A partner visa lets you live permanently in Australia with your partner, as long as they’re an Australian citizen, a permanent resident, or an eligible New Zealand citizen. It’s one of the most document-heavy visas in the Australian system, so getting the application right from the start really matters. This page explains the onshore and offshore pathways, what you need to prove, who can sponsor, and what it costs.
What Is a Partner Visa?
A partner visa lets the spouse or de facto partner of an Australian citizen, permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen live in Australia. It’s a permanent residency pathway, but it runs in two stages: a temporary visa first, then a permanent visa around two years later, once the Department is satisfied the relationship is genuine and ongoing.
Our registered partner visa agents in Melbourne have handled plenty of onshore and offshore applications. We tell you exactly what documents you need and help you put your relationship evidence together properly. If something complicated comes up along the way, we deal with it. We manage the whole application for you, from the first eligibility check to the day your permanent visa is granted.
Partner Visa Pathways
There are two main partner visa pathways, depending on whether you apply from inside or outside Australia, and the partner visa sits within Australia’s wider family visa program. Both pathways are two-stage: you get a temporary visa first, then a permanent visa a couple of years later. There’s also a separate pathway if you’re engaged but not yet married.
Relationship Evidence Requirements
Partner visa applications need solid evidence that your relationship is genuine and ongoing. The Department of Home Affairs looks at your relationship across four areas:
- Financial. Joint bank accounts, shared assets, or other signs that your finances are linked.
- Household. Evidence that you live together or share the running of a home.
- Social. Proof that family and friends see you as a couple.
- Commitment. Your plans for the future and how long you have been together.
If you are in a de facto relationship, you usually need to show you have been together for at least 12 months before you apply, unless an exemption applies. Married couples don’t need the 12 months, but you still have to show the marriage is genuine. Our Melbourne agents help you work out which evidence is strongest in your case and present it so the relationship comes across clearly. For a fuller walkthrough, see our partner visa guide.
How the Two-Stage Partner Visa Works
The partner visa isn’t one decision. It’s two assessments, lodged together but decided at different times, and understanding that upfront saves a lot of worry during the wait.
At the temporary stage (820 onshore or 309 offshore), the Department checks that your relationship is genuine and that you both meet health and character requirements. If you applied onshore, you’re on a Bridging Visa A from the day you lodge, so you can stay, work and study while you wait, and you can enrol in Medicare once the 820 is granted. If you need to leave Australia before the 820 comes through, apply for a Bridging Visa B first. If you applied offshore, you wait outside Australia until the 309 is granted, then travel over.
The permanent stage (801 or 100) is assessed about two years after your original lodgement date. The Department checks the relationship is still genuine and ongoing, so you’ll be asked for updated evidence before the permanent visa is granted. Once you hold the permanent visa, you can live in Australia indefinitely, sponsor eligible relatives, and count the time towards citizenship.
There’s a concession for longer relationships. If you’d been together for three years or more when you first applied, or two years with a child of the relationship, you may be granted the temporary and permanent visas at the same time and skip the two-year wait.
Relationship Evidence Requirements
The Four Aspects Home Affairs Assess
Who Can Sponsor a Partner Visa?
To sponsor a partner visa, the sponsor has to be an Australian citizen, permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen who normally lives in Australia, and they must be at least 18. The sponsor also has to be approved by the Department, and they take on a legal undertaking to support the applicant for two years after the grant.
There are limits on how many partners a person can sponsor. As a general rule, you can sponsor only two partners in your lifetime, and not another partner within five years of a previous sponsorship. If you were sponsored for a partner visa yourself in the past, you generally have to wait five years from your own application before sponsoring someone else, and if you hold a contributory parent visa you may be restricted for five years from grant. These limits can be waived in compelling circumstances, such as family violence.
We check both the applicant and the sponsor before we lodge, so there are no surprises that could affect the outcome.
Partner Visa Processing Time
Processing times vary a fair bit and change month to month. At the temporary stage, half of onshore 820 applications are currently decided within about 17 months, with a realistic range of 12 to 24 months. The offshore 309 tends to run a little longer. How complex your case is, and how complete your evidence is at lodgement, makes a real difference here.
The permanent stage (801 or 100) is assessed about two years after you first applied, provided the relationship is still genuine and ongoing then. If you’d been together less than three years when the permanent stage is assessed, you’ll need to provide updated relationship evidence. If you’d been together three years or more, or you have a child together, the permanent visa may be decided sooner. Most couples are looking at somewhere between three and five years from first application to permanent residency.
Partner Visa Cost
Partner visa charges depend on the subclass and how many people are included in the application. For the 2025 to 2026 year, the base charge for the primary applicant is around AUD 9,365, and it’s a single fee that covers both the temporary and permanent stages. There’s an extra charge for any secondary applicants, and a smaller reduced fee (currently around AUD 1,560) if you’re moving from a subclass 300 prospective marriage visa to the 820/801.
The Department of Home Affairs sets these fees and usually raises them on 1 July each year, so check the current figure on the official Visa Pricing Estimator before you lodge. On top of the charge, budget for health examinations, police clearances and certified translations. We’ll confirm the exact fees that apply to you, and you can see how we charge for our own work on our fees page.
Book a free assessment and we’ll confirm which partner visa pathway fits your situation. If a partner visa has previously been refused, we also handle ART appeals, and you can look at our other family visa options if a partner visa isn’t the right fit.
How to Apply for a Partner Visa
The steps are broadly the same for the onshore and offshore pathways.
First, we check that you and your sponsor are both eligible, including the de facto or marriage requirement and any sponsorship limits. Next, we map your evidence against the four aspects and help you gather the documents, statements and supporting letters that make the relationship clear. Your sponsor lodges their sponsorship application, and we lodge your combined temporary and permanent application and pay the charge. If you’re onshore, you go onto a Bridging Visa A at that point.
After lodgement, the Department will ask for health examinations and police clearances when it’s ready to assess your file, so don’t book your medical before you’re told to. Once the temporary visa is granted, we help you keep your evidence file current, because you’ll need updated documents for the permanent stage about two years later.
Partner Visa FAQs
If you applied onshore, yes. You’re on a Bridging Visa A from the day you lodge, which gives you full work rights while you wait. If you applied offshore on a 309, you wait outside Australia until it’s granted, then you can work once you’re here.
It comes down to where you are when you apply. If you’re in Australia, you apply onshore for the 820/801 and get a bridging visa to stay while you wait. If you’re overseas, you apply offshore for the 309/100 and wait outside Australia until the temporary visa is granted. Both lead to the same permanent residency.
No. You can apply if you’re married or in a de facto relationship. For a de facto relationship you usually need to have been together for at least 12 months before you apply, unless your relationship is registered with a state or territory. If you’re engaged but not yet married, the subclass 300 prospective marriage visa is the starting point.
The permanent stage is assessed about two years after you first apply, and most couples reach permanent residency somewhere between three and five years from lodgement. If you’d been together three years or more when you applied, or two years with a child, you may be granted permanent residency without the usual wait.
The base charge for the main applicant is around AUD 9,365 for 2025 to 2026, covering both stages. There are extra charges for additional applicants, and a reduced fee if you’re coming from a prospective marriage visa. Fees usually rise on 1 July, so check the current figure before you lodge.
Maybe. A person can generally sponsor only two partners in their lifetime, with at least five years between sponsorships. If your partner was sponsored themselves in the past, or holds a contributory parent visa, that can affect their eligibility. We check the sponsor’s history before lodging.
It depends on the circumstances. In most cases the permanent visa can’t be granted if the relationship has ended, but there are exceptions, including family violence by the sponsor, the death of the sponsor, or shared children. These situations have specific evidence requirements, so get advice before you respond to the Department.
