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Family member (partner) not included in student visa application

4K views 4 replies 3 participants last post by  nausheenmohammed 
#1 ·
Hello,

My partner and I are a same sex couple and had been engaged in a de facto relationship for 5 years, by the time he applied for a subclass 574 student visa for a 4 year phd program. My partner was granted with the visa but at the time he logged his application he didn’t list me as his dependent. He didn't do it because an Education Agent suggested we couldn't proof we were family dependents as our relationship was not registered in our country of origin. Furthermore, the Education Agent told my partner I could apply as a subsequent applicant after our relationship was registered as we could legally become family members. We took that advice because in our country, for a de facto relationship could be valid, the couple must provide evidence of 2 year cohabitation and by the time he had applied, we did not fulfill this requirement. So everything sounded reasonable.

We took the Education Agent professional advice and my subsequent application was denied by the Department a couple of days ago.

Now we understand it is possible for my partner to re-apply for a new student visa, this time including me, his previously undeclared family member. That application would be logged from inside of Australia, while I remain in my country.

Right now we have registered our relationship in our country of origin and under the Australian State law. We have some information to proof we are a genuine de facto couple but we are not confident enough this new application would be granted, arguing that I was not included in my partner first application because we trusted on a wrong advice provided by the Education Agent which handled his submission.

Any thoughts on what should we expect from the Department? Do we have a good chance appling for that visa and focusing on that argument or should we look for another alternative for us to be reunited again?

This time we want to use a Migration Agent but don't know how could we asses his advice.

Thanks!
 
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#2 · (Edited)
Do not take migration advice from 'education agents'.
By providing false or misleading information to the DIBP, you have put yourself in a difficult position. False or misleading in formation about a material particular that might have been (not was) taken into account in making a decision can lead to visa refusal, or visa cancellation. It does not matter how the information arose, but there is a discretion not to cancel in some cases.
May I suggest that you concentrate on retaining the visa you hold and then the matter of another visa for your partner?
The registered migration agents who post on this forum can mostly be contacted by a link in their signatures.
 
#3 ·
Do mot take migration advice from 'education agents'.
By providing false or misleading information to the DIBP, you have put yourself in a difficult position. False or misleading in formation about a material particular that might have been (not was) taken into account in making a decision can lead to visa refusal, or visa cancellation. It does not matter how the information arose, but there is a discretion not to cancel in some cases.
May I suggest that you concentrate on retaining the visa you hold and then the matter of another visa for your partner?
The registered migration agents who post on this forum can mostly be contacted by a link in their signatures.
Thank you, Mr. Russell. I appreciate your suggestion. I originally considered for my partner to re-apply to his student visa because that is what other migration agent suggested. The second option was to apply for my own student visa.

I was thinking of the first option because the Border Protection website says: How to apply for family members to join you: "If you did not declare a family member and they need to join you in Australia at a later date, you will need to apply for a new student visa including them and explain why they were not included on your application."

Do you think the explanation that we took a wrong advice from an Education Agent is risky and not strong enough?
 
#4 ·
Do not rely either on DIBP publications, including their website, for correct advice.

There are registered migration agents, unregistered (unregulated) migration agents overseas and education agents who accept commissions from course providers and are not noted for advising clients about the strategically best course of study.

Numerous students have undertaken studies that took them nowhere, except the bank.

It is unlikely that there was advice from a registered migration agent not to declare a de facto relationship. If it was and there is evidence you might be able to complain to the OMARA and make trouble for the RMA, but this is unlikely to do you much good:

WARNING
The OMARA is an essentially useless office that is part of the Department of Immigration and Border Protection and I have told them so repeatedly. With the stroke of a pen the minister can terminate them all as easily as s/he can terminate a perfectly valid visa application. The OMARA can do nothing about unregistered agents overseas or parliamentarians or DIBP officers who give, often incorrect, migration advice in Australia, or education agents who give catastrophically incorrect migration advice under the table. About all the OMARA can do, having received a complaint, is haul a registered migration agent over the coals - after the event. They cannot order repayment of money lost. They can do nothing when the minister (The Terminator) changes the rules in the middle of the game or one of his delegates or 'designated authorities' bungles your case. By the way, the 'average fee' misinformation published by the OMARA is just that.

The regulations have changed significantly since subclass 574 was available. Considerable weight is now placed on applicants satisfying the GTE (Genuine Temporary Entrant) criterion.
You seem to have shot yourself in one foot. You would probably be well advised to put the full facts of your case to a RMA to avoid shooting yourself in the other one.
 
#5 · (Edited)
Hi,

This is Nausheen. My husband is on student visa subclass 500 in Australia, he had applied for an visa extension on August 31st 2016 and got the visa granted on October 13th 2016 but in the visa application he did not change the relationship to Married as we got married on May 2nd 2016 as this was done through some agent who did not ask any details of relationship. I wanted to join him as dependent but unfortunately I cannot as my name is not in his visa application. His visa is extended till August 31st 2017. Now can he re - apply his visa and include me if yes then can I join him once his visa is granted and travel to Australia?

If he can declare me in his visa application then can I join him as student dependent?
 
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