[MarkNortham]

Hi All -

I'm very excited to be back on the Australia Forum after some time away - it's such a fantastic and friendly community here. I wanted to announce a new 2020 edition of my Ask Mark! thread which I've hosted previously here for some time - as before, happy to do my best to provide information to anyone about Australian migraiton. A few notes:

* I tend to focus on family/partner visas, skilled and employer sponsored visas, and complex cases such as Schedule 3, PIC 4020, health and character cases, and do cases at the AAT Tribunal and the Courts
* I don't work a lot in the areas of student and refugee visas, so may not be the best source of info for these
* I may not be able to give you specific advice for your case if it involves complex or private issues that it's not practical to go into on a public forum - will let you know in this case

In these challenging times, communicating and sharing information is more important than ever, especially with things changing so quickly as they are now with the COVID-19 situation. I'm happy to be here to help, and look forward to your questions.

Best,

Mark Northam

 

[Camsum]

Hi Mark. What advice would you give someone with a granted Prospective Marriage Visa right now who is yet to enter Australia?
My fiance, who is a US citizen in the US right now, was granted her PMV on 24 September 2019, so it expires 24 June 2020. We have been unable to move to Australia sooner due to personal reasons, and now it's looking like it might be physically impossible to arrive by 24 June, let alone get married and submit a partner Visa application by that date.
The information I have found suggests a PMV cannot be extended and we would have to re-apply if we can't comply with the Initial Entry Date requirement. This seems incredibly unfair. Do you think there could ever be a way around this? It would simply be heartbreaking for us to start from square one and spend god knows how much longer living apart. Thanks in advance for any advice you could provide us

 

[waty]

Hi Mark, thanks for offering your time to answer questions. Looking forward to your posts. Do you think 820s will begin to move along a little quicker in the current situation. We have enough uncertainty as it is now...could do with out an extra layer ☹

 

[Jezza]

Hi Mark,

Thanks for this! I have a couple of questions:

- Regarding our 309 visa, the case officer recently contacted us requesting a police certificate and additional photos, which we provided. All other documents including medicals were previously done. It has now been 14 days since we submitted the documents and we haven't heard anything back. How long can it take for them to follow up?

-Also, I concurrently have also applied for a FA600 visit visa since 39 days and have not heard back. Do you think it is likely for them to grant a 309 visa given above and the Covid situation or process a 600 visa. (FYI my partner also visited me last time on a 600 visa)

-Lastly, are they currently working on usual capacity in terms of visa grants or do you expect slower than advertised visa processing times?

Thanks so much.

 

[MarkNortham]

Hi Camsum -

Thanks for the question, and congratulations for being the first question poster on the 2020 thread!

RE PMV, that's a great question. By law it's not possible to change the expiration date of a visa once it has been granted - it's "baked in" essentially. So I'm not hopeful that they could extend the visa. That being said, DHA may - once the travel ban is lifted - make special arrangements for people with "spent" sc300 visas that could not enter in time, perhaps by allowing them to enter on a visitor visa and then lodge the sc820/801 application onshore. The primary difference in the 820 is price discount for sc300 holders - it may be that they make this discount available for previous sc300 holders as well depending on the circumstances.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam

Hi Mark. What advice would you give someone with a granted Prospective Marriage Visa right now who is yet to enter Australia?
My fiance, who is a US citizen in the US right now, was granted her PMV on 24 September 2019, so it expires 24 June 2020. We have been unable to move to Australia sooner due to personal reasons, and now it's looking like it might be physically impossible to arrive by 24 June, let alone get married and submit a partner Visa application by that date.
The information I have found suggests a PMV cannot be extended and we would have to re-apply if we can't comply with the Initial Entry Date requirement. This seems incredibly unfair. Do you think there could ever be a way around this? It would simply be heartbreaking for us to start from square one and spend god knows how much longer living apart. Thanks in advance for any advice you could provide us

 

[MarkNortham]

Hi Waty -

Thanks for the question. My concern at the moment is that partner visa approvals seem to have slowed as DHA deploys their resources elsewhere to deal with COVID-19 related issues. I absolutely hope this will move along more quickly with partner visas, but I am honestly not expecting this given what's currently happening. However, don't give up hope! And dont' forget to periodically lodge new evidence with your 820/801 application - that can help keep your application visible and noticed.

Best regards,

Mark Northam

Hi Mark, thanks for offering your time to answer questions. Looking forward to your posts. Do you think 820s will begin to move along a little quicker in the current situation. We have enough uncertainty as it is now...could do with out an extra layer ☹

 

[MarkNortham]

Hi Jezza -

Thanks for the note. Please see my responses below after each question:

Hi Mark,

Thanks for this! I have a couple of questions:

- Regarding our 309 visa, the case officer recently contacted us requesting a police certificate and additional photos, which we provided. All other documents including medicals were previously done. It has now been 14 days since we submitted the documents and we haven't heard anything back. How long can it take for them to follow up?

*** I've seen it go weeks or months after this, especially if they are waiting (as they often are) for external security checking to come back from whatever government agency(s) they sent it off to. Wish I had better news.

-Also, I concurrently have also applied for a FA600 visit visa since 39 days and have not heard back. Do you think it is likely for them to grant a 309 visa given above and the Covid situation or process a 600 visa. (FYI my partner also visited me last time on a 600 visa)

*** Hard to predict re sc600 visas currently - we just don't have enough information, although the Minister said today that visitors should start making their way "home". I'd probably guess that the 309 might be granted sooner at this point. If the sc309 is granted, do make sure you immediately withdraw your pending application for the sc600 if it is still outstanding at that time - a grant of the sc600 after the 309 is granted would wipe out th sc309 - a disaster!

-Lastly, are they currently working on usual capacity in terms of visa grants or do you expect slower than advertised visa processing times?

*** My guess: slower visa processing times unless they change the criteria for processing some visas.

Thanks so much.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam

 

[JoStar]

Hi Mark

I have a question about schedule 3 criteria.This is my timeline for 820 partnet visa.

- June 2018 applied partner visa 280
- March 2019 received a letter from DHA regarding schedule 3 criteria asking for a compelling reason.
- Api 2019 submitted all necessary documents to the department.

My question is ... Is this a good sign that the department let me stay while waiting 820 onshore? it has been a year since receiving the letter and I havent heard anything from the department since Apr 19. Thank you

 

[MarkNortham]

Hi JoStar -

Thanks for the question. In many case, the longer it goes after you lodge your Schedule 3 response and don't hear anythign back, the better. This is because DHA typically assess Schedule 3 in the early part of the assessment process and if you don't pass that part, they will refuse on Schedule 3 reasons alone, saving themselves the time of having to look at your relationship evidence. While there's no guarantee of this in any particular case, that's a pattern we've noticed over time.

Fingers crossed they have, in your case, moved on from Sched 3 and are assessing your relationship evidence! Keep in touch and best of luck with your visa.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam

Hi Mark

I have a question about schedule 3 criteria.This is my timeline for 820 partnet visa.

- June 2018 applied partner visa 280
- March 2019 received a letter from DHA regarding schedule 3 criteria asking for a compelling reason.
- Api 2019 submitted all necessary documents to the department.

My question is ... Is this a good sign that the department let me stay while waiting 820 onshore? it has been a year since receiving the letter and I havent heard anything from the department since Apr 19. Thank you

 

[JoStar]

Hi Mark

That looks relief !! . Thank you very much for quick reply ^.^

 

[Karramy]

Hi Mark

Wondering if I can pick your brain.
Have you worked with many people where the partner is from a’high risk’ country?
My husband and I applied for the 309 in August 2018. We had one RFI in November 2018, I replied to it within a few days and we’ve heard nothing since.
We front loaded everything so my husband’s medical has expired and we both renewed our police clearances in January this year.
My husband is from Iraq. He’s never been in trouble with the law, his health examination came back with no issues, we’ve uploaded ongoing evidence every couple of months the entire time we’ve been waiting.
I wrote to the department last month and received a response from a senior case manager from the Beirut visa processing office advising they are still conducting relevant checks and will be in touch if they need anything else.
In your experience how long can these ‘checks’ go on for and have you had visa’s granted that have exceeded the processing times?
Thanks so much for your help.

 

[Camsum]

Hi Camsum -

Thanks for the question, and congratulations for being the first question poster on the 2020 thread!

RE PMV, that's a great question. By law it's not possible to change the expiration date of a visa once it has been granted - it's "baked in" essentially. So I'm not hopeful that they could extend the visa. That being said, DHA may - once the travel ban is lifted - make special arrangements for people with "spent" sc300 visas that could not enter in time, perhaps by allowing them to enter on a visitor visa and then lodge the sc820/801 application onshore. The primary difference in the 820 is price discount for sc300 holders - it may be that they make this discount available for previous sc300 holders as well depending on the circumstances.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam

Hi Mark. What advice would you give someone with a granted Prospective Marriage Visa right now who is yet to enter Australia?
My fiance, who is a US citizen in the US right now, was granted her PMV on 24 September 2019, so it expires 24 June 2020. We have been unable to move to Australia sooner due to personal reasons, and now it's looking like it might be physically impossible to arrive by 24 June, let alone get married and submit a partner Visa application by that date.
The information I have found suggests a PMV cannot be extended and we would have to re-apply if we can't comply with the Initial Entry Date requirement. This seems incredibly unfair. Do you think there could ever be a way around this? It would simply be heartbreaking for us to start from square one and spend god knows how much longer living apart. Thanks in advance for any advice you could provide us

Thanks for your insight Mark. In that scenario you described, arriving on visitor Visa then applying for 820/801 onshore, would that mean she wouldn't be allowed to work until the 820 is granted? I big plus of the PMV is being free to work while waiting for 820 to be granted.
Thanks again

 

[Fufuu]

Hi Mark! I love your new thread!
Here’s an overview on my 820 partner visa:
December 2017: Applied for 820 partner visa (uploaded everything, AFP too, Medical soon after)

-no emails/contact until December 2019-

December 2019: CO asked me to submit form 80 and up to date evidence
-everything got uploaded soon after-

12th March 2020: CO asked for a new AFP from both sponsor and applicant and a new medical examination.
-Uploaded on the 30th March-

Do you think I’ll get the visa soon along with 801? I’ve been waiting for almost 28 months...

Thank you.

 

[Rohitha131]

Hi Mark,

Great to see your valuable inputs which is highly appreciated in the first hand. My concern is, if we have already lodged 186 ENS in March’2020 (having still 482 until August’2020 and the BVA activates after) and the employer is temporarily “stood down” (after the 186 lodgement was done) due to Covid-19 however they’ve agreed and given the consent that I’ll be still in the cadre and will be called to work once the business reinstated, is there any chance that this would delay in finalising 186 or will that affect the same in any ways ? Will they ask any document/statement from employer in this situation prior to the decision is made ?

Thanks in advance !

 

[Noorsandhu]

Hi mark,
We applied our Pmv 300 on 20 june 2019 from india. We front loaded everything. Medicals were done on 2 sept 2019. We have no complexity in our application. A very straightforward application. We haven’t been contacted for any information yet. Do you think they are processing 300 right now? Since they are not allowed to come to Australia at the moment. Im very saddened by this and kinda depressed. Should we wait for the grant or we should marry as soon as the ban gets lifted and my fiance comes to india to visit me of my visa is not granted. Would that be a better option? Im very confused.
And thanks for helping us out with all our questions, its really helpful.

 

[jeremy_k]

Hi Mark!Thank you for taking the time to answer questions.

My question is regarding the 485 visa. I have applied for the 485, but am currently stuck overseas with this whole lockdown situation. My BVB expired due to emergency surgery, but I have an ETA that I applied for and thankfully got approved.

I'm just wondering what your thoughts are for those of us who have applied for this visa, went home and are now stuck. I have not received any request for a medical examination yet, but am terrified to at the moment as the centre that normally does this is not conducting any health examinations for overseas visas. What happens if I get the request but am unable to meet the 28 day period to get the tests done? Is the 28 days inclusive of weekends and public holidays?

Also, what is likely to happen if the borders are not open when I need to be in Aus? Is there some sorta email I need to send out to the DHA? Will they already know the situation and not issue visas at the moment? Stressing out like crazy as I see the processing time for this visa has actually gone down not up.

 

[MarkNortham]

Hi Karramy -

Thanks for the note. Often applications like this are held up for months or longer waiting for external security checks from various government agencies. It's not unusual at all to see application that are from "high risk" countries take 24-30 months to process - we do many of these and see this routinely. I'd keep on uploading new relationship evidence periodically as it becomes available and try to be patient - especially with what may be further delays due to the COVID-19 situation.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam

Hi Mark

Wondering if I can pick your brain.
Have you worked with many people where the partner is from a'high risk' country?
My husband and I applied for the 309 in August 2018. We had one RFI in November 2018, I replied to it within a few days and we've heard nothing since.
We front loaded everything so my husband's medical has expired and we both renewed our police clearances in January this year.
My husband is from Iraq. He's never been in trouble with the law, his health examination came back with no issues, we've uploaded ongoing evidence every couple of months the entire time we've been waiting.
I wrote to the department last month and received a response from a senior case manager from the Beirut visa processing office advising they are still conducting relevant checks and will be in touch if they need anything else.
In your experience how long can these 'checks' go on for and have you had visa's granted that have exceeded the processing times?
Thanks so much for your help.

 

[MarkNortham]

Hi Camsum -

Actually if she entered on a visitor visa, that visa would likely have a "maximum stay period", usually 3 months. If she arrived on the visitor visa, lodged the 820/801 onshore during the stay period, and then received a Bridging Visa A (BVA) from the lodgment, as soon as she "overstayed" the stay period (ie, at 3 months + 1 day from arrival), she would automatically go onto the BVA and would then benefit from the conditions of the BVA - specifically, ability for unlimited work, etc.

It can be a bit confusing, as some visitor visas have an "expiration date" of 6 months or 12 months from grant - the important date is the stay period or how long you are allowed to stay starting from the time you enter Australia - that's the key.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam

Thanks for your insight Mark. In that scenario you described, arriving on visitor Visa then applying for 820/801 onshore, would that mean she wouldn't be allowed to work until the 820 is granted? I big plus of the PMV is being free to work while waiting for 820 to be granted.
Thanks again

 

[MarkNortham]

Hi Fufuu -

A big "YES" for your question. I would say a visa decision will be coming soon (pending any COVID-19 delays/interruptions in processing). Since grant will occur more than 2 years after the application date, normally both the temporary (820) and permanent (801) partner visas are granted. Every once in a while this doesn't happen and you have to push for it (we're doing this for a client now) however normal procedure is that both visas are granted if the grant of the temporary visa occurs more than 24 months from the date of application.

Good luck!

Best regards,

Mark Northam

Hi Mark! I love your new thread!
Here's an overview on my 820 partner visa:
December 2017: Applied for 820 partner visa (uploaded everything, AFP too, Medical soon after)

-no emails/contact until December 2019-

December 2019: CO asked me to submit form 80 and up to date evidence
-everything got uploaded soon after-

12th March 2020: CO asked for a new AFP from both sponsor and applicant and a new medical examination.
-Uploaded on the 30th March-

Do you think I'll get the visa soon along with 801? I've been waiting for almost 28 months...

Thank you.

 

[MarkNortham]

Hi Rohitha131 -

Thanks for your note. The key to your situation is that the nominated position "must be available" to the visa applicant at the time the nomination AND visa are approved. So as long as you satisfied the required time on a 457 and/or 482 visa as of the date of application for the 186, even if you are stood down, what matters is what the employer is willing/able to do as of the point they approve the nomination and visa - it's a forward looking criteria.

What we're unsure of currently and waiting to see how DHA handled this is a situation where a 482 holder, for instance, is stood down and waiting for their position to resume, and DHA then makes a decision on the nomination or visa - a person who is stood down still has a connection to the business (as opposed to a person who has been made redundant or laid off or fired or has quit). At this point we anticipate DHA will be fairly flexible about these situations as they have already signalled in related areas, but we'll have to see how they handle these situations.

Hope this helps -

Best,

Mark Northam

Hi Mark,

Great to see your valuable inputs which is highly appreciated in the first hand. My concern is, if we have already lodged 186 ENS in March'2020 (having still 482 until August'2020 and the BVA activates after) and the employer is temporarily "stood down" (after the 186 lodgement was done) due to Covid-19 however they've agreed and given the consent that I'll be still in the cadre and will be called to work once the business reinstated, is there any chance that this would delay in finalising 186 or will that affect the same in any ways ? Will they ask any document/statement from employer in this situation prior to the decision is made ?

Thanks in advance !