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Family Violence Bill - what does this mean for partner visas?

6K views 34 replies 16 participants last post by  CCMS 
#1 ·
Hi, I've just received an email from my migration agent that the Family Violence Bill has passed? How long can we expect for character assessments for sponsors to take? When does this START to affect partner visas? I have a student visa that will expire in March and I wanted to apply for an onshore partner visa. This is all scary change for us.
 
#5 ·
In case it helps:

"The Family Violence Bill has been passed in the Senate. This is going to mean a big change for the partner visa program.

If you have already LODGED your application - relax. It will NOT affect you.

If you have NOT YET LODGED.... read on. This is super important.

WHAT DOES IT MEAN?
The new legislation will make sure sponsors who have a criminal history and/or a history of family violence will find it very difficult to sponsor a visa applicant for a partner visa.

It may mean that your partner is not able to be sponsored at all AND they may not be able to come to Australia to live with you.

For couples who are planning on lodging an ONSHORE partner visa regardless of if the sponsor has a criminal history or not, they will not be able to lodge a partner visa UNTIL sponsorship is approved. This means that if you have a visa that is expiring and you are planning on lodging a partner visa soon - then you may be delayed in lodging and may need to leave Australia if you cannot lodge the partner visa before the expiry of your current visa. "

Source:
https://www.freedommigration.com/ - 28/11 Email Newsletter
 
#7 ·
That's exactly it. If you don't have a criminal background, hopefully it's a smooth and easy process.
 
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#8 ·
We don't know exactly when this is going to affect new applications ( I just lodged two this afternoon and bridging visas were granted immediatey), but my advice would be to lodge now, if you currently meet the requirements, and not wait, especially if you are in Australia on a temporary visa.
 
#10 ·
From AAP:

It will be harder for people with a history of domestic violence to sponsor a partner visa under changes to migration laws which have passed the Senate.

More than two years after being introduced to parliament, legislation finally cleared the upper house on Wednesday to put more emphasis on sponsors' character.

The changes also ensure visa applicants are aware if their sponsor has a history of violence.

Under the existing regime, full character checks are a mandatory requirement for all visa applicants but sponsors are only required to provide police checks where a minor is included in the application.
The changes extend the grounds to refuse a visa for people with a violent criminal history.

When he introduced the bill in 2016, Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton said the government had made it very clear domestic violence was not acceptable under any circumstances.

The government passed an amendment to ensure the parent visa would not put additional burden on Australia's healthcare system.

If someone sponsored for a parent visa does not cover their own health costs while in Australia, the sponsoring child will be liable for the outstanding debt.
 
#14 ·
#20 ·
The govt is scrutinising all partner visas quite closely. This article was published 29/11/18:

Sham marriages on the rise as people try to get Aussie visas
by
ANTHONY GALLOWAY, National Political Reporter, Herald Sun

The number of foreign fraudsters trying to obtain partner visas to allow them to stay in Australia has more than doubled in just two years.

Bogus relationships and fake *marriage and birth certificates are being uncovered at an alarming rate.

In the past four years, 1500 foreign nationals have had applications for partner visas rejected after being caught out lying or with fake papers.

In 2015-16, 278 applications for the sought-after visas were rejected. But by 2017-18, that total had soared to 668, *according to figures obtained under Freedom of Information laws.

The revelations come weeks after the Australian Border Force shut down a fake-marriages syndicate.

Foreign nationals who have had *partner-visa applications recently *rejected include:

A WOMAN accused of paying $80,000 to a man to enter into a fake marriage, who later admitted she was pregnant to a different man;

A MELBOURNE resident whose short-stay visa was running out, who then married a man with Australian residency who was living abroad; and

A MAN who came to Australia on a fake passport and who then tried to obtain a partner visa.

For three years, authorities have been using a new hi-tech system to identify those taking *welfare *payments as singles, despite sponsoring overseas partners.

The migration claims and welfare history of tens of thousands of *people living here on partner visas have been examined under the data- matching program.

Partner visas cost about $7000 but remain extremely popular, with thousands of applicants waiting to be processed at any one time. Border Force and other investigators are rigorous in their interviews to establish that *relationships are genuine.

A spokesman for the Department of Home Affairs said authorities investigated all allegations of fake relationships and marriage scams.

“Fraud can *include false or misleading information provided by an *applicant or sponsor, document fraud such as bogus marriage or birth certificates, or identity fraud,” the spokesman said.
 
#22 ·
Does anyone know if these changes will affect people on a Prospective of Marriage Visa - who have had it granted and are just waiting to get married in Australia to then lodge the next step which is 820/801?
It's not my case as I have already lodged mine, but I am just curious as people on a PMV have 9 months to move to Australia, get married and then apply for the 820/801 visa..
 
#23 ·
My partner will be moving over at the end of January on his PMV 300. Part of me is slightly stressed but the other part of me would hope that procedures will be put in place to make this practical. I think it's a good thing to vet sponsors first to ensure that anyone with a history of domestic violence is thoroughly looked at. I just hope that it doesn't impact the rest of us too much. Or that sponsor approval for those of us without violent histories is processed quickly. I provided an AFP check when we applied for the PMV 300 but who knows. I guess there's no point in speculating, we'll just have to wait and see.

Although one thought I did have, we have 9 months to lodge the 820 and 9 months seems like quite a short time to accumulate the types of evidence we need. However, if the sponsor has to be approved before the applicant can apply, perhaps there will be nothing to stop the sponsor from lodging their application ASAP and then the applicant applying later? But again, we will see.
 
#33 ·
Surely they can't enforce something like that straight away? I'm 2 weeks away from applying for my 820 (in 2 weeks we'll meet the 1 year living together requirement), and my current visa ends second week of January. If this come into effect within the next 2 weeks, and it takes longer than 2 weeks for a sponsor to be approved (especially over Christmas!!), I am screwed.
 
#34 ·
Surely they can't enforce something like that straight away?

** They often give little or no warning - but the change can be anytime now.

I'm 2 weeks away from applying for my 820 (in 2 weeks we'll meet the 1 year living together requirement)

** There is no 12 month living together requirement - only 12 month relationship length if not married or relationship registered.
 
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