Partner Visa (Permanent) for Applicants
Stay
Permanently.
Cost
You paid for this visa when you made your combined application for the temporary and permanent partner visas.
Processing times
For an indication of processing times for this visa, use the visa processing time guide tool. This will show the processing times for recently decided applications. It is a guide only and not specific to your application.
To convey a realistic processing time for on-hand and new applications, processing time data does not include applications previously impacted by Ministerial Direction 80. Applicants impacted by this now superseded Ministerial Direction have been individually contacted and their applications are now being processed.
The processing time for a permanent Partner visa starts from the date of eligibility. This is 2 years after you applied for the combined temporary and permanent partner visas.
We update processing times regularly. We assess all applications on a case by case basis. Complex cases may take longer to process. You should use published processing times as a guideline only. You cannot influence these timeframes.
Your application can take longer to process if:
- you do not fill it in correctly
- you don't include all required documents or we need more information from you
- it takes time to verify your information.
With this visa you can
In addition to what you can do on your subclass 820 visa, you can:
- live, work and study in Australia indefinitely
- sponsor eligible family members to come to Australia
- apply for Australian citizenship if eligible.
See all conditions
Check your eligibility
You must
- hold a temporary Partner visa (subclass 820) or Dependent Child visa (subclass 445)
- in most cases, continue to be in a genuine and ongoing relationship with your sponsor.
Help with your visa
If you are getting help with your visa, before you pay someone, read information on Who can help with your visa application.
With this visa you can
This is a permanent visa. It lets you:
- stay in Australia as a permanent resident
- work in Australia
- study in Australia
- access Australia's public healthcare scheme, Medicare
- sponsor your family members to come to Australia
- travel to and from Australia
- if eligible, attend free English language classes provided by the Adult Migrant English Program
- if eligible, apply for Australian citizenship.
How long can you stay
This is a permanent visa.
You become a permanent resident on the day we grant the visa.
Your obligations
You and your family members must meet all visa conditions and obey Australian laws.
Travel on this visa
You can travel to and from Australia as many times as you want for 5 years from the date we grant this visa. This is as long as the travel facility on this visa remains valid.
If you want to travel after the initial 5-year travel facility you will need to apply for and be granted a Resident Return (RRV) so that you can re-enter Australia as a permanent resident.
To see when your travel facility ends, use VEVO.
Include family members
You can include your dependent child in your application when you apply for the temporary Partner visa (subclass 820). You cannot add any family members after we grant the permanent Partner visa (subclass 801).
Dependent Child visa (subclass 445) holders
If you have a dependent child who holds a Dependent Child visa (subclass 445) you can add them to your application before we make a decision on your permanent visa application.
Your child must hold a Dependent Child visa (subclass 445).
Complete and attach to your ImmiAccount, Form 1002 - Application by a subclass 445 dependent child for a permanent partner visa. (279KB PDF)
Newborn children
If you have a baby after you have applied for this visa, you will need to let us know. For more information, see You had a baby.
Cost
You paid for this visa when you applied for the combined temporary and permanent partner visas.
You might have to pay other costs for health or police checks.
Visa label
You will not get a label in your passport. We will digitally link your visa to your passport and create a digital visa record for you.
Frequently asked questions
A list of common questions and answers about this visa is available at Partner Program Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs).
To be eligible for this visa
You must:
- meet visa requirements
- continue to meet relationship requirements
- have no debt to the Australian government, or have arranged to pay debts back.
Visa requirements
You must hold:
- a Partner visa (subclass 820) or
- a Dependent Child (subclass 445) visa.
2 years must have passed since you applied for the combined 820 and 801 visa for you to be assessed for the permanent visa.
If you were in a long-term relationship or your sponsor held a specific visa before you applied, you might be granted the permanent visa within less than 2 years. We will let you know if this applies to you.
Continue to meet relationship requirements
You must continue to be the spouse or de facto partner of the same person who sponsored you for the temporary Partner visa.
You must:
- be married or in a de facto relationship
- have a genuine and continuing relationship
- live together, or not live permanently separately and apart
- be mutually committed to a shared life excluding other partners.
You might still be eligible for the permanent visa if your relationship breaks down or your partner dies before we grant the permanent visa. For more information see Your relationship has changed.
If you are experiencing domestic and family violence, we can help you. You can apply for consideration to be granted your permanent visa. For more information, see Domestic and family violence and your visa.
Have no debt to the Australian government
If you or any family members (including those who don't apply for the visa with you) owe the Australian government money, you or they must have paid it back or have an approved arrangement in place to pay it back.
Best interests of the child
We might not grant this visa if it is not in the best interests of an applicant under 18.
Step 1
Before you apply
If we granted you a permanent Partner visa (subclass 801) immediately after we granted your temporary Partner visa (subclass 820), you do not have to do anything else. If we did not, you need to provide further documents.
To check which visa you currently hold, use VEVO.
Get help with your application
You can appoint anyone to receive documents on your behalf relating to your visa application.
If you need help with your application, you can appoint someone to give you immigration assistance. A person who gives you immigration assistance can:
- discuss your application with us
- give us information
- send and receive correspondence about your application.
We treat any correspondence they send as if it came from you.
It is important to provide your own contact details in case we need to contact you directly about your application. The partner visa application form will ask you for your own phone number and email address.
If you appoint someone to give you immigration assistance they must be:
- a registered migration agent
- a legal practitioner, or
- an exempt person.
For more information, see who can help you with your application.
Step 2
Gather and prepare your documents
We start processing your permanent visa application 2 years after you apply for the combined temporary and permanent partner visas. You can send your documents one month before the 2 years date. Do not send them before this time.
Ensure that all information you provide is accurate. As a visa applicant, you must prove your identity and provide true information with your application.
For more information see Providing accurate information.
Identity documents
Provide the personal details page of your most recent passport. This page must show your signature.
Character documents
Provide an Australian police certificate if you have spent a total of 12 months or more in Australia in the last 10 years since you turned 16.
We only accept complete disclosure National Police Certificates issued by the Australian Federal Police. We do not accept standard disclosure certificates or national police certificates issued by Australian state or territory police.
To get an Australian police certificate see National Police Checks.
Also provide:
- an overseas police certificate from every country, including your home country, where you spent a total of 12 months or more in the last 10 years since you turned 16
- military service records or discharge papers if you served in the armed forces of any country.
For immigration purposes, police certificates are valid for 12 months from the issue date.
To get an overseas police certificate, see Offices and locations.
Complete and attach to your application Form 80 Personal particulars for assessment including character assessment (596KB PDF).
Evidence of your relationship
You need to provide evidence you are still in a relationship with your partner.
This evidence must show that:
- you have a mutual commitment with your spouse or de facto partner to the exclusion of all others
- your relationship is genuine and continuing
- you live together or don't live permanently apart
- you are not related by family.
You can also provide further information in support of your visa application. You can provide:
- relationship documents
- supporting evidence of your relationship.
Relationship documents
Attach to your ImmiAccount a Commonwealth statutory declaration form. This form must be completed by your sponsor with information about any of the following:
- whether you and your spouse or de facto partner have a mutual commitment, to the exclusion of all others
- whether your relationship is genuine and continuing
- whether you live together or don't live permanently apart
- when your relationship began and how long you have lived together for
- the financial commitments you and your partner share
- the nature of your household (including any joint responsibility for the care and support of children)
- the social aspects of your relationship
- the nature of your commitment to each other
- your plans for the future.
If you are married, provide your marriage certificate or other evidence that your marriage is valid in Australia.
If you are a de facto partner, provide proof of your de facto relationship.
Supporting evidence of your relationship
To show you are still in a relationship with your spouse or de facto partner, you can provide the below supporting evidence of your relationship.
Finances
Evidence you and your partner share financial matters. Evidence can include:
- joint mortgage or lease documents
- joint loan documents for major assets like homes, cars or major appliances
- joint bank account statements
- household bills in both names.
Your household
Evidence you and your partner share domestic matters. Evidence can include:
- a statement about how you share housework
- household bills in both names
- mail or emails addressed to you both
- documents that show joint responsibility for children
- documents that prove your living arrangements.
Social matters
Evidence that others know about your relationship.
You must provide statements from 2 witnesses who:
- are 18 years old or older
- know you and your spouse or partner
- know about your relationship.
Statements from witnesses can be done by completing Form 888 - Supporting statement in relation to a Partner or Prospective Marriage visa application (homeaffairs.gov.au) (170KB PDF).
If the witness is an Australian citizen or permanent resident, provide evidence of this such as a passport or birth certificate.
Evidence can also include:
- joint invitations or evidence you go out together
- proof you have friends in common
- proof you have told government, public or commercial bodies about your relationship
- proof you do joint sporting, cultural or social activities together
- proof you travel together.
Commitment
Evidence you are committed to a long-term relationship with each other. Evidence must show that you:
- have knowledge of each other’s background, family situation or other personal details.
- have combined your personal matters
- stay in touch when apart
- are not related by family.
You can also provide the terms of your wills as evidence.
Dependent children
For every dependent child who currently holds a subclass 820 or 445 visa, provide copies of the following:
- their passport
- documents that show changes to their situation
- police certificates, if applicable, for dependents 16 years old or older.
Changes to your situation
If your situation has changed since you applied for your Partner visa, complete and attach to your ImmiAccount Form 1022 - Notification of changes in circumstances (172KB PDF).
You will also need to provide the following documents, as relevant:
- your marriage certificate
- your child's or children's birth certificate(s)
- adoption papers
- a final divorce decree or legal separation agreement or other relevant document
- a court decision on child custody
- the death certificate for your partner
- proof of change of name. This might be a marriage certificate, deed poll or equivalent document.
If you have a new or updated passport or changed your address:
- complete Form 929 - Change of address and/or passport details (172KB PDF)
- provide the pages of your current passport showing your photo, personal details and passport issue and expiry dates.
Prepare your documents
Translate
Have all non-English documents translated into English.
Provide original and translated documents in your application.
Translators in Australia must be accredited by the National Accreditation Authority for Translators and Interpreters.
Translators outside Australia do not have to be accredited. But on each translation, they must include their:
- full name
- address and telephone number
- qualifications and experience in the language they are translating.
These details must be in English.
You do not need to have any documents certified.
Scan or photograph
Scan or photograph all documents (English and non-English) in colour.
The scans and photos must be legible.
If a document is more than one page, save it all as one file.
Step 3
Apply for the visa
We start assessing you for the permanent visa 2 years after you apply for the combined temporary and permanent partner visas. You can attach the documents one month before the 2 years date. Do not attach them before this time.
How to apply
- Login to ImmiAccount.
- Select ’New application’
- Select ’Family’
- Select ‘Stage 2 - Permanent Partner Visa Assessment’
- Complete your application
- Attach supporting documents to your completed application.
Attach a document only once, even if you are using it to show more than one thing.
Clearly label your documents.
Keep a copy of your completed application.
You can attach up to 100 documents for each person on your application.
The attachment limit cannot be increased.
If you reach the attachment limit for an applicant, you can attach more documents to other clients on the application.
Step 4
After you apply
You can confirm we have received your documents in ImmiAccount.
Status updates
If it is within standard processing times do not contact us.. We can't provide any further updates on your application's progress. You can see if we have asked for more information in your ImmiAccount.
To see standard processing times for this visa see Global processing times.
Attach more information
If you did not attach all documents when you applied, attach them as soon as you can in ImmiAccount.
We might ask you to provide more information, however, we are not obliged to do so and may make a decision on your application without requesting more documents.
For more information on attaching documents in ImmiAccount see Applying online or paper.
Add family members
You can add a dependent child or children to your application before we make a decision on your permanent visa application. Your child or children must be in Australia and:
- hold a Dependent Child visa (subclass 445)
- meet our health requirement
- meet our character requirement if they are 16 years old or older.
Complete and attach to your application in ImmiAccount Form 1002 - Application by a subclass 445 dependent child for a permanent partner visa (279KB PDF).
Newborn children
If you have a baby after you have applied for this visa, you will need to let us know. For more information, see You had a baby.
After you have attached the form to ImmiAccount, let us know by using the Partner Processing Enquiry Form.
Tell us if things change
Tell us if things change after you lodge your documents but before we've made a decision.
Things you need to let us know about include:
- changes to your contact details or passport
- changes to your marital or de facto status
- the birth of a child
- any other changes relevant to your application.
For more information, see Change in your situation.
If you are unable to upload the relevant documents to your application in ImmiAccount, you need to contact us using the Partner Processing Enquiry Form.
If your relationship ends
Contact us as soon as possible using the Partner Processing Enquiry Form.
You might still be eligible for the permanent visa if your relationship ends or your partner dies. All information you provide is confidential.
For more information, see Your relationship has changed.
If you are experiencing domestic and family violence, we can help you. You can apply for consideration to be granted your permanent visa. For more information, see Domestic and family violence and your visa.
No longer need help with your application
Let us know if you no longer want someone to:
- receive your correspondence - complete Form 956A Appointment or withdrawal of an authorised recipient (301KB PDF)
- provide immigration advice - complete Form 956 Appointment of a registered migration agent, legal practitioner or exempt person (225KB PDF).
Upload your forms to ImmiAccount.
For more information see Who can help you with your application.
Mistakes on your application
Let us know as soon as you can.
Complete and attach to your ImmiAccount Form 1023 Notification of incorrect answers (168KB PDF).
Step 5
Visa outcome
You can be in or outside Australia when we decide on your permanent Partner visa.
We will let you know our decision in writing.
If we grant your visa, we will tell you:
- your visa grant number
- the date your visa starts
- your visa conditions.
Keep a copy of the decision.
If we refuse your visa, we will tell you:
- why we refused the visa
- whether you have a right to a review of the decision.
We will not refund the application fee if we refuse your application.
What you can do on this visa
This is a permanent visa. It lets you:
- stay in Australia as a permanent resident
- work in Australia
- study in Australia
- access Australia's public healthcare scheme, Medicare
- sponsor your family members to come to Australia
- travel to and from Australia
- if eligible, attend free English language classes provided by the Adult Migrant English Program
- if eligible, apply for Australian citizenship.
How long you can stay
This is a permanent visa.
You become a permanent resident on the day we grant the visa.
For more information, see Permanent resident.
Your obligations
You and your family members must meet all visa conditions and obey all Australian laws.
Travel on your visa
You can travel to and from Australia as many times as you want for 5 years from the date we grant this visa. This is as long as the travel facility on this visa remains valid.
If you want to travel after the initial 5-year travel facility you will need to apply for and be granted a Resident Return (RRV). This will allow you to travel to Australia as a permanent resident.
To see when your travel facility ends, use VEVO.
Include family members
You can't add family members to your visa application after we grant the permanent Partner visa (subclass 801).
Prove you have a visa
To prove you have a visa and show your conditions to someone, use VEVO.
To get proof of your travel in and out of Australia, request your international movement records.
Working
With this visa you will have full work rights and be protected by Australian workplace law. See your workplace rights and entitlements.
Studying
With this visa you will be able to study in Australia. To find out what study you may be eligible for see StudyAssist.
Access Australian Government benefits
You might have to wait to access certain Australian Government payments and benefits. Learn more about newly arrived residents' waiting periods from Services Australia.
Tell us if things change
Let us know if you get a new passport.
See what to do if you have a new passport.
Become an Australian citizen
After a certain time, you might be eligible for Australian citizenship. Find out more about becoming a citizen.
For citizenship purposes, your permanent residency starts on:
- the day the visa was granted if you were in Australia or
- the day you entered Australia on this visa if you were outside Australia when it was granted.