Partner Visa After Visitor Visa Refusal

A partner visa after visitor visa refusal is possible, and for many couples it is the right next step. If your partner was refused a visitor visa, the refusal does not stop a partner visa application, but it must be disclosed, understood and answered in the partner visa application.

Many couples panic after a visitor visa is refused. They assume a partner visa after visitor visa refusal will also fail, or that the refusal creates a ban. It does not. A visitor visa and a partner visa ask different legal questions. What matters is why the visitor visa was refused, what the applicant said in that application, where the applicant was when the refusal was made, and what visa they hold now.

This guide explains how a partner visa after visitor visa refusal works in Australia. It covers why visitor visas are refused, why the partner visa test is different, how to disclose the refusal, how the Department compares the two applications, what happens if the refusal was made while the person was in Australia, and what the Australian partner should do if the refusal was made while their partner was overseas. For a complete overview of every partner visa pathway, see our complete guide to partner visas in Australia.

Can you apply for a partner visa after visitor visa refusal?

Yes, you can apply for a partner visa after visitor visa refusal, provided you meet the partner visa criteria and the application is validly made. There is no rule in the Migration Act 1958 or the Migration Regulations 1994 that prevents a person refused a visitor visa from later applying for a partner visa.

The refusal is still relevant. It is part of the applicant's immigration history. It must be disclosed. The decision maker can read the earlier decision and the earlier application. And if the refusal was made while the applicant was in Australia, it can change which visas the applicant can apply for onshore.

So the real question is not whether a partner visa after visitor visa refusal is allowed. It is how the application should be prepared so that the refusal does not become a credibility problem. The answer depends on three things:

• The reasons given in the visitor refusal decision.
• What the applicant said in the visitor visa application about their relationship, marital status, work and purpose of visit.
• Where the applicant was when the visitor visa was refused, and what visa, if any, they hold now.

Our general guide to applying for a partner visa after any visa refusal explains how different refusals affect a partner visa. This article focuses only on the visitor visa refusal, because it is the most common refusal couples face before a partner visa.

Why visitor visas are refused

A visitor visa is usually refused because the decision maker is not satisfied that the applicant genuinely intends to visit Australia temporarily. Other common reasons include concerns about the applicant's financial capacity to support the visit and concerns arising from the applicant's immigration history.

The genuine visitor requirement

For a visitor visa, the decision maker must be satisfied that the applicant genuinely intends to stay in Australia temporarily for the purpose of the visit. The decision maker looks at the applicant's personal circumstances in their home country, their employment, their family ties, their previous travel and compliance with visa conditions, and any factor that suggests they may not leave Australia at the end of the visit.

A relationship with an Australian is a common reason this requirement is not met. Where an applicant has an Australian partner, the decision maker may conclude that the applicant has a strong reason to stay in Australia. That is not a finding that the relationship is false. It is often the opposite: the decision maker accepts the relationship and, for that very reason, doubts that the visit is temporary.

Financial capacity and immigration history

A visitor visa can also be refused where the decision maker is not satisfied that the applicant has adequate funds for the visit, or where the applicant's immigration history raises concerns. Examples include a previous overstay, a breach of visa conditions in Australia or another country, or earlier applications that contained inconsistent information. A visitor refusal on these grounds needs closer analysis before a partner visa after visitor visa refusal is lodged, because some of those concerns can carry into the partner visa assessment.

Why the partner visa test is different

The partner visa test is different because a partner visa is designed for people who intend to live in Australia permanently with their partner. The applicant must be the spouse or de facto partner of an Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen, and the decision maker must be satisfied that the relationship is genuine and continuing and that the couple has a mutual commitment to a shared life together to the exclusion of all others.

There is no genuine visitor requirement for a partner visa. The applicant does not have to show that they will leave Australia. A partner visa after visitor visa refusal is therefore not assessed against the reason the visitor visa failed. In many cases, the very fact that made the visitor visa difficult, a serious relationship with an Australian, is the foundation of the partner visa.

The four aspects of the relationship

For a partner visa, the Department must consider the four aspects of the relationship: the financial aspects of the relationship, the nature of the household, the social aspects of the relationship, and the nature of the commitment. These are assessed aspects of the relationship, and evidence across all four matters. Our guide to partner visa relationship evidence explains what the Department looks for in each, and our guide to preparing evidence of a genuine relationship explains how couples can keep that evidence organised.

Married and de facto couples

A partner visa is available to married couples and de facto couples. A de facto relationship generally needs to have existed for 12 months before the application, unless the relationship is registered in an Australian state or territory or compelling and compassionate circumstances apply. Couples who were refused a visitor visa while trying to spend time together often have not yet lived together long enough. Our guide to the de facto partner visa and the 12-month rule and our article on whether you really need 12 months of de facto relationship explain the position.

Does a visitor visa refusal count against a partner visa?

No, a visitor visa refusal does not, by itself, count against a partner visa. The partner visa decision maker does not refuse an application simply because an earlier visitor visa was refused. The partner visa is decided on its own criteria.

A visitor visa refusal can become a problem in a partner visa after visitor visa refusal in three situations:

• The visitor refusal was not disclosed, so the partner visa application contains false or misleading information.
• The visitor visa application contained statements that are inconsistent with the partner visa application, for example about marital status, the start of the relationship or the purpose of the visit.
• The visitor visa was refused while the applicant was in Australia, which can bring section 48, Schedule 3 and bridging visa issues into play.

Each of these problems can be managed if it is identified before lodgement. None of them should be discovered for the first time by the Department. Our analysis of why partner visas get refused shows how often credibility, not the relationship itself, is the real issue.

How the Department assesses a partner visa after visitor visa refusal

The Department assesses a partner visa after visitor visa refusal in the same way as any other partner visa, but with the applicant's full immigration history in view. The decision maker applies the partner visa criteria, not the visitor visa criteria, and reads the earlier refusal as background.

In practical terms, a decision maker handling a partner visa after visitor visa refusal will usually look at four things:

• Whether the refusal was disclosed accurately in the application and in Form 80.
• Whether the earlier visitor visa application is consistent with the relationship history now claimed.
• Whether anything in the visitor refusal, such as a concern about identity documents or earlier immigration conduct, is relevant to the partner visa criteria, including the public interest criteria.
• Whether the relationship evidence across the four aspects shows a genuine and continuing relationship today.

The first three questions are about credibility and history. The fourth is about the relationship itself. A well-prepared partner visa after visitor visa refusal answers the first three quickly and clearly, so the decision maker can focus on the fourth. A poorly prepared partner visa after visitor visa refusal leaves the history unexplained, and the decision maker may then spend most of the assessment on questions the couple could have answered at the start.

It also helps to understand what the decision maker does not do. The decision maker does not re-decide the visitor visa. The partner visa decision maker is not asking whether the visitor should have been allowed to visit. The question is simply whether the partner visa criteria are met now. That is why the reasons for the visitor refusal are a guide to what needs explaining, not a list of things the couple must disprove. Our Subclass 820 service page explains how an onshore application is prepared from the start.

Where our partner visa after visitor visa refusal clients are located

My Migration Lawyers acts for couples dealing with a partner visa after visitor visa refusal throughout Australia, and every consultation is conducted by video. Couples in New South Wales can read about our partner visa lawyers in Sydney and our partner visa lawyers in Parramatta. Couples in Victoria and Queensland can read about our partner visa lawyers in Melbourne, Brisbane and the Gold Coast. We also act for couples through our partner visa lawyers in Perth, Adelaide, Canberra and Hobart. Where the Australian partner lives does not change the law. The refusal history does.

How to disclose a visitor visa refusal in a partner visa application

Every previous visa refusal, including a visitor visa refusal, must be disclosed truthfully in the partner visa application and in any character form the Department requests. Disclosure is not optional, and it is the single most important step in a partner visa after visitor visa refusal.

The partner visa application questions

The online partner visa application asks about the applicant's immigration history, including whether they have previously applied for a visa to Australia and whether any visa has been refused or cancelled. The answer must be complete. A refusal for Australia and a refusal for any other country should both be answered where the question asks about them. The application is lodged in ImmiAccount, and our step-by-step guide on how to create an ImmiAccount explains the account set-up.

Form 80

The Department commonly requests Form 80, the personal particulars form used for character assessment, in partner visa matters. Form 80 asks about previous visa applications and refusals, travel history and addresses. The answers must match the Department's own records, including the visitor visa application. Our guide to completing Form 80 without errors explains the form, and our article on responding to a section 56 request explains how Form 80 and other documents are usually requested.

Why non-disclosure is the real danger

Non-disclosure is the real danger because the Department already holds the visitor refusal on its systems. A partner visa after visitor visa refusal that answers "no" to a refusal question is not hiding anything from the Department. It is creating a new problem.

Public interest criterion 4020 in Schedule 4 to the Migration Regulations 1994 applies to partner visas. It requires that there is no evidence that the applicant has given, or caused to be given, a bogus document or information that is false or misleading in a material particular in relation to the current application, or in relation to a visa the applicant held in the 12 months before the application was made. Departmental policy confirms that omitting facts can amount to false or misleading information, and that inconsistencies with earlier claims about immigration history are a trigger for further investigation.

An unintentional error is not the same as a deliberate lie, and the Department must give the applicant an opportunity to respond to adverse information in most cases. But an applicant should never be placed in the position of explaining why a refusal was left out. The correct approach is to disclose the refusal, identify the reasons given, and answer them in the partner visa application.

What the visitor refusal record says and why it matters

The visitor refusal record is the decision letter and the reasons for refusal, together with the visitor visa application itself. It matters in a partner visa after visitor visa refusal because the partner visa decision maker can read it and compare it with everything the couple says in the partner visa application.

Statements about marital status

The visitor visa application asks about marital status. An applicant who described themselves as single, divorced, married or separated has made a statement that will be on the Department's record. If a partner visa after visitor visa refusal tells a different story about the same period, the decision maker will want to know why.

There are often good explanations. A couple may have been dating but not yet in a de facto relationship. A divorce may not yet have been finalised. An applicant may not have understood how Australian law defines a de facto relationship. But in a partner visa after visitor visa refusal, the explanation needs to be given, supported by evidence, and given before the Department raises it.

Statements about the relationship and the purpose of the visit

Many visitor visa applicants describe the purpose of their visit as tourism, visiting a friend or attending an event, when the real reason was to spend time with their partner. Some do not mention the Australian partner at all. Others mention the partner but describe the relationship differently from the way it is later described in the relationship statement for the partner visa after visitor visa refusal.

A partner visa after visitor visa refusal must deal honestly with that history. Where the visitor visa application understated the relationship, the partner visa application should not pretend the earlier statement did not exist. The partner visa relationship statement is the couple's own account of how the relationship developed. It should explain the timeline accurately, including the period around the visitor visa application, in the couple's own words.

Obtaining the record

Couples preparing a partner visa after visitor visa refusal do not need to search for old documents. Many applicants no longer have a copy of what was submitted in the visitor visa application, especially where a travel agent or family member helped. My Migration Lawyers obtains the applicant's visa history directly, including through a request to the Department under freedom of information where the earlier application and decision record are needed. Reviewing the actual record, not a memory of it, is the only safe basis for a partner visa after visitor visa refusal.

What the Tribunal has looked at in partner visa cases involving a previous visitor visa

The Administrative Review Tribunal and its predecessor have considered a number of partner visa matters in which a previous visitor visa application or refusal was part of the history. They are a useful guide to the issues that arise in a partner visa after visitor visa refusal. The decisions below are described only by the issues recorded for each matter. Each was decided on its own facts, and none of them suggests what will happen in another case.

• In TRUONG (Migration) [2024] AATA 680, a Subclass 820 matter, the issues recorded were false or misleading information in a material particular, a previous visitor visa application, marital status, and parties said to be separated but still living together.
• In Pham (Migration) [2021] AATA 4350, also a Subclass 820 matter, the issues recorded were false or misleading information in a previous visitor visa application, where the applicant answered "married" but was separated at the time and later divorced, together with credible witness and evidence issues.
• In Ramirez Vasques (Migration) [2019] AATA 512, a Subclass 309 matter, the issues recorded were the genuine and continuing relationship, the couple living in separate countries, a visitor visa to Australia that had been refused, and the length of the relationship.
• In Tipong (Migration) [2019] AATA 5652, a Subclass 309 matter, the issues recorded were identity, previous visitor visa applications using different identity details and documents, and previous documents issued with wrong details.
• In Salise (Migration) [2024] AATA 1932, a Subclass 820 matter, the issues recorded were the genuine and continuing relationship, the circumstances of meeting and progress of the relationship, previous visits on tourist visas, and whether the couple was validly married.

These matters show the two ways a visitor visa history enters a partner visa after visitor visa refusal. First, as a credibility and disclosure issue, where earlier statements about marital status or identity are compared with the partner application. Second, as relationship evidence, where the visitor refusal and time spent apart become part of the story of how the relationship developed. Both need to be addressed directly. Our article on what to expect in an ART review after a visa refusal explains how the Tribunal approaches a review.

Visitor visa refused while in Australia: what changes for a partner visa

If the visitor visa was refused while the applicant was in Australia, for example where a visitor applied onshore for a further visitor visa to extend their stay and that application was refused, the onshore partner visa remains available, but the refusal can trigger section 48 of the Migration Act 1958 and other validity rules. This is the most technical form of a partner visa after visitor visa refusal.

Section 48 after an onshore visitor refusal

Section 48 applies to a non-citizen in Australia who does not hold a substantive visa and who, since last entering Australia, has had a visa refused or cancelled. A person caught by section 48 can only apply onshore for a visa of a class prescribed by the Migration Regulations 1994. It does not matter that the refused visa was a visitor visa rather than a partner visa.

Departmental policy states that a person who is subject to section 48 may apply for a Subclass 820 and Subclass 801 visa, by reference to section 48 and regulation 2.12. So an onshore partner visa after visitor visa refusal remains available. But a partner visa after visitor visa refusal made in Australia is not available on the same simple terms as for other applicants. Our page on visa refusals explains how refusals affect future applications.

Extra validity requirements for section 48 applicants

An applicant affected by section 48 must meet additional requirements for the combined application to be valid. Departmental policy states that, for these applicants, the sponsorship must be lodged at the same time as the application rather than later, and that the permanent Subclass 801 component requires two statutory declarations from Australian citizens, Australian permanent residents or eligible New Zealand citizens, other than the sponsoring partner, declaring that the couple is in a married or de facto relationship. Those declarations must be recent when the application is made. This is one of the rare situations in which statutory declarations, rather than Form 888 supporting statements, are part of the requirements.

An application that does not meet these requirements is invalid. An invalid application does not attract a bridging visa. That is why a partner visa after visitor visa refusal made onshore must be checked against section 48 before it is lodged, not after.

Holding the original visitor visa at the time of refusal

Section 48 applies only to a person who does not hold a substantive visa. A visitor who applied for a further visitor visa while their original visitor visa was still in effect may still hold that original visa when the refusal is notified. While the substantive visa remains in effect, the position is different from that of a person who holds only a bridging visa. Timing matters, and the visa record should be checked precisely before any onshore partner visa after visitor visa refusal is lodged.

Bridging visas and Schedule 3

A visitor who lodged a further visitor visa application while holding a substantive visa is usually granted a Bridging Visa A with that application. After the refusal, the bridging visa generally continues during the period for seeking review and while any review is pending. But a bridging visa is not a substantive visa.

An applicant who lodges a partner visa after visitor visa refusal without holding a substantive visa must satisfy the Schedule 3 criteria 3001, 3003 and 3004, unless the Department is satisfied there are compelling reasons for not applying them. Departmental policy states that the existence of a genuine relationship, and the hardship of applying from outside Australia, are not, as a general rule, compelling reasons by themselves. It also refers to the Full Federal Court decision in Waensila v Minister for Immigration and Border Protection [2016] FCAFC 32, which requires the decision maker to consider all of the applicant's circumstances known up to the time of decision. Our pages on the Schedule 3 waiver, the Schedule 3 criteria for applicants without a substantive visa and the Schedule 3 partner visa waiver explain each criterion and the compelling reasons test. Our article on bridging visas in Australia explains the different bridging visa types, and our guide to the Bridging Visa A explains its conditions.

Condition 8503 on the existing visitor visa

Condition 8503 (No Further Stay) is commonly imposed on visitor visas. It means the holder is not entitled to be granted a substantive visa, other than a protection visa, while in Australia. If the applicant's current or last visitor visa carries condition 8503, an onshore partner visa after visitor visa refusal is generally not available unless the condition is waived first.

A waiver is available only where, since the visa was granted, compelling and compassionate circumstances have developed over which the visa holder had no control and which have resulted in a major change to their circumstances. The request must be in writing. Circumstances that existed before the visa was granted cannot meet the change in circumstances requirement. Forming or deepening a relationship during the visit is not usually accepted as a circumstance beyond the person's control. Letting the visitor visa expire does not remove the problem. Our article on whether you can apply for a Subclass 820 visa with condition 8503 explains the condition and the waiver in detail.

ART review of a visitor visa refused in Australia

A visitor visa refused while the applicant was in Australia is generally reviewable by the Administrative Review Tribunal, and the refusal notice states whether review is available and the time limit. The time limit for lodging a review is short and strictly applied, and the Tribunal cannot accept a late application.

Review, a partner visa, or both

An applicant refused a visitor visa onshore may be weighing two steps: seeking review of the visitor refusal at the Tribunal, or lodging an onshore partner visa after visitor visa refusal. The two are not mutually exclusive, but they serve different purposes.

Review of the visitor refusal asks whether the applicant should have been granted a temporary visitor visa. If the couple's real plan is to live together permanently, a review that argues the applicant intends to leave Australia may sit uneasily with a partner visa that says the opposite. Statements made to the Tribunal also become part of the record that a later partner visa after visitor visa refusal will be compared with. In many cases, the partner visa is the pathway that matches the couple's actual intentions. In others, the visitor refusal rested on an error of fact or law and a review is justified on its own merits, independently of any partner visa after visitor visa refusal. The choice depends on the reasons for refusal, the applicant's visa status, condition 8503, section 48 and the strength of the relationship evidence.

Our guide to visa appeal lawyers explains how a review is prepared, and our article on getting a second opinion from an immigration lawyer may assist couples who have already received conflicting advice. Where the refusal has just been notified, our guide to urgent immigration lawyer advice explains what to have ready.

If a later partner visa is also refused

If a partner visa after visitor visa refusal is itself refused, the partner visa refusal is a separate decision with its own review rights. Our page on partner visa refusals, our article on partner visa refusal appeal options and our analysis of why Subclass 820 partner visas are refused explain the options at that stage.

Visitor visa refused while your partner was outside Australia: a guide for the Australian partner

If your partner was refused a visitor visa while they were outside Australia, the refusal does not stop you from sponsoring them for a partner visa, and section 48 does not apply because the refusal was not made while they were in Australia. As the Australian partner, the decisions you make next about visits, timing and evidence will shape the partner visa after visitor visa refusal.

Why your partner's visitor visa was refused

Read the refusal letter with your partner. In most cases, the decision maker was not satisfied that your partner genuinely intended to visit temporarily, often because of the relationship with you, limited ties to their home country, or limited funds. Sometimes the refusal mentions immigration history. The reasons tell you what the Department was worried about. They also tell you what the Department now has on record about your partner, and about you if you were named in the application.

Your role as the sponsoring partner

In a partner visa, you are the sponsor. You must be an Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen, and you must not be prevented from sponsoring. Sponsorship limitations can apply if you have sponsored a partner before. Our page on partner visa sponsorship limitations and our article on when a sponsor cannot sponsor a partner visa explain those rules.

In a partner visa after visitor visa refusal, your evidence is as important as your partner's. Visits you have made overseas, money you have sent, communication between you, and your plans to live together are all relevant to the four aspects of the relationship. In a partner visa after visitor visa refusal, your travel to see your partner after the refusal can be strong evidence of commitment.

Which partner visa applies

Where your partner is outside Australia, the partner visa is usually the offshore Subclass 309 visa, with the permanent Subclass 100 stage assessed later. If you are engaged and not yet married, the Subclass 300 Prospective Marriage visa may be an option. Our complete partner visa guide compares those pathways. The disclosure rules in this article apply to each of them: the visitor refusal must be declared and the earlier visitor visa application will be compared with the partner visa application.

Review rights for an offshore visitor refusal

Review rights for a visitor visa refused while the applicant was outside Australia are limited. Departmental policy states that such a refusal is reviewable only in narrow circumstances, generally where a close relative who is an Australian citizen or permanent resident, including a spouse or de facto partner, was identified in the visitor visa application. In that case, the Australian relative, not the applicant, may apply for review. The refusal notice states whether review is available. The time limit is short and strictly applied.

Should you apply for another visitor visa or a partner visa first?

Where the couple's real intention is to live together permanently in Australia, a partner visa after visitor visa refusal is usually the better next step than a second visitor visa. A further visitor visa application faces the same genuine visitor concern that caused the first refusal, and repeated refusals add to the history the partner visa decision maker will read.

There are situations in which another visitor visa may still make sense:

• The couple is not yet ready to apply for a partner visa, for example because the relationship is new and the evidence is limited.
• The reasons for the first refusal, such as funds or employment evidence, can genuinely be fixed.
• The visit has a specific, temporary purpose that can be documented, such as a wedding with a return planned.

Even then, a second visitor visa application must be truthful about the relationship. A visitor application that downplays or hides the Australian partner to improve the chance of grant creates exactly the inconsistency the Department later examines in a partner visa after visitor visa refusal. If the couple marries during a visit and later applies onshore, condition 8503 and the timing rules discussed above must also be checked. Our article on moving from a tourist visa to a partner visa in Australia explains the checks a visitor should make before applying onshore.

When to lodge a partner visa after visitor visa refusal

The right time to lodge a partner visa after visitor visa refusal is when the couple meets the relationship requirements, the refusal history has been reviewed, and the evidence is ready. There is no waiting period after a visitor refusal before a partner visa can be lodged.

Timing still matters for three reasons. First, a de facto couple usually needs to meet the 12-month requirement at the time of application, unless an exception applies. Lodging a partner visa after visitor visa refusal too early, before that requirement is met, can lead to a second refusal. Second, an applicant in Australia who still holds a substantive visa is generally in a stronger position if a valid partner visa is lodged before that visa ends, because Schedule 3 then does not apply. Third, an applicant on a bridging visa after an onshore visitor refusal is relying on a review period or a pending review, which has its own deadlines.

For a couple where the refusal was made overseas, the timing question is usually about evidence rather than status. Time spent apart after the refusal is not wasted. Visits by the Australian partner, regular contact, financial support and plans to live together are all evidence that can be documented and used in a partner visa after visitor visa refusal. Couples who keep that evidence from the date of the refusal are usually better prepared when they lodge.

For a couple in Australia, the timing question is usually about status. The order of steps after an onshore refusal, and whether to lodge a partner visa after visitor visa refusal immediately or to seek review first, should be decided with advice. Our page on visa cancellations explains a related situation, where a visa is cancelled rather than refused, which raises similar section 48 issues.

Evidence that answers the visitor refusal

The best evidence for a partner visa after visitor visa refusal is evidence of the relationship across all four aspects, presented honestly and consistently with the couple's immigration history. The partner visa does not need to prove that the visitor refusal was wrong. It needs to prove the relationship.

Building a consistent timeline

The relationship statement, the application form, Form 80 and the supporting evidence should tell one consistent story. Dates of meeting, the start of the relationship, the date the couple began living together, engagement and marriage should match each other and should be reconciled with what was said in the visitor visa application. Where they cannot be reconciled, the difference should be explained.

Form 888 supporting statements

Form 888 is a supporting statement made by an Australian citizen or permanent resident who knows the couple. It is not a statutory declaration. Witnesses who knew about the visitor refusal and the couple's efforts to be together can give useful context. Our articles on Form 888 for a partner visa and on Form 888 example answers and common mistakes explain who can make one and what it should say.

The document checklist

The core documents for a partner visa after visitor visa refusal are the same as for any partner visa: identity documents, relationship evidence across the four aspects, the relationship statement and Form 888 supporting statements. Our partner visa document checklist and our Subclass 820 evidence checklist list them. For onshore applicants, our Subclass 820 visa guide, our Subclass 820 partner visa guide and our explainer on the onshore Subclass 820 visa explain the requirements, and our Subclass 820 vs Subclass 801 guide explains the two stages.

Common mistakes after a visitor visa refusal

The most common mistakes after a visitor visa refusal are made in the weeks immediately following the refusal, when couples are anxious and act quickly. Each of them can damage a partner visa after visitor visa refusal.

• Answering "no" to a question about previous refusals, or leaving a refusal out of Form 80.
• Lodging a second visitor visa that describes the relationship differently from the first, or from the later partner visa.
• Lodging an onshore partner visa without checking condition 8503, section 48 and whether the applicant still holds a substantive visa.
• Writing a relationship statement that ignores the visitor visa period, as if the Department will not notice.
• Assuming the visitor refusal means the Department did not believe the relationship, and over-correcting with inconsistent claims.
• Missing the short review deadline for an onshore visitor refusal while deciding what to do.

After lodgement, every change in circumstances must be notified, generally through Form 1022. Where the Department proposes to refuse a partner visa on adverse information, including information from the visitor visa file, it will usually issue a natural justice letter. Our article on responding to a section 57 natural justice letter explains how to respond. Onshore applicants who hold a Bridging Visa A should also read our guides to working while waiting for a Subclass 820 visa and to the Bridging Visa B before any travel.

Choosing who acts on a partner visa after visitor visa refusal

A partner visa after visitor visa refusal is a legal matter as much as an evidence exercise. Disclosure, public interest criterion 4020, section 48, condition 8503 and Schedule 3 each turn on legal tests, and an error can make an application invalid or create a credibility problem that did not exist before. Our article on when you need an immigration lawyer for a partner visa and our guide to the partner visa lawyer vs doing it yourself question explain when professional help is worth considering. Our article on whether to use a migration agent or a lawyer for a partner visa sets out the practical differences.

Couples who have already lodged and want help afterwards can read our guide to hiring an immigration lawyer after lodging your own application. Those comparing firms can read our guides to choosing a partner visa lawyer in Australia, and, by city, choosing a partner visa lawyer in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane or Perth. Where My Migration Lawyers acts, the firm is appointed through Form 956, and our article on Form 956 and 956A explains how the appointment works. Our guide to booking an immigration lawyer consultation explains what happens in the first meeting.

How My Migration Lawyers handles a partner visa after visitor visa refusal

My Migration Lawyers deals with complex partner visa matters and acts in many applications where a previous visitor visa refusal is part of the applicant's history. The firm is capable of handling a partner visa after visitor visa refusal whether the refusal was made in Australia or overseas, including matters involving section 48, condition 8503, Schedule 3 and earlier statements that need to be explained. The firm's approach is to deal with the refusal history first, so the relationship evidence is presented on a clean and consistent record.

In practice, the firm's work on a partner visa after visitor visa refusal includes:

• Obtaining the applicant's visa history, the visitor refusal decision and, where needed, the earlier visitor visa application through the Department's records and freedom of information, so the advice is based on the actual file.
• Analysing the reasons for the visitor refusal and identifying every statement about marital status, the relationship, employment and purpose of visit that the partner visa decision maker will compare.
• Advising whether the partner visa can be validly lodged onshore, including whether the applicant still holds a substantive visa, whether section 48 applies and whether condition 8503 must be waived first.
• Preparing the additional validity documents required for applicants affected by section 48, and the compelling reasons case for not applying Schedule 3 where the applicant does not hold a substantive visa.
• Advising the Australian partner, where the refusal was made overseas, on whether to pursue another visitor visa, a partner visa or a Prospective Marriage visa, and on any review right available.
• Reviewing the relationship statement, Form 888 supporting statements and Form 80 so that the refusal is disclosed accurately and the couple's own account is presented in the form the law requires.
• Responding to section 56 requests and natural justice letters that raise the visitor visa history, through to the decision.

The firm is led by Weiwei Zhang, Principal Lawyer. Information about how the firm prepares the onshore combined application is on our Subclass 820 visa page, information about the firm's partner visa practice is on our partner visa lawyers page, and more about the firm is on our about page. Consultations are conducted by video, so couples can obtain advice wherever they are.

If you or your partner were refused a visitor visa and you want to know how to prepare a partner visa after visitor visa refusal that discloses and answers that history, book a consultation online or call 1300 040 300.