed to get through them all as well as I wanted to!
I’m sure this is far too late to be of use to you, but if anyone reading has a similar question, then I would think yes, that is a perfectly acceptable way to submit your statements.
All the best 🙂
xx bb
Kete
Hi Brooke, Thank you very much for your wonderful blog.
My partner has submitted the complete application, and now it is my turn as a sponsor to apply for the sponsorship (right after the application submission).
We have realized that the questions on the sponsorship application are the same as the applicant (such as nature of the household, etc.), and the supporting documents will be the same as the applicant (you also mentioned this part).
I wonder how I should fill out the online application for those questions (i.e., statements) and what type of documents should be attached?
Should we write new statements and attach new evidence? We already attached all the evidence to the applicant’s application.
Thank you, and I look forward to hearing from you!
brooke brisbine
KeteHi Kete,
Ideally you should answer those questions in your own words, providing another perspective on your relationship to add legitimacy to the application. If you’ve already written long statements for the main application, though, you can keep the responses on the sponsor application more brief. I believe it’s important that they “hear from both of you”, so even if you just write 2000 characters on the sponsorship app, I think it helps!
And you do not need to attach any evidence at all under the sponsorship application, so just make sure you have everything uploaded on the main application.
Hope that helps 🙂
-Brooke
Kete
brooke brisbineHi Brooke,
Thank you very much for your reply.
Your blog is a wonderful source of information. It would be great if the most frequently asked questions in the comments were extracted and were published in another blog post.
Thank you and stay safe!
brooke brisbine
KeteHi Kete,
I’ve actually done just that, you can check it out here 🙂
https://brookebeyond.com/820-801-visa-faq-top-10-most-common-questions-about-the-australian-partner-visa-with-full-answers
Soraya Proude
Hey Brooke!
I’m asking about the new changes to the defacto visa (801)
Apparently now we are having to complete the sponsorship application first, get accepted and then do the defacto visa after.
I am wondering how I go about this – I can’t find much as I think the changes were made this month of 2021 (this year.)
I believe it is the 40SP form? But I have seen multiple copies of this which differ from one to the other. I just really want to complete my sponsorship application so we can start on the defacto as my partners third year visa expires Oct 2022
Thanks
brooke brisbine
Soraya ProudeHi Soraya, they’ve been discussing those changes for a long time, so it’s interesting to hear they’ve finally been implemented!
I haven’t looked into it recently, but previous discussions were that the online sponsorship application (described in this post) would need to be completed through IMMI prior to the main application. By all accounts, 40SP is an outdated paper version of the sponsorship application, but most of us still completed & submitted it anyway “just in case”. The fact that it’s so hard to find this form and all the links keep breaking as webpages are deleted is just an indication that it’s being phased out. Complete it if you like, but focus your energy on the online application, that’s the true requirement and asks for all the same info as 40SP.
Carleigh
Hi Brooke,
Thank you so much for sharing your visa experience. It has been a constant resource for my partner and I as we go through our application.
I have a bit of a dumb question. My partner has had his 820 approved and we are now going through the 801 application. As the sponsor, do I need to fill out the Stage 2 – Permanent Partner Visa Assessment (100,801) like my partner did?
Thanks so much for all your help and information.
brooke brisbine
CarleighHi Carleigh, so glad these posts were helpful and congrats to you & your partner on a successful 820! Unfortunately I didn’t apply for the 801 (since my visas were granted simultaneously), so I can’t offer much help, but hoping one of my readers can…
Other applicants, please feel free to comment back & answer this question if you can!
Abigael
Hi Brooke,
Thank you very much for sharing your experiences on applying the partner visa. It is very helpful. I just finished lodging my 820 application and got a VBA right away. I have some questions here i hope you can help me. Firstly, In the financial aspect, we don’t have any shared expenses since im not allowed to work as per my tourist visa condition, my partner is the one who pays for everything. We don’t have joint bank accounts, lease agreements and bills in both of our names. My partner owns a company and the bills and the name of the house is under his company name. Do you think it is alright that i put there I am completely financially dependent to my partner? 2. Where can i get a form 40sp? 3. Does my partner/sponsor need to do his sponsorship application right after I lodge my 820 or just wait for the immigration to tell us? 4. I already had an APF clearance and NBI clearance attached on my character assessment, do i still need to attach an evidence to obtain those clearances on my character assessment? I hope you can help me in some of my questions. I know you’re re not an immigration agent but what you have put on your posts are very helpful. Thank you and more power to you!
brooke brisbine
AbigaelHi Abigael,
1. Yes, be honest and say you are a dependent. That’s not an altogether unusual situation, so just explain what he pays for and how he supports you (ex. provide evidence that you live at the house for free, that he pays for your bills, etc).
2. https://www.vfsglobal.com/Australia/Turkey/pdf/40SP.pdf
3. Sponsorship application should be completed as soon as possible after the initial application (a few weeks is fine)
4. No, only upload “evidence of intention to obtain…” if you haven’t done it; if you have completed them, this can be left blank and just upload directly to the categories.
Hope that helps!
-Brooke
Abigael
brooke brisbineHi Brooke!
Just got my temporary visa! Thank you so much for your reply and for sharing your wonderful blogs. They really helped me on my application.
Again, thank you and more power to you!
Regards,
Abigael
brooke brisbine
AbigaelCongratulations, Abigael!! Wishing you all the best in Australia 🙂
Henry
Hi Brooke,
I have applied for a partner visa 820 and on a bridging visa now. My wife and I intend moving from NSW to Queensland by the end of the month. I have informed immigration of my new address in Queensland. Does my wife still need to do that as my sponsor? Thanks.
brooke brisbine
HenryHi Henry,
Just to avoid any confusion, I’d say she also needs to inform immigration that the address she listed on her sponsorship application has changed. Make sure both of your documents match (the same address), or that could cause issues!
Nik
Hello Brooke,
Having trouble with the online partner visa 820 application and wondered if you could help me out.
I have started filling the ‘Sponsorship for a Partner to Migrate to Australia’ online form on behalf of my partner, getting an error on page 4 of her online form and is receiving an error:
“The related application details provided cannot be verified, check the details and amend if necessary. The applicant will not be able to continue and should review the eligibility information on our website.”
I have looked on the common errors webpage on immi and other users who are getting the same error.
Can you please shed some light onto why I am receiving this error and unable to proceed with the application?
Thanks
brooke brisbine
NikHi Nik,
Have you already submitted the initial application and gotten a reference number to use with the sponsorship application?
Immigate
Awesome tips that everyone who plans to migrate can follow through.
Mark
Hi Brooke
I just started my partner visa application (309/100) in immi account but not yet submitted.
At the same time i started sponsorship for partner to migrate Australia. But when i reach its 4th page, i am getting the following error:
“The related application details provided cannot be verified, check the details and amend if necessary. The application will not be able to continue. Further information about revalidation is available on our website”.
Is it because i didn’t submit my partner application yet? I provided TRN number of my partner’s incomplete application but still same error.
I am bit confused do i need to submit sponsorship form first OR do i need to submit and pay for partner visa form first?
Your help in this regards will be appreciated.
Cheers
Mark
brooke brisbine
MarkHi Mark,
I’m sure this reply is too late to help you (very sorry), but for anyone else with a similar question:
Yes, you MUST submit AND pay for the initial application first, before you can use the TRN to link the sponsorship application.
Matic
Hi Brooke,
All I wanted to say is big thank you for sharing your experience. It helped me a lot when I was checking online and in the forms of what goes where. Also our approach is – the more (info for the migration) the better (faster? :)).
mia
hi brooke,
hope you doing fine.
just to confirm about TRN NUMBER.
there will be 2 different TRN NUMBER is it right?
one for applicant and one for sponsor.
in sponsor part,they need to include applicant TRN
am i right?
brooke brisbine
miaHi Mia,
That’s correct, you need to include the applicant TRN when you complete the sponsor application!
Hope that helps 🙂
-Brooke
Jade
Just wondering if you need to put in every country and date visited in the last 10 years (spouses sponsorship question) I’ve had easily over 100 exit/entry to 65 countries and I’m not sure I want to document them all if I don’t have to. I’m an Australian citizen.
I know Brooke you guys travelled a lot, did Callum put down all his visits? Anyone else know?
TÍA
brooke brisbine
JadeHi Jade,
Annoyingly, you do still have to put down every single entry and exit in the last 10 years. It’s quite a task, but there’s not much of a way around it, sadly!
Best of luck to you 🙂
-Brooke
Thanh
Hi Brook,
Thank you so much for your post, it is really helpful.
I have some questions to ask you and hope you help me.
My bf sponsored his ex in Jan 2018, they applied 820, then he withdraws in Jan 2019. He noticed to Immi that the relationship is end,he withdrawed it, his ex moved out of house. Now he wants to sponsor me, and I wonder the question 21 in Applicant form:
Has the sponsor previously sponsored/ nominated a spouse, de facto, prospective spouse or independent partner? I wonder if he answer Yes or No, as what he said he did not sponsor her because he withdrawed, so it means he sponsor no one, he will answer NO. Please help me as I don’t want to make it wrong. And he will write a letter to explain that why he answer No on that question.
Thank you so much,
Thanh
brooke brisbine
ThanhHi Thanh, so sorry for my delayed response!
I don’t know the answer to your specific question, but I’d lean towards answering YES. Whichever you decide, I think the MOST important thing would be writing a letter to explain the circumstances around his previous sponsorship!
Best of luck,
– Brooke
Thanh Nguyen
brooke brisbineThank you Brook.
Thanh.
Anonymous
Well done
Henry A.
Hi Brooke,
Thanks for your response for my last question. It was helpful. Please, i would really need another of your opinion in another issue here. I made a mistake in the STATE of one of my supporting witness due to the computer was mucking up that time. I put NORTHERN TERRITORY instead of QUEENSLAND. Do you think it would be a good idea if i state that in the QUESTION 44 (ARE THERE ANY OTHER DETAILS YOU WOULD LIKE TO TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION?) in the FORM 1221(ADDITIONAL PERSONAL PARTICULARS INFORMATION) since i haven’t sent that? Please, what do you reckon?
Thanks.
brooke brisbine
Henry A.Hi Henry,
Sorry, was this on Form 888 or Form 80? And was the postcode correct? If so, I think Home Affairs would be able to work that out and I wouldn’t worry about it too much! However, it never hurts to correct the mistake in a quick letter or other section of the application, just to be safe.
-Brooke
Henry A.
brooke brisbineHi Brooke,
Thanks for your reply.I made the mistake on the Online one of which i cannot edit it again because i have already paid and submitted it, but i got every part of the address (even the post code) right, except the STATE OF RESIDENT.
Thanks.
Best regards.
brooke brisbine
Henry A.Hi Henry,
If the postcode is correct AND the state is correct when you have that person complete Form 888 on your behalf, I don’t think it will be a huge deal. Again, you can always write a brief letter explaining the error and upload to your application to be extra cautious, but I wouldn’t stress about it too much!
-Brooke
Henry A.
brooke brisbineHi Brooke,
Thanks for the advice. It was helpful. God bless you. Thanks again.
Henry
Thanks Brooke. So much help. God bless.
brooke brisbine
HenrySo happy to help, Henry! Best of luck with it all 🙂
-Brooke
Henry A.
Hi Brooke,
I am on a Prospective Marriage Visa. My wife and i got married after i arrived in Australia and i am now applying for a Partner visa 820/801. But while filling the Form 40SP, my wife and i became confused at the QUESTION 29 ( Have you previously sponsored/nominated a spouse, de facto partner, prospective spouse (fiance) or interdependent partner?). We are really confused here about whether to choose YES or NO, because my wife sponsored me on the Prospective marriage visa to Come to Australia. Will it affect my partner application if she thick YES, as she is also my sponsor in this Partner visa? Will it be counted against her base on the Sponsorship limitation law? Please, i need your advice here. Thanks.
brooke brisbine
Henry A.Hi Henry,
I think that question is really about a previous (different) partner/spouse, so it likely wouldn’t apply to your PMV. I think you can answer NO here and then there will be opportunities to provide details of your PMV within the application so it’s clear.
Hope that helps 🙂
-Brooke
NAMDEV
HI BROOKE ,
Thank-you so much for information you provided here .I am sponsor for my partner offshore .i try to find some information about limitation 5 year ,if you previously sponsored through partner visa or sponsor your X-partner .I have following question .
1.i Previously sponsored by my partner onshore in last 2013 ,after we had break down i sponsored my partner in 2016 ,my relationship with her did not worked so we end up we separated and divorced but she did not granted her visa 309 offshore yet and i withdrew my sponsorship before immigration give any decision .so now i am about to sponsor my current partner and i am confused that ,if sponsorship limitation apply in my case or am i good ?i did check with someone ,and they said her visa did not get approve so it does not count your sponsorship .
2,I am preparing her documents is that OK to do so ??
brooke brisbine
NAMDEVHi Namdev,
Unfortunately, I don’t have any personal knowledge about the limits of how many times you can sponsor within a given time frame. Possibly another reader will know and comment back on this post; otherwise, I’d recommend calling a lawyer to ask. Often you can ask quick questions like that for a very small fee, and it would be worth it to make sure you’re actually eligible to sponsor someone before you pay the fees.
Best of luck to you!
-Brooke
Rebecca Omondi
HI Brooke
Your Blog is wonderful, thank you 🙂
After waiting two years I am starting to read logs and try to find answers!
1. I am the sponsor and my status says submitted and has not changed in two years, does it ever change or am I over thinking?
2. My partner has been asked today to re -do his medicals and get another police certificate from his country of origin and submit the form 80 even thought he did one originally and uploaded it, do you know if this is automatic or it means we are moving closer to a decisions?
Trying to keep calm and carry on
Rebecca
brooke brisbine
Rebecca OmondiHi Rebecca, so glad you found these posts helpful!
1. I had that same question and called up Home Affairs back when we first submitted– apparently the sponsorship application is ALWAYS marked “submitted” rather than “received”, it’s nothing wrong on your end.
2. I can’t comment on re-doing his medicals and a police certificate since I was never asked to re-do anything, but I certainly imagine it’s an indication that someone has actually opened your application, which is definitely good news! When did you apply? Assuming more than 12 months ago, if he’s re-doing medicals?
Based on comments from other readers, I’d say you’re moving closer to a decision 🙂
-Brooke
Beth
Hi Brooke,
What an amazingly helpful blog this is. Thank you! If you dont mind I just have a question about one of the questions on the application. It is:
Supporting witnesses
Give details of two supporting witnesses of the relationship between the applicant and the sponsor.
Do i list here the details of all those who have completed the Form 888 for the application? Even my parents and friends who have completed it who dont live in Australia?
Thanks, Beth 🙂
brooke brisbine
BethHi Beth,
Yes, this is where you provide details of those who have/will complete your Form 888s. To clarify, though, ONLY Australians are allowed to complete this form on your behalf, as it needs to be signed and witnessed in Australia.
You can absolutely include supporting letters from friends/family outside Australia, but they can’t complete Form 888 and you wouldn’t list their names here. Instead, they can write informal, signed letters (answering similar questions as asked on the Form 888) and you can upload these as additional evidence.
Hope that helps 🙂
-Brooke
juliana
Btw, thank you Brooke. Your blog is really helpful.
juliana
I am an Australian citizen currently residing in the US.
Also, since i am a sponsor for my partner, do I need fingerprint check from Australia or just the national check from AFP?
brooke brisbine
julianaHi Juliana,
I believe even the sponsor needs police checks from any country they’ve resided in for 12+ months, but I’m not 100% sure– I’m sorry!
Hopefully another reader can better answer your question!
-Brooke
Alan Noel
Wow! If I didn’t ask, we wouldn’t know and we will definitely be in trouble. It doesn’t say in the Home Affairs’ website though until I read some articles including yours about this. Thanks for your help, Brooke! 😊
Alan Noel
Hi, Brooke! Is this a totally different application than the Form 40SP which my partner already submitted as part of the requirements as a sponsor? Thank you for the clarification in advance! 😊
brooke brisbine
Alan NoelHi Alan,
Form 40SP is basically the old paper version of the sponsorship application, which some (my sponsor included) choose to do since it is still listed as “recommended”. Regardless of whether you fill out this form, the sponsor MUST complete the online sponsorship application. So your partner needs to do this, as well 🙂
Hope that helps!
-Brooke
Emma
Hi Brooke,
I have completed a “Sponsorship for a partner to migrate to Australia form”, scanned it and uploaded it. Do i have to complete it as a ‘new application’ under the same Immi account like i am reading online, or is my scanned copy that i have uploaded enough?
Thanks again!
brooke brisbine
EmmaHi Emma,
You need to complete the online sponsorship application unless you actually want to apply by mail and post in the paper copy. I’d recommend applying online! It will be mostly the same questions you already answered on (I’m assuming) 40SP?
-Brooke
Anonymous
All of your posts on the 820/801 are massively helpful. Thank you so much!
brooke brisbine
AnonymousYou are so incredibly welcome!
Good luck with everything 🙂
-Brooke
Jo Syed
Hi Brooke,
Spot On! Thanks for your detailed reply. It surely has given us much needed confidence to proceed with our application. The visa which we will be applying is offshore partner visa (309/100) since we both live overseas – I am guessing the process and requirements would be more or little the same ?
Could you please clarify on below
1) Will my wife have to wait 1-2.5 years for temporary visa after we lodge our application ?
2) And will she need to exit the country once she has been granted the permanent visa ? and how long does she need to stay out of Australia after the grant ?
3) Can you please also explain on joint declarations to be provided – Does it mean me and my wife have to jointly sign the declarations ?
Appreciate your time and thank you for your valuable inputs.
Regards,
Jo Syed
brooke brisbine
Jo SyedHi Jo,
Apologies that I missed which visa you are actually applying for! But yes, you’re right, the requirements are the same.
1. Offshore applications do seem to be processed quicker, based on all of my reader feedback, so she might only need to wait 6-18 months for the temporary visa (although it is different for everyone!).
2. I’m not sure I totally understand this question. If your wife is applying offshore for the visa, she needs to be offshore when it is granted (the temporary visa). Once you have that, though, you can both come to Australia and there’s no need to leave after the permanent visa is granted.
3. Which joint declarations are you referring to? Typically your statements should be written separately, since the CO wants to hear from both of you.
Hope that helps, but let me know if you have further questions!
-Brooke
Jo Syed
Hi Brooke,
Awesome blog with really helpful tips!
I am also in the process of applying 309/100 for my wife. Not sure with the current COVID situation, PV applications would be accepted or processed and how long would we have to wait for CO to be assigned ?
I am my partner’s sponsor and we both live in Dubai since 2008. We are happily married over 13 years and have a son who is now 9 yrs old. Our son is aus citz by descent. We are now looking to relocate to Australia. I am hoping that our long term and continuing relationship as well as child from our marriage would speed up our application approval process ?
I have a couple of questions and I would be grateful if you could answer them to make my and partner’s lives easier!
1. Financial Aspects : My wife is a homemaker and hence dependent on me for all the expenses we carry out for our house rent, utilities, groceries and every other expense there is for daily living. Therefore I do not have any evidence such as joint tenancy, joint utilities or expenses, however have one joint bank account in India which we rarely used during our vacations. She does have supplementary credit cards in her name. All invoices or bills we have for purchases are under my name. Even the school fees I pay for our son is under my name. Will this cause any issue ?
2. Statuatory declarations : Do I need to attach similar evidence and supporting documents in my sponsorship application as attached in the applicants’ ?
3. How many photos can we attach in both applicants and sponsorship applications.
4. Do we need to get certified copies of our identity documents, marriage certificate, passport copies, birth certificates. Do I need to include our son’s birth certificate, his aus citz by descent cert etc. Or these can be just scanned and uploaded ?
5. Last but not the least, need some examples on how to write nature of commitment /nature of household aspect pf our relationships.
TIA! 🙂
Jo
brooke brisbine
Jo SyedHi Jo, so glad you found these posts helpful!
As far as I know, Home Affairs hasn’t said anything about COVID-related delays, so hopefully things are still moving as normal (which is extremely slow, sadly).
From the sounds of it, you and your partner should have absolutely no issue proving a serious, long-term commitment! This doesn’t necessarily mean that you’ll have a CO assigned any quicker– but after you get the 820 temporary visa (1-2.5 years from now), you will be eligible for the “long term” exception, which basically just means your partner will move straight onto the 801 (permanent), without the usual 2 year wait.
To answer your other questions:
1. It’s not an issue that you pay for most of your family and joint expenses, that in and of itself is proof of financial interdependency! If you can show proof that you financially support your wife, you pay for your son’s schooling, you pay for your living expenses, etc, that will be sufficient. You can also explain in your statements that you are the primary earner and you support your wife.
2. Have a look at this post, it will tell you all of the recommended uploads for the applicant AND the sponsor (all of this is uploaded to the main application): https://brookebeyond.com/uploading-evidence-to-our-820-801-australian-partner-visa-application
3. You have a limit of 100 documents in total, so I recommend combining photos into PDFs, such as Family Photos 2015-2018, Travel Photos 2019, etc. You and your partner probably have thousands of photos together, so just choose a couple from each year to show a continuing relationship and major milestones.
4. You don’t need to certify any documents as long as you are applying online and uploading in colour. That includes your passport, birth certificate, etc. NO need to certify, just colour scan and upload,
5. For these specific statements, have a look at this post: https://brookebeyond.com/820-801-australian-partner-visa-evidence
Hope that helps!
-Brooke
Matt
Hi Brook my partner has just lodged her partner visa app stage 1. She did not see anywhere to upload the supporting documents and photo evidence that she had prepared. Did we make a mistake or will we be able to upload these things later?
Thanks
Matt
brooke brisbine
MattHi Matt,
After she submits the online application and her payment is processed, the upload portal with become available in IMMI. This post has some more instructions on where to upload documents: https://brookebeyond.com/uploading-evidence-to-our-820-801-australian-partner-visa-application
Hope that helps 🙂
-Brooke
Sarah
Hi Brooke,
Thank you so much for all of this information. It was exactly what I had been looking for as I am preparing to do my application without a migration agent.
I have a brief question regarding my sponsor. He does not have a passport. He was born here and has never lived in another country. Not having seen the application form, I was hoping you would know if it is possible to provide some other form of ID than a passport for him?
Thank you 🙂
brooke brisbine
SarahHi Sarah,
I believe you would be fine to use a birth certificate and Australian driver licence as ID in this instance!
-Brooke
Bradlee
Hi Brooke.
Like everyone else on your page I am so grateful for you taking the time to capture such prescriptive information for us all – particularly while balancing the workload of your PHD. How is your study going by the way?
My question relates to my partners current Student Visa (500). He really does not want to continue in his current study, and wants to instead focus on a course which is not covered under our 500 visa. The current student visa is until February 2021. We are about to commence down the path of our 801/820 application, and my understanding is that only after his previous visa lapses will the bridging visa take effect and allow him to stop his current study/increase working from 20 hours per week, etc.
He is sure that once we apply he can stop his current course and change to his preferred training and work more than 20 hours.
Can you help clarify for us? I would hate for him to walk away from his current course, only to break his current visa arrangements and ruin any chance at our partner visa being approved. My googles are not giving me very clear information.
Any help from you or the community is appreciated. 🙂
brooke brisbine
BradleeHi Bradlee,
Thanks for the lovely comment! I actually finished my thesis last year, and although my graduation ceremony has now been cancelled due to COVID19, I officially got my PhD a couple months ago 🙂
I don’t have a lot of experience with this exact situation, but I can tell you that, exactly as you said, the student visa has to expire before the BVA becomes active. It might be possible to cancel the student visa after applying for the 820, essentially forcing the BVA to come into effect sooner, but you would definitely need to clarify that from someone qualified. I’d suggest calling Home Affairs, hopefully they can provide some clarity.
Best of luck to you and your partner!
-Brooke
Adeba
Hi,
Thank you so much for this!
Does the applicant need to submit their application first and then the sponsor?
I went to do my husbands one, (applicant) and started then realised i dont have all the information on hand, so i stopped and decided to do a new application for me as the sponsor
It said that it could not verify my details? I triple checked and all information was exactly as indicated on the passport.
Could it be because my husbands application has not yet been submitted and paid for
We are going from a PMV 300 to a 820/801.
Thanks in advance
brooke brisbine
AdebaHi Adeba,
Yes, the main applicant must submit first and then the sponsor can use the TRN to link their application– it’s not possible to do this until the main app is submitted.
Hope that helps!
-Brooke
Cecilia
hello brooke..thank u very much for this helpful blog it is very big help in my visa application especially i apply in my own….Thank you very much for your advise,Take care always
brooke brisbine
CeciliaYou’re so welcome, Cecilia!
Best of luck 🙂
-Brooke
Bob
Thanks Brooke.
Ashley
Hi Brooke,
Thanks for the detailed guide. Really appreciate it.
Does this sponsorship for a partner application apply to stage 2 of the partner visa application as well? Sorry, i did the first part of the application through an agent and I’m taking over now so I’m slightly confused!
Thank you,
Ashley
brooke brisbine
AshleyHi Ashley, so sorry for the delayed response, I thought I replied to this– oops!
Unfortunately, I haven’t made it to Stage 2 myself (and I’m hoping to bypass it through the Long Term exemption), so I’m probably not the best person to ask about this. It is my understanding, however, that you only need to fill out the Sponsorship Application once during the first stage. Perhaps other readers can comment??
-Brooke
Bob
Hi Brooke,
Thanks for getting back to me.
Actually we have already uploaded all photos under my application as sponsor.
But have referred to those photos in our personal statements of both mine and my wife.
Do you think CO would be okay to check those photos under my name, or better to upload it under my wife name too (she is applicant and I’m the sponsor)
Thanks Brooke.
brooke brisbine
BobHi Bob,
I’m not totally sure in this situation. My understanding was that all of the evidence should be uploaded to the main application, but if you’ve already done it to the sponsor application, maybe it will be fine there.
-Brooke
Shane
Thanks Brooke really appreciate the feedback
Shane
Shane
Hi Brooke
Sorry i got your name wrong in previous post
Shane.
Shane
Hi Bob
Thanks for all the great info
I am in the process of filling in the sponsor section of partner visa. My partner has filled in hers bit not yet submitted. When i get to the verification part it says errror unable to verify. Would this be because my partner has not yet submitted her application and it cant find the trn or crn?
brooke brisbine
ShaneHi Shane,
You’re exactly right, you need to wait for her to fully submit her application before you can submit yours so that they will be correctly linked together.
-Brooke
Bob
Hello Brooke,
Me as Sponsor and my Wife as Applicant has done the personal statements.
We both have referred to lots of photos in the statement, like please refer attached: xyz.jpg etc
But we have uploaded the photos only under my name, will that be fine?
Or it is good to upload under my Wife’s name too?
Any clarification would be very helpful, thank you.
brooke brisbine
BobHi Bob,
Only upload the evidence under the main application, no need to double up.
-Brooke
Bob
Hi Brooke,
Thanks for the reply, I will probably won’t it, will wait till/if CO requests for it.
Thanks again for all your advise Brooke.
Bob
Hello Brooke,
Thanks for getting back.
It says that if I lived for more than 12 months in last 10 years.
Which I haven’t in case of India.
So don’t worry about it or better get one?
What will be your thoughts Brooke?
Thanks.
brooke brisbine
BobHi Bob,
As I mentioned, it is my understanding that you would not need to get a police check if you haven’t lived in India for more than 12 months in the last 10 years. You can check with Home Affairs by calling just to be sure, but the CO can also request it if it is needed (which it doesn’t sound like it is).
-Brooke
Gonzalo
Hey Brooke, I applied yesterday and I already got my bridging visa A 🙂 thanks for all the help provided, I had living in Australia for the last 3 years and I did the application onshore so I am wondering about the procedure where my sponsor uses my TRN to submit their own Sponsorship Form application, it is something we should do too or is only for couples that applied offshore? I just need keep uploading all my documents and my sponsor now, or there is a step is missing? Thanks! 💪🏽🙏🏾
brooke brisbine
GonzaloHi Gonzalo, congratulations on a big first step!
All sponsors need to complete the application as described in this post, including onshore applications. Don’t worry, it’s not nearly as long as the main application 🙂
-Brooke
Bob
Hello Brooke,
Thanks very much for getting back.
I’m from India, but I haven’t spent more than 12 months in India in the last 10 years, so whether do you think it is better for me take a Indian Police Check too or just from Aus would do?
Thanks Brooke.
brooke brisbine
BobHi Bob,
As per the advice provided on Home Affairs, you only have to provide a police check for countries that you’ve lived in the last 10 years. You might call them to confirm that if you are an Indian citizen.
-Brooke
Bob
Hello Brooke,
Can you please let me know whether Sponsors need to complete a Police Check too?
Thanks Brooke.
brooke brisbine
BobHi Bob,
I believe they do, but because it is so quick to get in Australia, you can choose to wait for it to be requested (or just get it now, because it’s inexpensive). Up to you!
-Brooke
Shelly
Hey Brooke
Amazing Blog…
We are in the process of lodging my partner’s partner visa onshore. Just got a question, as both our parents are in India, do we need there statements just on a piece of paper with their signatures or it has to be formal document?
Thanks
SHelly
brooke brisbine
ShellyHi Shelly, thanks for the comment 🙂
Since you won’t be able to use either of your parents’ statements to fulfil the Form 888 requirement (as they need to be Australian residents or citizens) and you also won’t be able to get them to sign a legal statutory declaration (since they are in another country), you probably won’t be able to get a “formal” statement from them. I just had my parents write and sign letters– as long as you have plenty of other people doing Form 888 statements, these are just extra evidence!
-Brooke
Bob
Thank you very much Brooke, I will look into the email and let you know.
Thanks again for all the help and details which you provide here.
Bob
Hello Brooke,
Thanks very much for explaining in detail, really appreciate it.
Still I’m bit confused, in my case it was like 27 page application, finishing and paying, I had a page where there both of our names displayed, and when you click both of our names it was asking for lots of different documents. Do you think I’m on right track here?
Thankfully was no conditions which is good for us.
For all those 5 questions, I have just entered please refer to the attachments, and we are planning to submit a long document explaining about those 5 things which they have asked, do you think that should be fine?
Also Department if they need might contact us for more documents, am I right? They won’t be like straightaway making decision, ?
Thanks again Brooke, sorry for too many questions.
brooke brisbine
BobHi Bob,
Did you follow the directions in this post to begin a new sponsorship application? Not just uploading sponsor documents to the main application, but actually completing the separate sponsor application?
I’m going to email you a screenshot of the application page, which might help you find out if you’re on the right track (I’m unable to post a photo in the comments).
As for the statement, yes, that should be fine. And the Department may contact you for more information, true, but I wouldn’t expect it to be anytime soon. The current wait time on this visa is as about 1.5-2.5 years (onshore), so don’t be surprised if it takes a long time for anyone to look at it and contact you about more information. I applied 14 months ago and haven’t heard a word from Home Affairs. Every situation is different!
-Brooke
Bob
Thanks for getting back Brooke.
I can see in few comments that you have mentioned doing the Sponsor documents as a separate application from different account, but here you have mentioned it is fine to do it altogether, can you please let me know which one is the right way?
She has got her visa, but it is not active as her Visitor visa expires only after 3 weeks. But as of now in BVA under conditions – it says No Conditions, so that should be fine to get working rights?
Also, whether the personal statement from My Wife and Myself is mandatory?
Any advise Brooke, thank you very much.
brooke brisbine
BobHi Bob,
To clarify, there is a separate sponsorship application that you need to complete on IMMI (which is described in this post), and this can be done from the same IMMI account or a different one as your wife’s main application, but it is its OWN application within the account. If you’ve done it correctly, there should be 2 applications displayed when you log into the IMMI account: one with your wife’s name and one with your name.
Then, you can upload relevant evidence and your identity documents to the MAIN application (your wife’s) under the Sponsor tab. You will be given a list of “recommended” documents in IMMI when you go to the upload portal, and I also discuss it in this post under “Sponsor documents” https://brookebeyond.com/uploading-evidence-to-our-820-801-australian-partner-visa-application.
So basically, there are separate applications to complete, but the uploads are all attached to the main application. Hope that makes sense!
Yes, if it says no conditions, she should have full work rights.
As for the personal statement, it is required. However, you only HAVE TO write a statement about your relationship that fits in the relevant text box on the online application. This has a 2000 character limit, so most applicants find that it’s not enough space to write about their relationship and commitment to each other, so they choose to upload a longer statement. That is not necessarily required if you think you’ve included enough detail in the application itself, up to you!
-Brooke
Aliya
Hi Brooke,
Thank you so much for providing us all the details, its very useful.
I have a one question, it will be great if you can help me out here.
My Husband has submitted my stage 1 partner or prospective visa (300, 309/100, 820/801), and today Case Officer has requested us to submit “Sponsorship application form online”, and they have provided us just 3 days to submit it, my question is do we have to pay separate amount for this application ? and how will the Case Officer knows if we have submitted the form?
Kindly respond… Thanks in advance!
brooke brisbine
AliyaHi Aliya, this response is probably too late to be helpful, so I’m really sorry and I hope you were able to figure everything out!
Just to clarify for anyone with a similar question, though, you need to complete a separate sponsorship application online, as described in this post. It can be done from the same IMMI account as the main application, it doesn’t cost anything additional, and you will link it to the main application using the TRN provided after submission. As you can see in this post, it’s not a terribly long application and, if the sponsor has already done the 40SP form, it’s a repeat of most questions. It will take a few hours, but 3 days should be sufficient to get it done.
-Brooke
Bob
Hello Brooke,
Thanks for all the details, it is very useful.
While applying for 820 visa for my Wife, I have added all my (Sponsor) documents in the same application which was lodged for my Wife, do you think that should be fine?
Also I cannot see the visa being active in VEVO yet, what the chances that she will get working rights once BVA kicks in?
Would be very helpful to get some clear advise on this, thank you.
brooke brisbine
BobHi Bob,
Yes, you’re correct that you upload sponsor documents to the main application.
As for the BVA, as soon as payment is processed, the BVA should be issued (although it may not immediately be active depending on her current visa expiration date)– and thankfully most people get working rights, but it’s impossible for me to say. I think it depends somewhat on her previous visa.
Best of luck to you both!
-Brooke
Annie
Hey Brooke, I know there a few questions like this already but it’s got me confused now! Firstly, I am my partner’s sponsor.
I was unaware of the process of the sponsor creating a new application and applying for the ‘Sponsorship for a partner to migrate to Australia.’
I genuinely can’t remember what we did at the beginning of the application, but all my sponsor details are within my partners visa application. By this, I mean that I originally filled out information as the sponsor with details like DOB, passport number, etc. I also have my own section of documents to upload within his visa page.
In saying this, I never made a ‘new application’ for this information. If all this information is already there, there wouldn’t be anything else I need to do, right? I don’t need to create the new application for sponsorship? Did i already do this somehow? Sorry if that’s confusing, I called home affairs and they made it sound confusing so I thought I’d ask you considering you’ve been through the process as well. I hope it makes sense and you understand it better than I do haha
Thanks so much 🙂
brooke brisbine
AnnieHi Annie,
You’re right that a lot of your personal details and all of your documents as the sponsor are uploaded directly to your partner’s main application, but you ALSO need to fill out a separate online Sponsorship application. You can do this in your partner’s IMMI account, but it is independent of that main application– if you’ve done it correctly, the home page in IMMI will show TWO applications!
So if you haven’t specifically followed steps like the one in this post, you’ll need to do that now 🙂
I hope that makes sense!
-Brooke
Katie
Hi Brooke! Thank you so much for all the information, it has helped us so much. Great job!
I have a question on the 2000 character aspects of the relationship.
For instance i have more than 2000 there, should i just sum it up and put the full version in attachments or should i write whatever fits and say to be continued and write the rest in the attachments? How did you do this?
Thank you a lot.
brooke brisbine
KatieHi Katie, you’re so welcome!
It’s really up to you whether you want to do a quick summary or truncate the full statement in those boxes, or even just write “see XXX document in uploads” without any of the statement. There isn’t one right way to do it, so do whatever seems best to you as long as you make it clear where to find the full statement. Hope that helps!
-Brooke
Steve
Hi there can you tell me any thing about. Joint sponsor where the partner pay half the fee and the sponsor pay half my friend is from balai She want to mover to Australia and a friend said he would pay the other half of the ten thousand is that the right amount. That is five thousand each She is over here on a tourist vias And she payed for her own ticket to come here Can you tell me if this is right. Thank you Steve
brooke brisbine
SteveHi Steve,
The visa is just under $8,000 at the moment and obviously the sponsor and applicant can decide how they want to split that expense. You must pay it all in a lump sum to Home Affairs, but it doesn’t matter who is actually paying so long as they receive the money!
Hope that helps.
-Brooke
Dayne
Hi Brooke,
Firstly, thank you so much for the level of detail in all of your articles! It’s all very helpful. My partner and I are currently deciding what our plans will be for the next few years and whether we should go down the 820 or 309 route. You mention in this post about income details for the sponsor. This may be beyond your experience since you applied for the 820, but I’m wondering how this works for 309 applicants.
If both my partner and I were to be living together overseas at the time of application, I (the Australian citizen) would as the sponsor have no means of supporting the applicant in Australia until after we move there. If I stayed in Australia to set myself up financially to support her there, then we would not be living together for her to apply for the 309. Not sure which 309 scenario would look better on the application.
So I’m just wondering to what extent the financial situation of the sponsor is taken into consideration. If you’re not sure about the 309 visa specifically, do you have any more information about this aspect of the sponsorship application in general?
Thanks,
Dayne
brooke brisbine
DayneHi Dayne,
You’re right that I don’t know anything specific about the 309, but I’m sure this is a very common situation– a couple is living together offshore and hoping to move to Australia together. I can’t imagine it would be an issue that you don’t have the means to support your partner IN Australia until you actually move to Australia. I think the purpose of that part of the visa is just you guaranteeing that, whenever you are living in Australia together, your partner is your financial responsibility (in the government’s eyes).
I am sure it would look worse on the application to be living apart, but that being said, many people have applied and been granted visas in this situation, too.
I wouldn’t stress too much about this, I haven’t heard of anyone having drama with this part of the application.
Best of luck!
-Brooke
Dayne
brooke brisbineThanks, Brooke. That was a very reassuring response. I’m glad to hear my hopes for how this works at least make sense to others who have dealt with this system. We’ll of course at the very least be getting some initial consultation with migration agents to double check everything works how we think it does, but it’s nice going into it with some idea of how things may play out. We’re leaning towards me working in Australia, since we can save up for the visa much faster that way. She would then be coming to visit me regularly on visitor visas.
brooke brisbine
DayneNo worries, Dayne!
Perhaps it would be possible for her to get a Working Holiday visa and live in Australia with you for the year? Alternatively, you can sometimes get 6mo or 12mo tourist visas– not sure how it works, but I know people who’ve done it. Obviously she wouldn’t be able to work during this time, so a WHV is more appealing from that angle. But those are both options that would keep you guys together!
lei
Ow sorry ,also on the main applicant application ,we are not using migrant agent .on that part can I still put my name as authorized recipient since Im the one who is here in Australia and my husband is overseas.I am sponsoring him.And I think much better if all the correspondence goes to me instead to him .So it is okay to put my name asa authorize person.Thank you so much .And is it true that the process will takes 19-25 months.Are there any case that applicant got approve quicker.If there is any how many months ?
brooke brisbine
leiHi Lei,
That question is for authorised written correspondence, but any correspondence about the visa is also emailed. I’m not sure if you can put your name here, but I don’t think you’ll need to since your partner will get the emails.
Also, I can’t say how long it’s going to take for the visa to be approved, it’s different for everyone (and I’m not a migration agent)! The stats they give on the Home Affairs website are that 70% of applications are processed within 20 months, which means MOST people will get the visa before this time. SOME will take longer. I wish there was more info, but sadly it’s a bit mysterious.
Good luck!
-Brooke
lei
Hi , i have a question and i hope you can help me too. On the 4 aspect of relationship.Do I have to use all 2000 words to answer each aspect of relationship? Thank you in advance .Also on the sponsorship page which birthdate should I put on the first page is it the applicant or the sponsor birthdate?
brooke brisbine
leiHi Lei,
You don’t have to use all 2000 characters, but if you need MORE space, you can always attach a statement to the application. 2000 characters isn’t a lot!
On the very first page of the sponsor application, it will be the applicant’s DOB:
Hope that helps.
– Brooke
Jel
Hi Brooke,
What an awesome job you have done here. I am so thankful that I have found your blog. I was wondering if I could clarify something about your post:
Is there a button that we can submit some documents on the Sponsorship application? Or are all documents can only be submitted on the main application? Thank u.
brooke brisbine
JelHi Jel, thanks for the lovely comment!
You can upload all of the documents, both for the applicant and sponsor, onto the main application 🙂
-Brooke
Michael o'connell
Hey Brooke,
Just a quick question, under “Sponsor” you mention ‘the day your relationship began’. Is that referring to the date from the de facto certificate, or the date from when we started dating?
Thanks in advance. Excellent information by the way!
Cheers,
Michael
brooke brisbine
Michael o’connellHi Michael,
Here is some information about the dates from one of my other posts, just keep in mind that some of these things are open to interpretation! As long as it’s consistent with the dates your partner wrote and with the evidence you provide, you should be right 🙂
Date you began dating: this could be when you had your first date or when you started introducing each other as a boyfriend/girlfriend
Date you committed to a shared life together: this may be when you became de-facto or even before, really when you became “exclusive” or when you would consider yourselves to be in a serious and committed relationship beyond just dating
Date the de-facto relationship began: this is typically when you moved in together and began living “as a married couple” (regardless of whether you were married) *I’ll just add that we didn’t get our relationship certificate until we’d been living together for over a year, so I listed our de-facto date as when we actually moved in and started “living as a married couple”.
Hope that helps!
-Brooke
Vivian Dumergue-Sanchez
Hi Brooke,
Firstly, thank you for putting the time in writing your amazing blog! It’s very detailed and has been super helpful for my partner and I. I’m the sponsor and I’m filling in the fields for the ‘Relationship details’ (covering the major aspects of our relationship in 2000 character limit). As they are the same questions to the applicants’ form, did your partner copy & paste the same answers to yours? My partner wrote his answers in third person hence I can copy paste or should I write new answers (written in my own words)?
Thank you in advance!
brooke brisbine
Vivian Dumergue-SanchezHi Vivian, I love hearing that these posts have been helpful to you and your partner!
You should absolutely write your own answer to these questions. It’s ok for it to be in third person (there really aren’t many guidelines for these statements), but they should still be personal and based on your own perspective of the relationship. I know the reality is that you and your partner probably wrote the statement for his application together, but try to keep your application different– I think Home Affairs really wants to hear from both of you to make sure the relationship is genuine from both sides!
Hope that helps 🙂
-Brooke
Anonymous
brooke brisbineThanks Brooke, you’re a legend! Really appreciate your time and efforts 🙂
brooke brisbine
AnonymousJust happy I could help!
James Martin
Hi Brooke, excellent detailed work it is extremely helpful thank you!
I am just bout to apply for my partner visa, both myself and my sponsor have been working a living in Canada for the past 2 years. will we need to get a police check from Canada, or do home affairs have access to that after we apply?
Thank you.
brooke brisbine
James MartinHi James, great to hear these posts have been helpful to you!
It sounds like you will both need to get a police check specifically from Canada, in addition to the Aus police check that your sponsor will need. Check out this page for more info: https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/help-support/glossary/how-to-get-police-certificate
Best of luck with the application!
-Brooke
Chermaine
Dear Brooke!
Amazing info, thank you! After lodging application, my sponsor will have to complete his (can I do this on my immi account?). I’m slightly confused here… do I need to complete all these forms? Form 888 and form 80 only? Are there any forms that mandatory? I’ve seen a few form 40sp, form 40 so I’m very confused. My partner is only sponsoring me! (:
brooke brisbine
ChermaineHi Chermaine, so sorry for my late response– I’ve been travelling for the last 3 months and haven’t been on the computer much!
I’m sure you’ve already answered this question yourself, but yes, your sponsor needs to fill out an application on Immi after you submit your own application. There’s a bit of debate about whether these forms are required (some people think the online application has made them redundant), but we completed them just to be on the safe side.
Hope that helps!
-Brooke
Nafsika
Hi Brooke, really appreciate for your help! I’m so glad that I found your site.
I have a question and would be more happy to hear your advice.
1. My partner(applicant) has just paid the visa fee by BPAY last night, but I(sponsor) can’t progress my application anymore for some reason. Is that because the visa payment hasn’t been approved?(It shows ‘awaiting payment’ on my partner’s application on his IMMI account. Do I have to wait until the payment to be approved to progress my application? how was your case?
2. As far as I knew, applicant is supposed to get Bridging visa(BVS) as soon as he pays the application fee.
But he hasn’t got the BVS grant email from the government yet and we are waiting for the payment to be approved(It’s been only 1 day though..) Will he get it ‘when the payment is approved?’ We are so worried about it because his current visa will be expired within a week… If you know anything about this please let me know. Thank you so much your help.
brooke brisbine
NafsikaHi Nafsika, so sorry for my late response– I’ve been travelling for the last 3 months and haven’t been on the computer much!
I’m sure you’ve already answered this question yourself, but yes, you need to wait for the payment to be approved and a TRN to be issued before the sponsor can submit their portion of the application. Similarly, the BVA will come through as soon as payment is received.
I really hope everything worked out for you guys and there were no dramas with the visa expiring.
-Brooke
Best of luck with everything!
-Brooke
Emily
Hey Brooke,
This has all been so helpful as I am in the process of completing all of my own information for my partner visa! just wondering if you could clarify exactly at what point the application is technically lodged (regarding the online immi process)? Am i correct to assume that the applicant completes 47SP then pays and has it lodged and THEN the sponsor does their 40SP and additional documents are then attached? I basically have everything ready to go but it might take another few days to get form 80 done, but really wanting to lodge asap! Thanks so much for any advice!
Emily
brooke brisbine
EmilyHi Emily, so happy to hear that these posts have been helpful 🙂
Great question— as soon as the applicant completes their online application and pays the fee, it is officially “lodged” with Home Affairs. Of course, to be considered for the Partner Visa, you also need to upload evidence to the online application and have the sponsor complete their online application, but both of these things happen after the main application is technically lodged. So it’s totally fine to submit your app, pay the fee, and take a few days to get all of your documents uploaded if you’re keen to get the ball rolling— and the fee is apparently increasing on 1 July, so it could be really good to get it in now!
I hope that answers your question, good luck with everything!
-Brooke
Jonathon
Hi Brooke,
In slight panic mode, as my partner submitted her stage 1 partner visa (820) 6 months ago, and we just read something claiming that the government has to “approve” of me as a sponsor BEFORE we submitted her stage 1 partner visa (820) application?
But now I’m reading here that the correct order is “she applies for stage 1 820” and THEN I apply for “Sponsorship for a Partner to Migrate to Australia”? Are we doing this right? Or is there a step before any of this where I have to somehow register as a sponsor?
brooke brisbine
JonathonHi Jonathon, no need to panic! These sponsorship application changes are new (I don’t even know if they’ve officially come in yet, although people have been talking about them for many months), so they wouldn’t have affected you 6 months ago. The correct order when you applied was that your partner lodges the main application and then you lodge the sponsorship application, using her reference number. When these changes do come in, Home Affairs will probably change the linking process (ex. the applicant has to put the sponsor’s reference number on their app) and it will become impossible to submit the applications in the wrong order (just like it would have been impossible for you to submit the sponsorship application first 6 months ago, because it requires that reference number from your partner’s app).
I’d be interested in seeing the link where you read that the changes have officially been implemented, I want to keep these posts up-to-date with the most current information!
Hope that helps 🙂
-Brooke
Jonathon
brooke brisbineNow I’ve calmed down a bit, as all the pages that have this information seem to have copy-pasted eachother, referencing legislation that passed late last year but does not seem to have been implemented yet.
Whew.
Time for new questions:
1) With the “Sponsorship for a Partner to Migrate to Australia” – the “relationship details” questions are exactly the same ones that were asked for my partner when she submitted the stage 1 820 application. Do we just copy + paste the answers from that application but change the voice from hers to mine?
2) For all the evidence – do I submit duplicates of all the evidence we submitted for her stage 1 application, or do I only submit new documents that are relevant to me (such as police check)?
brooke brisbine
JonathonHi Jonathon, I’m happy to hear these changes haven’t come in yet– they will have an enormous impact on the already-awful wait times when they do, so the longer it takes to be implemented the better for migrants!
As for your new questions:
1. You should be writing your own responses for the sponsorship application. I know you may have written her answers as a couple, but the idea is that she wrote her own responses from her own perspective and you wrote yours. Obviously the information is going to be the same, but just put it in your own words or add some additional details!
2. You should be able to submit all of the evidence under her app (even things like your passport and police check can be uploaded under a “sponsor” heading on her application).
-Brooke
Jonathon
brooke brisbineNew question! If I’ve submitted the online “Sponsorship for a Partner to Migrate to Australia” – one of the “Recommended” documents to attach is Form 40SP. Do I need to download, fill in, and attach form 40SP? Or is that just the paper version of the online “Sponsorship for a Partner to Migrate to Australia”?
brooke brisbine
JonathonHi Jonathan,
Interesting question, this is actually a topic of great debate on the forums! Some people say that the online sponsorship application has completely replaced 40SP, while other vehemently argue that you need both. I don’t know what the correct answer is, but I can tell you that my partner ended up submitting 40SP in addition to the online app. The whole process of getting a partner visa is already an enormous amount of work, so what’s one extra form? Our attitude was that we’d rather take the time to do it now than risk delaying our application if the CO asked us for it later.
Hope that helps 🙂
-Brooke
Martina
brooke brisbinehello Brooke!!! i was just wondering…. i submitted my application few months ago and i recieved confirmation email about it and than my partner applied for the sponsorship. we used ID application but i didnt receive and confirmation email about this application neither my partner…. On my main application is status received but the other application sponsorship from my partner is still just status submitted…. is it ok or something is wrong there? (we checked all details everything is fine…. also they are saying tht you can use TRF number or Application ID) thank you for your answer
brooke brisbine
MartinaHi Martina,
I had this EXACT same question when we submitted the main application and the sponsorship application, so I actually called Home Affairs about it last year and they assured me that this is normal. For some reason, the sponsorship application only ever says “submitted”, but it’s been received just like the main application!
Hope that helps 🙂
-Brooke
Meharban
Hi Brooke,
I just submitted my stage 1 partner or prospective visa (300, 309/100, 820/801). now as per you post i am starting with “Sponsorship for a Partner to Migrate to Australia (300, 309/100, 820/801)”..but at Critical data confirmation page… it is not letting me get through. it is giving an error:
“The related application details provided cannot be verified, check the details and amend if necessary. The applicant will not be able to continue and should review the eligibility information on our website.”
can you please help me on this? is it because i just literally submitted stage 1 application 20 mins ago. and i need to wait 1-2 days?
brooke brisbine
MeharbanHi Meharban,
You will need to wait for your payment to be processed before you can start working on the sponsorship application. Depending on how you paid, this could take a day or two!
-Brooke
Georgie
Hi Brooke, that is a relief and good to know! Thanks for the great info and the speedy reply.
Oh awesome! Yeah absolutely, its such a unique place, I loved it also! So keen for the year ahead.
Cheers Brooke,
Thanks for your help!
Georgie
Georgie
Hi Brooke,
Your blog has been so helpful to my partner and I, thank you so much for all the effort and information you have put together!
I am Australian and my partner is South African, we’re applying for an offshore partnership visa.
What depth of detail is requested for the sponsor’s ‘main source of income’ ?
Its a concern for me as we have both spent the last 2 months in SA visiting his family and I am about to return to stay there until our visa is approved. So currently and for the next year or so will be unemployed in Australia.
Thanks,
Georgie
brooke brisbine
GeorgieHi Georgie,
Thanks for the lovely comment, and I’m so happy this information has been useful to you and your partner!
On the sponsorship application, “source of income” is just a drop-down menu and, from memory, there isn’t any option to provide additional info. But thankfully, there aren’t any official requirements about the amount or source of your income when you are sponsoring someone for this visa. You’ll be able to explain everything in greater detail when you write a statement about your shared finances, but I wouldn’t stress about not having employment in Australia– considering you are living with your partner in SA, I’d say that demonstrates a strong commitment and that’s the whole point of the visa, anyway!
Here’s a helpful response to a similar question on an immigration forum that confirms the same:
It used to be that sponsors had to meet income requirements or find someone who did meet the income requirements to sign an Assurance of Support in order to sponsor someone on a partner visa. However, they recently (from 2012, I believe) removed those income requirements along with now allowing people on a bridging visa A to have full work rights (it used to be a case of no work rights on the BVA).
It can be very helpful (if you have a low income, or income from sporadic sources) to show DIBP that your partner is employable and therefore unlikely to need government assistance. You can generally do that by submitting any of her education or vocational qualifications and recent work history. Also, a good grasp of the English language is generally a must in Australia if you wish to obtain work. As part of your sponsorship undertaking, you agree to fully support your partner in obtaining the relevant skills needed to actively participate in Australian society (work etc) and that includes helping her attend English lessons (500 hours free for migrants – which is great) if necessary.
The partner visa is generally about granting a visa to couples who are genuine and who can’t live apart. It’s not a skilled or tourist visa, so therefore there isn’t as much emphasis on income, skills etc.
Hope this helps, and good luck to you both!
-Brooke
ps. I recently spent a month in SA and absolutely loved it, what a beautiful place to spend the next year 🙂
Paul
Hi Brooke,
Thanks for providing this amazing guidance. I noticed that you advised submitting a sponsorship application online. We haven’t done that but we submitted Form 40SP- Sponsorship for a partner to migrate to Australia. How do you think if we need to submit an online sponsor application?
Thanks,
Paul
brooke brisbine
PaulHi Paul, happy this post was helpful for you and your partner!
As I understand it, you need to submit the online application for sponsorship in addition to the 40SP form. They are very similar, so it won’t take long to complete the online bit!
Best of luck to you both,
Brooke
Alix
Hi Brooke – your info is amazing, thanks! I just wondered does the sponsor need to provide their own evidence for attachment when writing their statements about relationship/finance/social etc, and refer to it? Thanks!!
brooke brisbine
AlixHi Alix, awesome to hear that this info was helpful to you and your partner!
You upload all of your documents, including evidence of the relationship and personal identification documents of the applicant and the sponsor, to the applicant’s application. So basically, even though the sponsor completes a separate online application with a bunch of their details— their passport, birth certificate, any signed statements, evidence, etc still go onto the main application. The applications are linked by Home Affairs, so the sponsor can still refer to any attachments in their statement! Hopefully that helps 🙂
Best of luck on your application!!
-Brooke
Zac
Brilliant work, thank you!
brooke brisbine
ZacGlad you found it helpful, Zac! Best of luck to you and your partner!
-Brooke