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Tricky question, partner visa- offshore PLEASE HELP

9640 Views 16 Replies 8 Participants Last post by  CollegeGirl, 
B
Hi everyone,

We have a specific question(s) regarding our spousal visa application 309 application (applied for offshore in Washington DC). I am Aus citizen by birth, my husband is US citizen, we currently live and work in Seattle, WA, no kids yet. We have recently submitted my husband's spouse visa application offshore (Washington DC Aus embassy) and we are hoping that it will take the standard 4-5 months processing....

The problem is I am going back to Aus to start a job in 4 weeks time (which is not really that much of a problem, so relieved to be able to start a job shortly after I leave my job here in the US), but we would like to minimise the time that my husband and I spend apart....and he has started to apply for jobs in Aus, and I know that it would be an advantage if he could be there in person for interviews....

We are also having an 'Australian Wedding' on the 14th July because my family was not able to be there when we got married last June. We are keeping our fingers crossed that his application will be approved by then...so he can make his own wedding, part 2 :confused::confused::confused:!!!

We have been advised (by a migration agent - not Aus embassy) that my husband is able to enter the country on a tourist visa, make his own wedding and hopfully go to job interviews...but should be prepared to be questioned at Immigration in Sydney about INTENT of his visit. What should he say?? Will him visiting jeopardise his visa application?

He might also be asked to show a return ticket, and may have to go back to the US for an interview...I know that Aus Immigration does not like you to 'wait out' the spousal visa application time onshore also, when you apply offshore..We just didn't expect that I would be able to find work back in Aus so quickly....And we are trying to do the right thing.. we both want and need to work and stay together and minimise the time we spend apart! Will I need to be there for that interview back in the US with the Aus embassy?

I also understand that you have to be offshore when your visa is granted also...So we understand that he might have to return back to the US.

Does anyone have any experience with this sort of situation?

Should my husband wait until he has a case officer and explain our situation, or should he just come over and be prepared to return...Or just wait until his visa is gratned....We both want to minimise our time out of work both here in US and in Aus....I know that he could get a bridging visa if he came out to Aus on a tourist visa then applied again onshore for the spouse visa, but we want to avoid multiple applications..

PLEASE HELP?!!

Date of application: 23rd Feb 2012

Nationality:My husband is from USA (I am Australian) we got married June 2011 in USA

Visa type: Partner 309

Offshore/onshore: Offshore

Medicals submitted (yes/no): NO, waiting for request for submitted them...

Police check submitted (yes/no): Yes, FBI recevied March 15th 2012 State police check submitted with initial application.

Date CO assigned: ???

Date visa granted: ????
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brisgirl said:
Hi everyone,

We have a specific question(s) regarding our spousal visa application 309 application (applied for offshore in Washington DC). I am Aus citizen by birth, my husband is US citizen, we currently live and work in Seattle, WA, no kids yet. We have recently submitted my husband's spouse visa application offshore (Washington DC Aus embassy) and we are hoping that it will take the standard 4-5 months processing....

The problem is I am going back to Aus to start a job in 4 weeks time (which is not really that much of a problem, so relieved to be able to start a job shortly after I leave my job here in the US), but we would like to minimise the time that my husband and I spend apart....and he has started to apply for jobs in Aus, and I know that it would be an advantage if he could be there in person for interviews....

We are also having an 'Australian Wedding' on the 14th July because my family was not able to be there when we got married last June. We are keeping our fingers crossed that his application will be approved by then...so he can make his own wedding, part 2 :confused::confused::confused:!!!

We have been advised (by a migration agent - not Aus embassy) that my husband is able to enter the country on a tourist visa, make his own wedding and hopfully go to job interviews...but should be prepared to be questioned at Immigration in Sydney about INTENT of his visit. What should he say?? Will him visiting jeopardise his visa application?

He might also be asked to show a return ticket, and may have to go back to the US for an interview...I know that Aus Immigration does not like you to 'wait out' the spousal visa application time onshore also, when you apply offshore..We just didn't expect that I would be able to find work back in Aus so quickly....And we are trying to do the right thing.. we both want and need to work and stay together and minimise the time we spend apart! Will I need to be there for that interview back in the US with the Aus embassy?

I also understand that you have to be offshore when your visa is granted also...So we understand that he might have to return back to the US.

Does anyone have any experience with this sort of situation?

Should my husband wait until he has a case officer and explain our situation, or should he just come over and be prepared to return...Or just wait until his visa is gratned....We both want to minimise our time out of work both here in US and in Aus....I know that he could get a bridging visa if he came out to Aus on a tourist visa then applied again onshore for the spouse visa, but we want to avoid multiple applications..

PLEASE HELP?!!

Date of application: 23rd Feb 2012

Nationality:My husband is from USA (I am Australian) we got married June 2011 in USA

Visa type: Partner 309

Offshore/onshore: Offshore

Medicals submitted (yes/no): NO, waiting for request for submitted them...

Police check submitted (yes/no): Yes, FBI recevied March 15th 2012 State police check submitted with initial application.

Date CO assigned: ???

Date visa granted: ????
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I can't offer any advice regarding entering Australia as a tourist but I would suggest getting the medicals taken care of. EVERY applicant for migration has to have one so you might as well save time and get them done so you save a little time. And trust me I know that every minute you save counts when you're waiting on this visa.
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A
my hubby applied offshore and has come to Aus on a tourist visa with a one way ticket, we were upfront about everything at Washington and again at immigration in melb at the airport, they let him through. Not that its a great idea but i understand the not wanting to be apart coz we felt the same, we arrived here in feb 2012 and are still awaiting his visa approval, i have been told not 100% sure if its correct but once the visa looks to be finalized your spouse (so i believe) can just go to NZ for a few days or a week and come back on the new visa. im certainly hoping this is correct! wish you well in your journey, may both of ours get approved soon.
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B
Thanks Vyktoria, I understand about the medicals, we should just bite the bullet and get it down, we wasn't sure that it was NECESSARY for everyone, as it says on the Aus immigration website that it MAY be required....I wonder how long that the medicals are valid for, if we got one done in March, is it still valid in July?
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W
It seems common that alot of people who applied offshore come to oz on a tourist visa to alleviate the separation during processing and Immi seem to accept this so it shouldn't be a problem getting him here for the wedding.

I wouldn't mention the job hunting though. This definitely goes against the premise of a tourist visa. Just bear in mind that job hunting on a tourist visa can be very difficult as your partner will have no idea how long the processing of the defacto visa will take so it would be difficult for an employer to take him.

Also once the defacto is granted it also a bit hard getting a job because a lot of companies will only take people with permanent residency for permanent roles. It all depends what industry he is in.
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B
Thanks Aussie girl, it's good to know that someone else has done it also....
I am hopeful that he only has to go to NZ, but I have heard that you need to be offshore when it is granted....Not sure what that means, if they delay processing if they know that you are onshore....I have also heard about having to go back for an interview to the US...all speculation, so frustrating!
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B
Thanks Whatnext..

Just to clarify, we are actually married, and we applied for a spouse visa showing our marriage certificate...not defacto relationship..Just having second wedding because we didn't celebrate with our families the first time.

I agree I don't think that it is a good idea to mention job hunting on a tourist visa...I presume once he gets his spouse visa granted (hopefully in 4-5 months) he will have working rights....
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W
How long have you been with your husband? If 3 yrs or over you should qualify to go directly to permanent visa. If not he'll be granted a 2 yr temporary visa. He will get full work rights once that's granted.
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B
whatnext said:
How long have you been with your husband? If 3 yrs or over you should qualify to go directly to permanent visa. If not he'll be granted a 2 yr temporary visa. He will get full work rights once that's granted.
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We met and commenced our relationship Sept 2009, so it will be 3 yrs this Sept...I am not sure what you mean though by full working rights??

I understand some employers might be a bit more hesitant to employ someone that they think is only in the country temporarily but it is my understanding that once the temporary visa is granted, he has full working rights...
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W
Full working rights mean he can work full time. My husband is on temporary spouse visa and he found it very difficult to get a job a permanent job in his field, business admin, because he is not a permanent resident. He has gone back to casual construction work. Most companies will only hire permanent residents for permanent positions. Some companies offer short term contracts which should be ok but again it depends on the companies policy if they hire temporary residents.
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B
Gotcha! It's definitely tough in Australia right now, I've heard real unemployment is close to 10% which sounds terrible....I'm glad that your husband has been able to find some work even if it's not what he wants to do..Thanks for your advice
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brisgirl said:
Thanks Vyktoria, I understand about the medicals, we should just bite the bullet and get it down, we wasn't sure that it was NECESSARY for everyone, as it says on the Aus immigration website that it MAY be required....I wonder how long that the medicals are valid for, if we got one done in March, is it still valid in July?
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Medicals are valid for 1 year from the date that the tests are performed. But the way it works is you go to a panel doctor and the tests are done and they send the results to DC. So you'd be fine getting them done in March. Good luck, though!
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J
I too am in this situation, and in need of help, wondering the outcome of your situation, I'm in uk and my boyfriend is in aus, have been told my visa can take 14 months and I do not what to spend that apart from him. He has a good job in aus so doesn't want to move to England where he would be unemployed. I plan to visit on tourist visa, and he is planning to visit me, but I wanted to know if there's any temporary visa or bridging visa so I can stay out there while my visa is being processed ? Please help!
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Maggie-May24
If you're under 31, you could apply for a Working Holiday Visa, which would allow you to work in Australia for up to 12 months (no more than 6 months for any one employer). If you did the 3 months of regional work, you could extend that to a second WHV.
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S
My hubby and i are waiting for our visa too, im the aussie, he's the yank. we're going to australia next month on a ETA visa for him,so he can stay for 3 months and then leave then come back to australia - he called immigration and they told him that he can visit australia if he wants while waiting for his visa. we have two kids both of which i made aussie citizens this year..... he knows that when they grant him the visa - he needs to go offshore for it to be acitivated....
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J
Hi thanks, I've actually already done the working hol visa (proof of 12 months living together) and didn't do the farm work as I knew I'd be applying on defacto grounds. I just don't no if I apply off shore I'll get any kind of bridging or temporary visa to stay there while I wait... And be able to work ! I no I'll have to come back for the visa to be granted aswell .... Is it easier to apply onshore while on a visitor visa and get a bridging visa from there? I'm so unsure what to do no. My off shore visa is ready to be sent.
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CollegeGirl
If you apply offshore you will not get any sort of bridging visa - those are for onshore applications only. Nor will you get any other sort of visa automatically. You can apply for a visitor visa of some type (eVisitor?) that will allow you to holiday in Australia while you wait, but it won't allow any sort of work, and depending on the type of visitor visa you get you may have to fly out of Australia every three months to renew it.

If you, say, went to Australia on a holiday using a tourist visa and THEN decided to apply for a partner visa... THEN you would get a Bridging Visa that would kick in as soon as your current stay* on your visitor visa ended, and allow you to stay in Australia and give you full work rights, study rights, and the ability to get a visa that allows temporary travel rights if you need to leave Australia and come back in while the visa is processing.

Tourist visas require you to be a "genuine entrant," though, so you wouldn't want to appear you were PLANNING to apply for a partner visa once onshore. Probably better not to carry your application materials with you.

* - Some types of holiday visas only allow three-month stays at a time, That's what I mean by current stay - if yours is one like this (which would probaby be ideal if you later decided to apply onshore since it would give you work rights earlier), at the end of the three months, you simply stay in Australia (as long as you've already applied for the 820) and the Bridging Visa A will activate.
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