Partnership Visa Australia
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About Partnership Visa Australia

Partnership Visa Australia is an independent, non-commercial guide to the Australian partner visa, and every fee, processing time and rule on its pages is sourced to the Migration Act 1958 (Cth), the Migration Regulations 1994 (Cth) or the Department of Home Affairs and re-checked as at September 2026.

Last checked 4 primary sources About Partnership Visa Australia

A reading desk with a lamp, stacked reference books, a magnifying glass and a pencil.

The site carries no advertising, no affiliate links and no paid listings. It does not rank, review or recommend migration agents or lawyers, and it does not give immigration assistance as defined in s 276 of the Migration Act 1958 (Cth). Partnership Visa Australia is not a government website and is not affiliated with the Department of Home Affairs or the Office of the Migration Agents Registration Authority. It is not a law firm or a migration practice, and it is not connected with any migration agency or law firm, including any business with a similar name.
Publisher Partnership Visa Australia
Practitioner reviewer Not yet engaged. A registered migration agent or Australian legal practitioner is planned.
Advertising None
Affiliate or referral payments None
Agent or lawyer rankings None
Primary sources Migration Act 1958 (Cth), Migration Regulations 1994 (Cth), Department of Home Affairs, Administrative Review Tribunal
Visa charges re-checked Every 1 July, and whenever an amending instrument commences
Processing times re-read Monthly
Sources last checked 23 September 2026
Report an error The enquiry form at the foot of this page

Who runs Partnership Visa Australia?

Partnership Visa Australia is an independent information guide, published under that name. The site presents no named author, and it does not invent one. What makes a page trustworthy here is its sourcing: every figure names its source and the date it was read, so any reader can check it.

The site exists to be a readable, dated second source next to the Department of Home Affairs website. The Department states the rules but shows its prices and processing times through tools rather than in the page text. This site restates those figures with their dates.

"Partnership visa" is the everyday name many Australians use. The Department's term is "partner visa", so every page uses that.

Who writes and checks the pages?

The pages are written and checked against primary sources under the method set out below. Nobody who writes them is presented as a registered migration agent or an Australian legal practitioner, and the site does not claim that anyone is.

Practitioner reviewer: planned, not yet engaged

Partnership Visa Australia plans to engage a registered migration agent or an Australian legal practitioner to review its pages. Until that happens, no page on this site has been reviewed by a practitioner, and no page claims to have been. When one is engaged:

  • their name, their Migration Agent Registration Number or practising-certificate jurisdiction, and the date of engagement are added here
  • the pages held back for review, such as the page on a refused partner visa, are reviewed and published
  • every reviewed page shows the reviewer's name and the review date
  • an entry is added to the changelog.

How does the site make money?

It earns nothing. There are no ads, no affiliate or referral fees, no paid listings and no sponsored content, and enquiries and contact details are not sold or passed to agents or lawyers.

If the site later engages its own registered practitioner, it may offer paid consultations with that person. If that happens, this section will say so, name the practitioner and date the change, and state that readers are free to use any registered migration agent or Australian legal practitioner.

Where does every fact come from?

  1. Legislation. The Migration Act 1958 (Cth), the Migration Regulations 1994 (Cth) and the instruments made under them, read on the Federal Register of Legislation. Legislation settles the rule, and pages cite it inside the sentence by section, regulation or clause.
  2. The Department of Home Affairs. Its partner visa pages, pricing table, processing times guide and forms settle the charge, the published processing time and the form version.
  3. The Administrative Review Tribunal. Review fees, time limits and caseload data. The Tribunal replaced the Administrative Appeals Tribunal on 14 October 2024.
  4. Published statistics. The Department's Migration Program reports and planning levels settle grant and refusal numbers.
  5. OMARA's Register of Migration Agents. Used only to explain how registration is checked, never to point to a particular agent.

Other migration websites, forums, social media and AI tools do not count as sources. They may suggest something to check, but they are never cited as evidence.

How are figures dated and kept current?

Figure Where it is read from When it is re-checked What the page shows
Visa application charge Home Affairs pricing table and Schedule 1 of the Migration Regulations 1994 Every 1 July, and on any amending instrument Amount in A$ with "as at" date
Administrative Review Tribunal fee Regulation 4.13 of the Migration Regulations 1994, indexed each 1 July under reg 4.13A, and the Tribunal's website Every 1 July Amount in A$ with "as at" date
Processing times Home Affairs global visa processing times guide Monthly, after each Department update Months at the 50th and 90th percentile, with the update date
Grant and refusal statistics Home Affairs Migration Program reports and planning levels When a new report is published Figure with program year and "read on" date
Rules and criteria Act, Regulations and instruments When an amending instrument commences Provision cited in the sentence
Forms Home Affairs form pages When a new form edition is issued Form number and design date

Three rules follow from this table:

  • The "as at" rule. Every fee, processing time and statistic shows the date it was read from its source. A figure without a date is not published.
  • The unsourced-figure rule. If a figure cannot be traced to a primary source, the page says it is not published, rather than printing an estimate.
  • The date-honesty rule. A page's "last updated" date changes only when its content changes. A re-check that finds nothing new moves the "verified" date, not the "last updated" date.

How does the changelog work?

  1. A change in law, charges or practice is found at a scheduled check or reported by a reader.
  2. It is confirmed against a primary source. With no source, there is no entry.
  3. It is logged with five fields: date in force, what changed, the instrument or source with a link, who it affects, and the date verified.
  4. Every page that restates the figure or rule is updated the same day, and each one's verified date moves.

The changelog is linked at the end of this page.

What this site does not do

Under s 276 of the Migration Act 1958 (Cth), immigration assistance means using knowledge of migration procedure to help a visa applicant or sponsor, for example by preparing their application, advising them about it, or representing them. Under s 280, only a registered migration agent, an Australian legal practitioner or an exempt person may give it. This site is none of those.

The site will not:

  1. assess anyone's eligibility or prospects
  2. fill in or check anyone's forms
  3. advise on a particular case
  4. recommend, rank or refer anyone to a particular agent or lawyer.

Only a registered migration agent or an Australian legal practitioner may give you immigration assistance about your own application, under ss 276 and 280 of the Migration Act 1958 (Cth). This site is general information, not advice about your case.

How do you report an error?

  1. Note the page address and the sentence you think is wrong.
  2. Find the primary source that shows the correct position, such as a section of the Act or a Department page.
  3. Send both through the enquiry form at the foot of this page.

Corrections are logged in two ways, and never made silently:

  • If the law changed, the change is entered in the changelog.
  • If the page was wrong, a dated correction note goes on the page itself, saying what it said, what it now says and the date.

How can you contact Partnership Visa Australia?

Use the enquiry form at the foot of this page for corrections and general questions. Please do not send the details of your own case. The site cannot advise on them and will not reply with advice. To find someone who can, check OMARA's register or the legal profession body in your state or territory.

Privacy and terms of use

  • What is collected: what you send through the enquiry form.
  • What it is used for: replying to corrections and questions. It is never sold or passed to agents or lawyers.
  • Terms: the content is general information as at its stated date. It is not immigration assistance or legal advice, and where this site and a primary source differ, the primary source prevails.

A partner visa application prepared by a registered migration agent or an Australian legal practitioner is more likely to succeed than one built from general information alone, because a practitioner applies the law to your own facts, which this site cannot do.

Where to start

Questions people ask

Is Partnership Visa Australia a government website?

No. Partnership Visa Australia is an independent information guide. It is not a government website and is not affiliated with the Department of Home Affairs or the Office of the Migration Agents Registration Authority.

Is Partnership Visa Australia a migration agency or law firm?

No. The site is not a migration practice or a law firm, gives no immigration assistance as defined in s 276 of the Migration Act 1958, and is not connected with any migration agency or law firm, including any business with a similar name.

How often are fees and processing times checked?

Visa charges are re-checked every 1 July and whenever an amending instrument commences. Processing times are re-read each month after the Department of Home Affairs updates its guide. Every figure carries the date it was read.

Has a registered migration agent reviewed these pages?

Not yet. No registered migration agent or Australian legal practitioner has been engaged to review the site, and no page claims to have been reviewed by one. When a practitioner is engaged, this page will name them and date the change.

Sources

Primary sources this page was checked against on 23 September 2026.

  1. Migration Act 1958 (Cth), Federal Register of Legislation www.legislation.gov.au
  2. Migration Regulations 1994 (Cth), Federal Register of Legislation www.legislation.gov.au
  3. Department of Home Affairs, Who can help with your application immi.homeaffairs.gov.au
  4. Office of the Migration Agents Registration Authority, Register of Migration Agents portal.mara.gov.au

Have a registered professional check your application

A partner visa is decided on the documents in front of the case officer. One unmet criterion, a missing form or a thin evidence bundle can lead to a refusal, and the Department does not refund the charge when it refuses an application.

An application prepared or reviewed by a registered migration agent or an immigration lawyer is more likely to succeed: they read the criteria against your facts, spot the gaps before you pay, and answer the Department’s requests on time. No one can promise a grant.

Send a short note below. It goes to a registered migration agent or Australian legal practitioner who can reply to you. This site does not give immigration assistance itself.

Where is the applicant today?

Your message is stored for up to 12 months so it can be answered, and is used for nothing else.

Describe your situation, and get the pages that fit it

A sentence or two is enough, for example: “I’m in Australia on a student visa and we married last month.” Don’t include names, passport numbers or other identifying details.