How to apply for a Prospective Marriage Visa (Subclass 300)?
The process of applying for a fiancé visa in Australia involves both you and your partner’s responsibility.
Step 1: Your Australian partner needs lodge a sponsorship form to apply to be a sponsor
Before your partner applies to sponsor you as a prospective spouse, your partner needs to register a ImmiAccount. Therefore, the sponsor must be your prospective spouse for visa 300 for it to be approved.
The sponsor needs:
- An Australian citizen, permanent resident, or eligible New Zealand citizenship.
- At least one of the following types of evidence: Australian birth certificate, current Australian passport showing identification (photo, personal details, passport issue and expiry dates), or Australian citizenship certificate.
The sponsor needs to submit specified documents via the same online system and there are no costs to applying online.
Step 2: Check if you are eligible for a visa 300 (for applicant)
You must be located outside Australia at the time of lodgement, with your application form and documents submitted online. The applicant must hold a valid passport before lodging the application and visa process via ImmiAccount. https://online.immi.gov.au/lusc/login
Step 3: You apply for visa 300
You’ll need to provide relationship evidence documents and the following evidence must be provided for the lodgement:
- Evidence that you (applicant) will marry your partner (sponsor) within 9 months of visa grant (letter from your marriage celebrant and confirmation of lodgement of your NOIM)
- At least two Form 888’s (statutory declarations provided by your supporting witnesses attesting that your relationship is genuine and continuing) https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/form-listing/forms/888.pdf
- Evidence that you and your partner have met face-to-face as adults since turning 18 and know each other personally.
- Evidence that you and your partner genuinely intent to live together as spouses
- Written statements about your relationship for both you and your partner
If there are any dependent applicants, proof of your relationship with the dependent must be included, as the visa is in best interest of the child.
The applicants and sponsor’s lodgement must be submitted to the same online system. Additionally, the fee must be paid in full for the application to be considered.
What is the visa 300 requirements?
When applying for visa 300, it is important to understand the general requirements and specific requirements.
General requirements
Category |
Description |
Age |
You and your partner must be 18 years or older |
Location |
You must be outside of Australia (offshore) when applying for visa 300 |
Relationship requirements |
- You must have met your fiancé in person and have evidence of your relationship together.
- Intend to marry your prospective spouse before the visa period ends (within nine months).
- Your fiancé in Australia must have planned arrangements for your marriage. This includes organising relevant religious institution that are responsible for marrying you, or a celebrant, or a registry office; plus, your fiancé must have lodged a Notice of Intention to Marry (A NOIM must be lodged at least one month and one day prior to the marriage – it is a legal requirement in Australia).
- The marriage is scheduled to take place during the nine months of the visa validity once it has been granted.
|
Health requirements |
You are required to undergo visa medicals and must show that you are free from any disease or medical conditions that poses a threat to public health in Australia. You and secondary applicants (if any) need to pass a health examination conducted in one of the medical centres approved by Department of Home Affairs. Your family members who do not accompany you to Australia will also need to meet the health requirements. |
Character requirements |
You and secondary applicants (if any) need to have police clearances in each country you have resided in for 12 months in the past 10 years. |
Debt |
The applicant must have no debt to the Australian government. The applicant must have a sponsor to undertake the financial obligation for their stay in Australia. If you or any family members owe the Australian government money, you or they must have paid it back or arranged to pay it back. This may include family members who do not accompany you to Australia. |
Specific requirements
For a Prospective Marriage Visa, you must be outside of Australia at the time of the application, during the processing time, and time granted. In addition, subclass 300 requires marriage celebrants to show that you and your partner are committed in marrying within the period of the visa grant. It is important that you marry in Australia, however, there are no limitations on the location of your wedding, as visa 300 allows you to travel in and out of Australia as many times as you wish while your visa is valid.
How can I (applicant) prove that I am in a relationship with my fiancé/partner (sponsor)
The applicant and sponsor need to include relationship-based evidence when submitting the lodgement. Before the lodgement, both parties must have met in person and developed a genuine and continuing relationship. The evidence of your relationship entails the history of your relationship, financial commitments and responsibilities, responsibilities within your household, acceptance as a couple socially, and mutual commitment between you and your partner.
- Relationship History – A written statement needs to highlight your relationship history. The evidence will cover the history and development of your relationship, engagement, joint activities, remarkable events in your relationship and your future as spouses.
- Finance – To determine the financial commitments, bank statements from joint bank accounts, mortgage or tenancy agreements or utility bills in both names can prove the shared monetary responsibility.
- Nature of Household – Provide evidence of joint utilities accounts, joint responsibilities for children, correspondence addressed to you both at the same address, and evidence attesting to your living arrangements.
- Social Matters – Statements and statutory declarations from close family members and friends of how your relationship is accepted. The evidence includes photographs of visits to each other’s countries, joint invitation, outings, travels together, and joint participation in cultural, social, and other activities.
- Commitment – A mutual commitment must be established through correspondence, emails, methods of communications, and itemised phone accounts to show that contact was maintained during periods of separation.