[Reece D87]

We are beginning our journey to move to Oz from UK. My partner is an Australian citizen through decent and has a passport. However, our 1 year old daughter and I are not and have UK passports.

My partner and I have looked at some Visa possibilities but wondering if anyone has situations similar and could direct accordingly?

We seem to see the partner visa or skilled independent as an option at the moment. We'd obviously need a child visa for our daughter. Please share your wisdom.

 

[wrussell]

Any registered migration agent who regularly posts on this forum could advise you about your optimal visa strategy. RMA contact details are in their signatures.

 

[TeamBnB]

Sounds like a partner visa would be suitable...you just need to decide if you want to wait the processing time in the UK and apply offshore or if you want to come to OZ first and apply onshore...your daughter can be included in that application or maybe see if she also qualifies for Australian citizenship by decent

 

[Reece D87]

Sounds like a partner visa would be suitable...you just need to decide if you want to wait the processing time in the UK and apply offshore or if you want to come to OZ first and apply onshore...your daughter can be included in that application or maybe see if she also qualifies for Australian citizenship by decent

Unfortunately, my fiancée has not spent enough time in Australia for our daughter to qualify by decent. She's spent around 9 months total there and needs to be 2 years.
The conundrum we have is not being able to work while the process happens onshore. Or is there a way around this? Is the only way to go out on a holiday visa and then apply whilst there?

Apologies if that is too far past your experience.

 

[ZubiSim]

You will be able to work on a bridging visa.
You can come on a visitor visa, apply for a partner visa and you'll be granted a bridging visa with work rights. Bridging visa will become active once your visitor visa expires (usually, after 3 months stay, but could be longer depending on your visa)

 

[Reece D87]

Thanks for this. I will look in to this now. Very kind of you to offer your advice.

 

[TeamBnB]

Thanks for this. I will look in to this now. Very kind of you to offer your advice.

like ZubiSim said, lots of people get a visitor visa, then apply onshore for 820 and can start working once the bridging visa comes into effect... I myself am doing exactly this for the second time now...

As you are from the UK, you can apply for eVisitor for yourself and your daughter online and it will be granted pretty instantly. Validity for eVisitor is 3 months. So lets assume you enter Australia 1st of April, then apply onshore for 820, you will have a bridging visa from 1st of July. This will come with work rights as well as access to medicare (equivalent to the NHS in the UK).

If you go down this route make sure you get adequate travel insurance for the 3 months you're not covered by medicare

If you use the search function in the forum and just type 820, you will get lots of threads with all sorts of scenarios and questions.

 

[TeamBnB]

oh and another thing... you'll need a UK police clearance certificate (apply through ACRO website) and the processing times are quite long, so best to get that done sooner and while still in the UK, as they only post via "normal" royal mail and that takes forever OR you have to fork out GBP 50 for a courier service on top of the application fee

 

[Aussie83]

you will have a bridging visa from 1st of July. This will come with work rights as well as access to medicare (equivalent to the NHS in the UK).

And just to clarify Medicare can be applied for once the 820/801 visa has been submitted and is in effect from when the medicare is granted. No need to wait for a bridging visa.

 

[TeamBnB]

And just to clarify Medicare can be applied for once the 820/801 visa has been submitted and is in effect from when the medicare is granted. No need to wait for a bridging visa.

you will need to wait for the bridging visa to come into effect to get medicare (same with work rights)... however you can hand in the application as soon as you applied for 820

 

[Aussie83]

you will need to wait for the bridging visa to come into effect to get medicare (same with work rights)... however you can hand in the application as soon as you applied for 820

What is that info based on? Just what people in the medicare office (many times they have given it wrong info) said or have you tried to use it? Honestly curious as I'm always happy to be corrected and I want to make sure my info is still correct, but doing a search unable to find anything official about the changes. Was a medicare number issued at time of application?

As previously based on personal experience we used it while my wife was here on a tourist visa and personally knew others who used it on bridging visas.
There were also reports of people even last year using it without being on a bridging visa.
Work rights are tied in with the bridging visa so no issues there as the DHA are in charge of those things.

 

[TeamBnB]

I did it myself about 10 years ago and am about to do it again now... Both Medicare and work rights will come into effect once the bridging visa kicks in at the end of the validity of the current visa

All info is on the Medicare website as well:

Enrolling in Medicare if you’re an Australian permanent resident - Medicare - Services Australia

To enrol as an Australian resident you need to have a permanent resident visa or have applied for one.

www.servicesaustralia.gov.au

Or if you put Medicare in the search here in the forum, you'll find some others experience as well

There is no way anyone using Medicare on a tourist visa...

 

[ZubiSim]

Yes, myself and many others used Medicare before bridging visa kicks in while on a tourist visa.
It's on the official website:

Documents to enrol in Medicare if you've applied for permanent residency - Medicare - Services Australia

You need to provide documents that prove your identity and residency.

www.servicesaustralia.gov.au

You can enrol in Medicare if you’ve applied for either:

a permanent residency visa
a permanent protection visa.
You’ll need to give us all of these documents:

a current passport or Immicard
a valid visa
proof from the Department of Home Affairs that you’ve applied for permanent residency.

 

[Aussie83]

I did it myself about 10 years ago and am about to do it again now... Both Medicare and work rights will come into effect once the bridging visa kicks in at the end of the validity of the current visa

All info is on the Medicare website as well:

Enrolling in Medicare if you’re an Australian permanent resident - Medicare - Services Australia

To enrol as an Australian resident you need to have a permanent resident visa or have applied for one.

www.servicesaustralia.gov.au

Or if you put Medicare in the search here in the forum, you'll find some others experience as well

There is no way anyone using Medicare on a tourist visa...

Okay now I know where you are coming from.
Yes back then it might not of been the case. But 10 years is a long time. We applied 2 years after my wife's cousin and in that time there were changes.
And yes I have personal experience of it for my wife, not anecdotal. There are many threads on here with others having had the same experience.
Nothing in the link you provided contradicts what I have said.

 

[Aussie83]

Here is a good thread covering it from 2016. To clarify PMV is not eligible the 309/100 and 820/801 are.

Medicare offshore.

I emailed Medicare asking if my wife submitted a 309 Offshore Partner Visa, then came to Australia on a Visitor Visa - is she eligible for Medicare? I got a long winded reply first, I asked clarification on that reply and got a better reply but with the wording of bridging visa not being to my...

www.australiaforum.com

 

[paulhand]

There is no way anyone using Medicare on a tourist visa...

This is incorrect as noted in the above responses (and the link you posted).

 

[JandE]

you will need to wait for the bridging visa to come into effect to get medicare (same with work rights)... however you can hand in the application as soon as you applied for 820

My wifes bridging visa was never activated, as the 820 was granted before her earlier visa expired.

She had Medicare cover from a couple of days after submitting the 820 application.

 

[TeamBnB]

This is incorrect as noted in the above responses (and the link you posted).

So just to clarify, you're saying I can apply for medicare when I submit my 820 and the actual medicare cover could start before my bridging visa kicks in?

if that's the case, I am very happy to be wrong

 

[wrussell]

In that case, be happy!

 

[Aussie83]

So just to clarify, you're saying I can apply for medicare when I submit my 820 and the actual medicare cover could start before my bridging visa kicks in?

if that's the case, I am very happy to be wrong

To be honest the way you were so insistent even after multiple people related first hand dealings I just thought you had first hand information that things had changed.
Just from a logic standpoint. The work rights are tied to the bridging as work rights fall in the DHA scope of work.
However DHA has no control of things outside their department such as medicare, tax ect so they cannot Exert any influence there. (Outside data matching)

Keep in mind there have been a lot of changes in 10 years but even so this has been the case for at least 8 years.
Enjoy.