Be careful what you say on your Visitor Visa Application!
Did you know the Miranda warning of “Anything you do say can and will be used against you…” applies not only in the movies but to the Department of Immigration and Border Protection as well?
Yes, it’s true! Migration Law is constantly evolving and one of the changes we have recently noticed with Partner Visa applications is that Immigration are paying MORE attention to any personal information previously supplied by you or your partner to them. This includes any details or particulars you may have given on previous Visitor or Student Visa applications and extends to what you have written on airport landing cards. Yes, that’s correct, they keep ALL that information for reference.
Will Immigration check my previous application?
It is important to know that when you lodge a Partner Visa application, Immigration will scrutinise and cross reference any and all of your Australian visa history and migration related data. If they find any inconsistencies or a blatant lie in the process, you are going to have a real battle on your hands.
Consistent disclosure of the same information is important. For example, there is a MYTH out there that if you bring your partner out to visit you in Australia on a Visitor Visa (Subclass 600), it is best for them not to disclose that they are indeed your partner or that you are in a relationship on the application.This is erroneously done in the hopes that this will stop Immigration from putting a ‘no further stay’ (8503 Condition) on the Visitor Visa and allow you to lodge an onshore Partner Visa (subclass 820) to take advantage of the Bridging Visa A. This unfortunately is a TOTAL MYTH and may in fact harm your Partner Visa application at a later date.
What would happen if I lied on a Visitor Visa application?
If you did not disclose your relationship status on the Visitor Visa and then lodge an onshore Partner Visa application, the Department of Immigration and Border Protection will check what you wrote on that Visitor Visa application and landing card when you entered Australia. If you originally said you were just visiting a ‘friend’ and then claim that you have been in a relationship for 12 months, Immigration will come to one of two conclusions;
(1) You are just friends and therefore you don’t meet the requirements for a partner visa, or (2), You lied on your previous visa application.
Either way, it is going to leave you in a difficult position with a lot of explaining to do and could possibly lead to a refusal of the visa application.
How do I know this MYTH exists, you ask? Well, on a recent trip to the Philippines, I overheard two Australian gentlemen talking about this exact subject in a restaurant one evening. One of the gentlemen had obviously been through the partner visa process himself, several years ago, and he was giving this advice along with some other outdated ideas. It took all my inner strength not to run over to this guy to set him straight and let him know he was actually breaking the law by giving advice like this.
Should I take advice from my friends if they have been through the process?
In this case, if a friend or someone you know tells you the best way to have a Visitor Visa granted or avoid an 8503 condition on the Visitor Visa is not to mention your relationship in the first place and you think you can somehow “trick” Immigration in this way, then please do not listen to any advice they have on anything visa-related. This applies even if they have been through the process themselves, as Migration Law is constantly changing. The information given to someone 6 months ago may be out-of-date by the time they are ready to lodge the application.
As Freedom Migration assists hundreds of couples each year going through the Partner Visa process, we have developed an understanding of how the Department of Immigration and Border Protection makes decisions. Through helping our own clients day in day out with their partner visa applications, we keep abreast of these unpublished trends through our continued daily lodging of applications and constant communications with the Department. We are skilled in reading and understanding the legislation and policies that determine eligibility for a Partner Visa. This way, we are always ‘up-to-date’ on any changes made to Migration Law.
Please please please comment below. We read them all and it helps us get better information to you.
IMPORTANT: Please note, this does not constitute Immigration advice. Always seek advice from a Registered Migration Agent before applying for an Australian Visa. Migration Law is constantly changing. This information is accurate only at the time of publication.
About the Author Sophia Emberson-Bain
I was born in the Caribbean and schooled in England before moving to Australia. I studied law and now work at the best migration agency...and no I am not a pirate. Arrhhh. I enjoy helping people, which is why I studied law. Unfortunately, all this time studying has meant my hunting skills are not so strong, and so for that reason, I am a vegetarian.
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Interesting. So what is the solution to obtaining a Partner 820 visa? And what is the point of that specific visa if the necessary circumstances are that you be in Australia, and that you be there on a visa that requires your intentions not be to apply for another visa?
Would it be more lucrative to get a student visa instead?
How often do boarder agents apply a ‘No Further Stay 8503’ condition on visas?
Hi Michael, you have a few questions there. Firstly are you looking into applying for a Subclass 820? Is the visa for you or your partner? Is the applicant currently overseas? If so, where?
What is the point of that specific Partner 820 visa if the necessary circumstances are that you be in Australia, and that you be there on a visa that requires your intentions not be to apply for another visa?
Very valid point raised by Michael… can you please advise on the same.
Hi Ryan, I am a bit confused about your question, is your concern about an 8503 condition being applied to a current visa while you are in Australia?
Hi! I’m an Australian citizen living in the UK with my British husband. We’d like to move to Australia – and my husband is considering the working holiday visa just because we don’t know if we want it to be a permanent move. Obviously we wouldn’t be buying properly etc, or properly settling as such and he’d abide by the WHV rules. My question is will immigration deny his visa because he’s married to me and suggest he apply for a partner visa instead? We just want to test the waters as such and then we’ll apply for a partner visa if we do decided we want to settle in Aus. Advice?
Hi JS, it’s not that straight forward, you are really best to get some advice before proceeding. It doesn’t cost much and you will not make any mistakes that may cause issues in the future.
Hi there, I’ve been wondering if this way would work (visa 600 then apply 820 while I’m there). My partner is an Australian and we had lived together for 9 months before I left because my student visa was expired. We are now trying to find out a way to get me into Australia again so we can compile all documents needed to lodge visa 820 so I can be with him while we are waiting for the 820 grant. Is it against the law to do 600 then 820? What should I put in my “relationship status” in the application form? de facto or single? Thank you so much and sorry for the long question.
No. 1 rule, always tell the truth in all your applications. Yes, you can lodge on a 600 as long as there is no “8503 no further stay condition” but I really recommend getting some basic adventurous before proceeding, it will save you a lot of stress and money in the long run.
This is a really good question Alea, it’s comes down to what is the main purpose of your working holiday visa? This can get very complicated and I think it would be a good idea if you sent us an email with more details. You can reach out to Emma our principle migration agent on Emma.drynan@freedommigration.com we’ll be able to give you a more detailed response.
I was in Aussie for 9 months with ETA. since eta was good for 12 months and 3 months for each visit, i thought it was okay to get out OZ every 3 months and re-enter. 3 months gone and i went to thailand, stayed there for a couple days and came back to aussie. didnt have any problem. 6 months came, i went to another country and stayed there for 1 day and got back again. this time i got into trouble as i couldnot go throught eta lane. i went to immi officer and he told me i was not supposed to used eta visa for this. he asked me many questions and i told the thruth that i have a bf and i was there to be with him. he told me not to used eta ever again and if i enter with eta in the future, i will be ban from OZ forever. he said for the benifits of the doubth, i was let go at that time, and he suggested to use any other visas if i want or plan to stay for a while in OZ. he also said i can applyed for partner visa. i stayed a little over two months and returned to the states as we are not ready to commit into marriage. our relationship has been on and off since i got back, but now i would like to go visit OZ. is there any chance to apply visitor visa other than eta? if i do, will 8503 be attached to it?
Hi Emily, are you traveling on a USA passport?
Not only for the visitor visa, you must be careful while filing your any kind of visa to migrate to Australia. i will also say that you must have complete information about Australian immigration process before filing your PR.
Hi Neha, absolutely 100% correct… that’s why we always recommend getting some level of advice before the start the process.
Hi Avelyn, i did registered on https://online.immi.gov.au/lusc/login applying for Temporary Skill Shortage Visa but i did i half way. My question now, will it affect my next trip to Australia in future due to my halfway filing the application? Please advice
Hey Bob, what do you mean by half-way, did you actually submit the application?
I am puzzled by your comments above as quite a lot of people on an immigration thread say their partner or spouse used the visitor visa to enter OZ and then did the onshore visa application and got their visas in last year . I thought about this with my future wife from Russia until I read about the 8503 condition which woud undoubtedly apply in case of a Russian as discriminated against ( ie high risk ! ) . But how do these people get away with it even if no 8503 condition on visa as they are NOT visitors but using visitor to apply for ONSHORE partner visa ? Hoping for a brief comment . thanking you
Consistent disclosure of the same information is important. For example, there is a MYTH out there that if you bring your partner out to visit you in Australia on a Visitor Visa (Subclass 600), it is best for them not to disclose that they are indeed your partner or that you are in a relationship on the application.This is erroneously done in the hopes that this will stop Immigration from putting a ‘no further stay’ (8503 Condition) on the Visitor Visa and allow you to lodge an onshore Partner Visa (subclass 820) to take advantage of the Bridging Visa A. This unfortunately is a TOTAL MYTH and may in fact harm your Partner Visa application at a later date.
Hi Barry, this is a great question, it’s exactly the reason we made this video. We have so many couples come to us in this situation where they have not mentioned they are in a relationship when applying for the visitor visa but then try to claim they have been in a de facto relationship for more than 12 months when the attempt to lodge onshore. We think the myth comes from people getting mixed up on the difference between an ETA (electronic travel authority) vs a Visitor Visa vs a sponsored visitor visa, these are three different things but are all often called visitor visas. As we said in the video, you always need to tell the truth on any visa application or it will come back to bite you. We have a lot experience in cases from Russia so if you need help please reach out to us.
Hi, i’m from Kenya and I want to travel to Australia on a visitor visa then later on change to a student visa while i’m there. I can’t apply for thr student visa cause I dont have enough finances in the bank to be granted that visa. What are the reasons that I could give for for my visa not to have the “no later than condition” attached to it? Please help.
Sorry Doreen, we don’t deal with Student Visas.
Hello Avelyn,
I am engaged to an Australia permanent resident. My first visitor visa was refused, however, we got another visitor visa with no conditions. Will the refusal of the first visitor visa have any influence on my partner visa application?
Thank you so much.
Hi Chenel,
Do you know why your first visitor visa was refused?
Hello
I applied for a tourist visa to Australia in November and got rejected.
Me and partner are getting married in March
I was going there to stay with his sister in the Arab world we stay single till we sign our marriage papers legally
I was looking forward to spend time with his sister and see Australia but they refused my visa
We are planning now to move to Dubai because the spouse visa takes so long
Will this effect my visa??
Hi Lara, what country are you from?
What if they have already been granted the permanent visa? What if he coerced me into sending a letter of his love with me and financial stuff that he hasn’t helped me with. What happens now?
Hi Linda, this is a matter we feel must be discussed in private due to the complexity of the details of your story. Please give us a call at 07 3063 1200 or contact us here https://www.freedommigration.com/contact-us/ and we’ll be in touch.
My husband is an Australian Citizen. I want to apply for visitor visa 600 & I will be declaring that I am married and will provide all correct information. Is there any way to ensure that I don’t get 8503 – No Further Stay condition on my visitor visa? Or is just pure luck?
P.S. Obviously I want to apply for onshore partner visa (while I am on visitor visa) so I can get Bridging visa A while my application get finalised.
Hi Avni, this sounds like a matter best discussed in private. I understand that both of you are looking forward to applying the application onshore and we’d love to assist and provide you with the best partner visa options for the both of you.
Please give our office a call at 07 3063 1200 or directly book a Visa Consultation with our Registered Migration agent, Emma, by clicking the link below:
https://www.freedommigration.com/how-to-book-a-visa-planning-session/
Hi! Am a Nigerian married to an Australian citizen in South Africa where we both live. We’ve been together for 5years and 7months ago my husband moved back to Oz. We applied for a visitor visa last month through an immigration lawyer but my application was refused. It was said that no supporting documents was provided to show I’ll be coming back after my visit and that no proof of our relationship was provided.I felt i was been judged based on my country of passport. The department didn’t even ask us to provide any supporting documentation. Can i reapply or should we just apply for the partner visa straight away?
Hi Jumie, this is a matter we think is best discussed in private as we will need more information regarding the lodgement of your Visitor Visa. We highly encourage that you book a Visa Consultation with our Registered Migration Agent so we can provide you with advice on how you can move forward.
To book, click here https://www.freedommigration.com/how-to-book-a-visa-planning-session/
Hey! I applied for a tourist visa in July with my family and the visa was granted in the first week of August! We didn’t end up going because flight tickets were expensive and i was getting married in October. The main reason for applying was tourism at that point even tho I was seeing someone from Australia since a while (ours was more like an arranged marriage) I never put that on the application
form because i never was engaged . I got engaged literally a week before my wedding in October. Now since I have my tourist visa, I’m pretty keen on visiting my husband and celebrating my birthday with him. Will it be an issue at the immigration when I tell them that I’m here to celebrate my birthday with him?
“Hi Kia, we will require more information to provide you with the most suitable advice. Please give our office a call at 07 3063 1200 or book a Visa Consultation with our Registered Migration Agent by clicking the link below:
https://www.freedommigration.com/how-to-book-a-visa-planning-session/“
Hello I was wondering my boyfriend of 3 years lives in another country and we were playing on meeting soon since covid has come down. We want to get married and start our family but he doesn’t have a proper job he does guitar lessons and I am the one working part-time. We do not have much only 15k in the bank.We were wondering what will be the best way to move forward. He wants to apply for a Vistors visa since I can not meet him because of my job. Then will apply for the partner visa after. Is this the best way to approach this?
Hi Lisa, this is a matter we think is best discussed in private as we will need more information about your relationship. Please give us a call at 07 3063 1200 or book a Visa Consultation with our Registered Migration Agent here: https://www.freedommigration.com/how-to-book-a-visa-planning-session/
Hi guys .Iam in Brazil and my boyfriends is an aussie guy.He came here to visit me and his back to Australia now but I am here in my country.We want to be together and get marry so whats the best visa to apply because the marriage visa take a long time to wait here in Brazil,so maybe can I apply for the tourist visa and when I get there apply for the partner visa.Our love is genuine so we justa want to make sure whats the best to do.Would you help us with this question please?
ps.if I apply for the tourist visa,do I have to say hes my boyfriend ,is it right?
Hey Regina, we’d love to help and assist. Please give us a call at 07 3063 1200 or book a Visa Consultation here: https://www.freedommigration.com/how-to-book-a-visa-planning-session/
We’d love to assist and help you and your partner navigate the complexities best partner visa.
My husband is an Australian Citizen. I want to apply for visitor visa 600 (sponsored familystream) & I will be declaring that I am married and will provide all correct information. Is there any way to ensure that I don’t get 8503 – No Further Stay condition on my visitor visa?
P.S. Obviously I want to apply for onshore partner visa (while I am on visitor visa) so I can get Bridging visa A while my application get finalised.
Hi Barbara, you seem to have a couple of questions there. Give our office a call 07 3063 1200. We’d love to assist and help get answer to your visa concerns.
Hello i just wants to know that my father in law can call me in australia on visit visa ? he is a settled australian citizen. actually i wants to apply australian partner visa onshore. me and my wife wants to go australia together because now she is living with me in pakistan and she is australian citizen by birth and i have help her to get her pakistan origin card (POC) 5 years one but we wants to move australia together because she is also pregnant. so can i get visitor visa with reason for delivery of my baby in australia with my wife ? if i not get then refusal will affect on my future partner visa application? im waitng of your answer . Thank you so much
Hi Farooq, this is something we think is best discussed in private.
Please give us a call at 07 3063 1200 or book a Visa Consultation here https://www.freedommigration.com/how-to-book-a-visa-planning-session/