[Swann]

Hi,

My partner and I are starting the Defacto process and it seems like if we have been together for 3 years I can go for a 801 directly. That's great news since we have been together for 3 years but we have been living together and have had a joint bank account only for one year.

Does anyone know what are the requirements?Do we have to have lived together for 3 years in order to qualify?

Thank you,

Swann

 

[CollegeGirl]

It's 3 years *married* or 3 years *de facto* (or 2 years if you have a child together), not just 3 years *together.* So the key for you is going to be when Immi judges you to have gone from dating to de facto. If you just met 3 years ago, it's unlikely you would meet the criteria. You don't have to have lived together to be considered de facto, but it can be more challenging to prove you were de facto during any period of time where you weren't living together.

 

[Skybluebrewer]

They are very strict on requiring de facto evidence of the relationship for the entire three years prior to applying. So if you don't have much hard evidence in that way, then you likely won't get to skip the two year waiting period. Time dating doesn't count towards those three years.

Also, you still make the combined 820/801 application and wait for a decision on the 820 just like everybody else, it's the two year waiting period between the 820/801 application and 801 eligibility that gets waived if the CO deems you've met the requirements.

 

[Swann]

Thanks, that was helpful!