You may be eligible for a spouse visa if you are in a relationship with an Australian citizen. Permanent Resident, or eligible New Zealand citizen. You must either be married or in have lived together in a de-facto relationship for 12 months or more.

Visa Conditions and Duration

Once your initial spouse application is granted, you will be issued with a Temporary Visa. This will allow you to stay in Australia for 2 years and you will have full work rights during this period.

After the two year period, you will be entitled to apply for permanent residence in Australia provided that your relationship still continues. In some circumstances, you may be eligible for permanent residence even if the relationship has broken up before the end of the 2 year period. These circumstances include:

• If your spouse has died during this period; or
• If you and your Australian spouse have children under 18 years of age; or
• If you or your dependents have been subject to domestic violence during this period

Visa Criteria

In order to be eligible for a spouse visa, you must meet the following criteria:

1. you and your spouse have a commitment to a shared life as husband and wife, whether or not you are legally married, to the exclusion of all others;
2. your relationship is genuine and continuing; and
3. you and your spouse live together, or don’t live separately and apart on a permanent basis.
4. unless you are legally married, you must have been in a spouse relationship for the last 12 months, which usually involves showing that you have lived together during this period
5. generally, you both need to be aged 18 or over.
6. you must pass health and character criteria.

In some circumstances, a waiver is available for the 2 year period before applying for permanent residence:

• if you have been in the relationship with your spouse for five years or more at the time of application; or
• if you have been in the relationship for two years where there are dependent children of the relationship; or
• if your spouse was granted a permanent visa under the humanitarian program or was granted a protection visa and was in the relationship with you before the visa was granted and this relationship was declared to DIAC at the time.

How do I apply?

You may either be in Australia or overseas when applying for a spouse visa. There are advantages to applying from within Australia. Depending on the circumstances, you may wish to employ the services of a migration agent. Please contact us for advice on obtaining a spouse visa.