[bbrisbine]

I've seen a number of other posts on this forum asking questions about fulfilling the "long-term" requirement in a de facto relationship in order to bypass the wait time on moving from 820 to 801, but it's still not entirely clear to me whether the 3 year "long-term" benefit is considered from when the relationship began, when you began living together, or when it became officially de facto (registered as such). I was just hoping to get some advice BEFORE I lodge an application based on everyone's experience.

Basically, my partner (AU citizen) & I have been:
-in a demonstratably serious relationship since July 2015
-living together since Nov 2015
-registered with NSW as de facto since Sept 2016
-(it may or may not be relevant to also note that I've been living in Aus since Feb 2013, first on a student visa, then WHV, then another student visa for my PhD)

When would you recommend I submit my application in order to receive PR at the earliest possible date? Is it best to wait until the de facto clock has ticked over 3 years or even 3.5 years so the requirement is well and truly satisfied, or best to lodge from 3 years of being in a relationship and just get the process moving?

As always, any advice is so appreciated! It's incredibly helpful being able to learn from others' experiences, it's already saved me quite a bit of heartache

 

[Mania]

Serious relationship is considered defacto - basically not dating but committed to each other as partners to the exclusion of all others with evidence of this. You don't have to be registered to be considered defacto.

If you were at this point in July 15 it would be worth waiting till July 18 in order to see if you get the 801 direct route as it will potentially save 2 years from the clock.

 

[Skybluebrewer]

Keep in mind there is no guarantee that you'll skip the waiting period even if you supply ample de facto evidence for minimum of 3 years prior to your application. It is at the discretion of the CO.

 

[bbrisbine]

Serious relationship is considered defacto - basically not dating but committed to each other as partners to the exclusion of all others with evidence of this.

How does Home Affairs actually define this? I would consider it serious-- we weren't dating anyone else, I was flying to Melbourne every weekend that he wasn't driving to Sydney for those 4 months before I graduated and moved to Melbourne. Do you imagine that would qualify? Or safer to wait until 3 years from our actual living-together date?

 

[CCMS]

How does Home Affairs actually define this? I would consider it serious-- we weren't dating anyone else, I was flying to Melbourne every weekend that he wasn't driving to Sydney for those 4 months before I graduated and moved to Melbourne. Do you imagine that would qualify? Or safer to wait until 3 years from our actual living-together date?

The term "long-term partnership" is defined in migration regulation 1.03:

Long-term partner relationship, in relation to an applicant for a visa, means a relationship between the applicant and another person, each as the spouse or de facto partner of the other, that has continued:

(a) if there is a dependent child (other than a step-child) of both the applicant and the other person-for not less than 2 years; or

(b) in any other case-for not less than 3 years.

Clause 801.221(6A) provides the requirement for two years to have passed from the time the application is made, or from the date that the Minister decide to grant a UK-820 visa, does not apply to an applicant who, at the time of making the application, was in a long-term partner relationship with their Australian partner

It is not at the discretion of the case officer (delegate) to grant or not grant the permanent visa if a long-term relationship exists. However, it is at the discretion of the case officer to decide if there is sufficient evidence to establish that a long-term partnership existed at time of application.

 

[bbrisbine]

It is not at the discretion of the case officer (delegate) to grant or not grant the permanent visa if a long-term relationship exists. However, it is at the discretion of the case officer to decide if there is sufficient evidence to establish that a long-term partnership existed at time of application.

Thank you, Nick, I think this response has really gotten to the crux of my dilemma: from others' experience, what has been "sufficient evidence" to establish a long-term relationship? Is it a demonstrated commitment in terms of time spent together and joint travel and family involvement, or is it beyond that (i.g. joint finances, cohabitation, etc.)? Obviously this is impossible to say with exact certainty, as every situation has its own subtle nuances and each CO may also qualify evidence as sufficient or non-sufficient according to his or her own opinion, I'm just hoping to hear from a few different people who either did or did not have their 820/801 granted without the 2 year wait what evidence they provided.

 

[CCMS]

Thank you, Nick, I think this response has really gotten to the crux of my dilemma: from others' experience, what has been "sufficient evidence" to establish a long-term relationship? Is it a demonstrated commitment in terms of time spent together and joint travel and family involvement, or is it beyond that (i.g. joint finances, cohabitation, etc.)? Obviously this is impossible to say with exact certainty, as every situation has its own subtle nuances and each CO may also qualify evidence as sufficient or non-sufficient according to his or her own opinion, I'm just hoping to hear from a few different people who either did or did not have their 820/801 granted without the 2 year wait what evidence they provided.

I have had many cases where the couple was in a standard married relationship with children and there really was no doubt about the fact that their relationship was long-term. The permanent visa was granted straight away on every occasion.

If it is not all that clear or if it is borderline, you would rely on a large amount of relevant relationship evidence to establish that the de-facto or spouse relationship existed 2 or 3 years (as the case may be) before the application was lodged.

It is no different from the relationship evidence already required for a standard partner visa application, except that it goes back a lot further.

 

[Skybluebrewer]

Sounds to me like if you want to try and go straight to the 801, you should hire an RMA. I've read of plenty of cases on here of people who did their own apps and supplied what they thought was ample evidence to satisfy the long term relationship criteria and the CO must not have thought it was enough as they didn't get it. Most recently, the couple was married for 2 years and de facto for years prior and didn't get it. And yet in another case, someone who said they'd only been with their partner for a year and a half in total got it out of the blue and obviously didn't supply evidence of the 3 years prior as there was none. Of course, that's just going off of what people say and anyone can say anything...

So hence why I said it seems to really be based on what CO you get and what they decide to do with you. Certainly doesn't seem to be a guarantee. And if it's not a guarantee, you could wait to submit your app and it was for nothing.

 

[CCMS]

So hence why I said it seems to really be based on what CO you get and what they decide to do with you.

You're right of course, in so far that the result is the same. I just wanted to distinguish clearly where the discretion lies. If a long-term relationship is established, then the waiting period should be waived. Establishing the long-term relationship is another story...