Partner Visa Bridging Visa

A partner visa bridging visa is the temporary visa that keeps an onshore partner visa applicant lawful in Australia while the Department of Home Affairs decides the combined Subclass 820 and Subclass 801 application. It is not chosen by the applicant. Which partner visa bridging visa you receive, when it starts and what conditions it carries all depend on your immigration status on the day the application is lodged.

That single fact explains most of the confusion around the partner visa bridging visa. Two couples can lodge identical onshore partner visa applications on the same day and walk away with completely different bridging visas. One may hold a Bridging visa A with no conditions and the right to apply to travel. The other may hold a Bridging visa C with a no work condition and no pathway to a Bridging visa B at all. The difference is created by the visa each applicant held, or did not hold, at the moment of lodgement.

This article explains how the partner visa bridging visa system actually works under the Migration Act 1958 and the Migration Regulations 1994. It covers which bridging visa arises from each status, when the bridging visa comes into effect, what conditions carry over, how travel works, the traps that cause real harm, and what happens to the partner visa bridging visa if the application is refused or goes to the Administrative Review Tribunal (ART). For the wider picture of the onshore and offshore pathways, see the complete guide to partner visas in Australia.

What Is a Partner Visa Bridging Visa?

A partner visa bridging visa is a temporary visa granted under section 73 of the Migration Act 1958 that lets a Subclass 820 and Subclass 801 applicant remain lawfully in Australia until the partner visa application is finally determined. It is not a substantive visa. Subsection 5(1) of the Act defines a substantive visa as a visa other than a bridging visa, a criminal justice visa or an enforcement visa.

That distinction matters. Because a bridging visa is not a substantive visa, holding one does not count as "holding a visa" for many purposes in the Regulations. Subsection 76(2) of the Act provides that holding a bridging visa is not to be taken, for the purposes of an application for a visa of another class, as the holding of a visa. In practice, a partner visa bridging visa keeps you lawful, but it does not repair a gap in your status that existed before you lodged.

There is no separate "partner bridging visa" class in the Regulations. The term partner visa bridging visa is a practical description of whichever bridging visa is granted in association with the partner visa application. The bridging visa classes that matter for onshore partner applicants are:

• Bridging visa A (Subclass 010), for applicants who held a substantive visa when they lodged.
• Bridging visa B (Subclass 020), the travel bridging visa, available only to a person who already holds a Bridging visa A or a Bridging visa B.
• Bridging visa C (Subclass 030), for applicants who did not hold a substantive visa when they lodged.
• Bridging visa E (Subclass 050), for applicants who cannot obtain a Bridging visa A or C, often because they were unlawful and have already held a Bridging visa E since their last substantive visa.

Offshore Subclass 309 applicants do not receive a bridging visa at all, because regulation 2.07A provides that an application made by a person outside Australia is not a valid bridging visa application; the Subclass 309 visa operates on different rules.

Which Partner Visa Bridging Visa Will You Get?

The partner visa bridging visa you receive is fixed by your immigration status at the moment the Subclass 820 and Subclass 801 application is lodged. If you held a substantive visa at that moment, you will generally receive a Bridging visa A. If you held no substantive visa, you will generally receive a Bridging visa C, or a Bridging visa E if a Bridging visa C is not available to you.

The departmental policy for bridging visas, the Procedural Instructions in PAM3, summarises the position directly. To be granted a Bridging visa A, the person must have held a substantive visa when they lodged the substantive visa application. To be granted a Bridging visa C, the person must not have held a substantive visa when they lodged, and must not have held a Bridging visa E since they last held a substantive visa. When the PAM3 instruction on bridging visas explains partner applications specifically, it says that depending on visa status, a Bridging visa A, a Bridging visa C or a Bridging visa E is granted in association with both the Subclass 820 and the Subclass 801 applications.

The application form for the onshore partner visa is also the application form for the partner visa bridging visa. You do not lodge a separate bridging visa form at the start. The online partner visa application in ImmiAccount operates as an application for the associated Bridging visa A, C or E at the same time, provided you are in Australia when you lodge. The Subclass 820 visa overview explains the onshore application itself.

In summary, the usual outcomes are as follows. This is a guide only, because the Schedule 1 and Schedule 2 criteria for each bridging visa must be checked against the individual facts.

• Holding a substantive visa (visitor, student or work visa): Bridging visa A, usually in effect only when the current substantive visa ceases.
• No substantive visa, and no Bridging visa E held since the last substantive visa: Bridging visa C, usually in effect from grant.
• No substantive visa, and a Bridging visa E held since the last substantive visa: Bridging visa E, in effect from grant.
• In immigration clearance: no partner visa bridging visa, because the Subclass 820 application cannot be validly made.
• Outside Australia (Subclass 309): no bridging visa.

Holding a substantive visa at lodgement: Bridging visa A

If you hold a substantive visa when you lodge, such as a visitor visa, a student visa, a working holiday visa or a temporary skilled visa, your partner visa bridging visa will be a Bridging visa A (Subclass 010). This is the most favourable starting position. The Bridging visa A is granted when the application is found valid, but it usually sits in the background until your current visa ends.

For a detailed explanation of the visa class itself, see the Bridging visa A guide. Many applicants on a visitor visa ask whether they can apply onshore at all. The answer depends on the conditions of that visa, which is why the tourist visa to partner visa article should be read alongside this one. Applicants who hold a Subclass 300 Prospective Marriage visa and lodge onshore after marrying are also substantive visa holders at lodgement.

No substantive visa at lodgement: Bridging visa C

If your substantive visa had already ceased when you lodged, you were an unlawful non-citizen or you held only a bridging visa from an earlier application. In that case your partner visa bridging visa will usually be a Bridging visa C (Subclass 030). The Bridging visa C makes you lawful again from the day it is granted, but it does not undo the earlier period without a visa.

Two further requirements apply. Under item 1303 of Schedule 1, the applicant must be immigration cleared or fall within regulation 2.20(6), and must not hold, and must not have held since last holding a substantive visa, a Bridging visa E. The initial Bridging visa C must also be applied for on the same form and at the same time as the partner visa application, under subclause 030.212(2). It cannot be obtained later on a separate bridging visa form unless you have already held a Bridging visa C for that application.

Lodging without a substantive visa also brings in Schedule 3, which is explained below. A Bridging visa C keeps you lawful during processing. It does not mean the Subclass 820 can be granted. Those are separate questions, and confusing them is one of the most expensive mistakes in the onshore caseload. The Schedule 3 criteria article explains the second question in detail.

When only a Bridging visa E is available

A Bridging visa E (Subclass 050) becomes the partner visa bridging visa where neither a Bridging visa A nor a Bridging visa C can be granted. The most common situation is a person who became unlawful, came to the Department's attention, and was granted a Bridging visa E to make arrangements to depart or to resolve their status. Because they have held a Bridging visa E since their last substantive visa, the Bridging visa C door is closed to them by paragraph 1303(3)(d).

Under subclause 050.212(3), a Bridging visa E can be granted to a person who has made a valid application, in Australia, for a substantive visa that can be granted in Australia, and that application has not been finally determined. A Bridging visa E comes into effect immediately on grant. Its conditions are imposed under different rules from a Bridging visa A, as explained below. People in this position are usually dealing with compliance officers as well as the partner application, and the urgent advice guide explains what to gather before speaking to a lawyer.

Applicants in immigration clearance

A person who is still in immigration clearance cannot lodge a valid Subclass 820 application. Paragraph 1214C(3)(c) of Schedule 1 requires every Subclass 820 applicant to be in Australia but not in immigration clearance at the time of application. In plain terms, you cannot arrive at the airport and lodge an onshore partner visa before you have been cleared. The same "not in immigration clearance" requirement appears in the validity rules for a Bridging visa A and a Bridging visa C.

The Bridging visa C also requires the applicant to be immigration cleared or to fall within regulation 2.20(6), which covers certain people who bypassed immigration clearance and did not come to the Department's notice within 45 days of entry. People who entered Australia without being immigration cleared face complex eligibility questions for any partner visa bridging visa, and those cases need individual advice before anything is lodged.

When Does a Partner Visa Bridging Visa Come Into Effect?

A partner visa bridging visa is granted when the partner application is found valid, but a Bridging visa A does not come into effect until the substantive visa you already hold ceases. Until then you hold the bridging visa, but you are in Australia on your existing visa, with its existing conditions. This is the point most applicants misunderstand.

The Act separates two ideas: the "visa period" and the period when the visa is "in effect". Under subsection 5(1), the visa period of a bridging visa begins when it is granted. The bridging visa is in effect only on those occasions within the visa period when you do not hold a substantive visa or a more beneficial bridging visa. PAM3 states plainly that when a Bridging visa A is granted, it will not come into effect until the substantive visa held by the person ceases to be in effect.

The practical consequences are significant:

• Your current visa conditions still apply. If you lodge while holding a visitor visa with a no work condition, that condition continues until the visitor visa ends. The nil conditions of a Bridging visa A for partner applicants only matter once the Bridging visa A is actually in effect.
• Travel rules depend on which visa is in effect. A Bridging visa A that is not yet in effect does not cease if you leave Australia, because subsection 82(8) only ceases a bridging visa that is in effect. If your substantive visa then ceases while you are overseas, the Bridging visa A ceases at that moment too, unless you hold a Bridging visa B with a valid travel facility.
• A Bridging visa C or E usually starts immediately. Because the applicant did not hold a substantive visa, the Bridging visa C or Bridging visa E is generally in effect from grant.

PAM3 also confirms that a bridging visa cannot be backdated. It cannot come into effect before the date it is granted. If there is a gap between your substantive visa ending and the grant of the partner visa bridging visa, you are unlawful for that gap, and it cannot be fixed later by the Department. This is why lodging a valid application before your current visa ceases is so important.

The partner visa bridging visa also appears in the Visa Entitlement Verification Online (VEVO) system. Check VEVO after lodgement and again when your substantive visa expires. It should show the bridging visa class and the conditions that now apply to you.

Why the Partner Visa Bridging Visa Covers Both Subclass 820 and Subclass 801

One partner visa bridging visa is granted for the combined temporary and permanent application. Paragraph 1214C(3)(a) of Schedule 1 requires the Subclass 820 application to be made at the same time and place as the Subclass 801 application, on one form. PAM3 confirms that the bridging visa, if granted, is associated with both applications.

This produces a feature of the system that few applicants know about. When the Subclass 820 is granted, the partner visa bridging visa stops being in effect under subsection 82(3), because another visa has come into effect. But it is not extinguished. The applicant still holds it until the Subclass 801 application is finally determined. If the Subclass 820 is later cancelled under sections 109, 116, 128 or 140, and the person holds no other substantive visa or more beneficial bridging visa, the partner visa bridging visa comes back into effect under subsection 68(4). A cancellation under section 501, 501A or 501B is different. In that case the bridging visa is taken to be cancelled under section 501F. The visa cancellations service page explains how cancellation matters are handled.

The link to the Subclass 801 also governs what happens on refusal. If the Department refuses the Subclass 820, it must also refuse the associated Subclass 801. The bridging visa then ceases according to its cessation clause, counted from the refusal decision. The relationship between the two stages is explained in the Subclass 820 vs Subclass 801 comparison, and the onshore pathway is set out in full in the Subclass 820 partner visa guide.

What Conditions Does a Partner Visa Bridging Visa Carry?

The conditions on a partner visa bridging visa depend on its class. A Bridging visa A or Bridging visa B granted for a Subclass 820 and Subclass 801 application carries no conditions. A Bridging visa C usually carries condition 8101 (no work). A Bridging visa E carries whatever conditions the Department imposes under the Bridging visa E rules, which can include no work and reporting conditions.

Only the conditions listed in Schedule 2 for that bridging visa subclass can lawfully be imposed. PAM3 states that if a condition not listed for that subclass is recorded against a bridging visa, it has no effect in law and the holder is not required to comply with it. The reverse is also true. A mandatory condition applies by operation of law even if the Department's system fails to record it.

Bridging visa A and Bridging visa B: nil conditions for partner applicants

A Bridging visa A granted to a Subclass 820 and Subclass 801 applicant carries no conditions. Paragraph 010.611(1)(c) provides for nil conditions where the applicant is in a class of persons specified by legislative instrument, and that instrument specifies onshore partner applicants whose application has not been finally determined. Paragraph 020.611(1)(b) does the same for a Bridging visa B.

This means the conditions on your previous visa do not carry over to a Bridging visa A granted for an onshore partner application. A visitor visa no work condition, a student visa work limitation or a condition 8501 health insurance condition does not continue onto the partner visa bridging visa once the Bridging visa A is in effect. For most other visa types, the Bridging visa A copies the work conditions from the previous visa. Partner applicants are treated differently, and this is one of the reasons the onshore pathway is attractive for couples who are eligible for it.

The nil conditions rule does not apply to a "judicial review" Bridging visa A, which is granted on a different basis if a person seeks court review after the Tribunal. That situation is outside the scope of this article.

Bridging visa C and Bridging visa E conditions

A Bridging visa C granted for a partner visa application carries condition 8101 (no work) unless one of the specific exceptions in clauses 030.611 to 030.613 applies. Those exceptions cover a person who has shown a compelling need to work, certain protection visa applicants at judicial review, and certain skilled and parent visa applicants. Onshore partner applicants are not in the excepted list, so clause 030.614 applies and condition 8101 is imposed.

A Bridging visa E for a person who has made a valid substantive visa application is subject to conditions chosen under clause 050.617. There are no mandatory conditions under that clause, but the Department has discretion to impose conditions from the list. PAM3 directs officers that where an applicant has disengaged from the Department and not maintained lawful status, conditions 8101 (no work), 8207 (no study), 8401 (reporting) and 8506 (notify address) should be imposed. If the applicant already held a Bridging visa E when lodging the partner application, clause 050.611 instead carries over the conditions of that earlier Bridging visa E.

The reporting condition 8401 deserves particular attention. Missing a reporting date is a breach of a visa condition, and a breach can expose the partner visa bridging visa to cancellation. Applicants on a Bridging visa E should diarise every reporting obligation and keep proof of attendance.

Work rights in short

Work rights follow the class of partner visa bridging visa: a Bridging visa A or B for a partner applicant has no conditions, so there is no work limitation once it is in effect, while a Bridging visa C or a Bridging visa E may carry condition 8101. A Bridging visa C holder can apply for a further Bridging visa C without condition 8101 by showing a "compelling need to work", which regulation 1.08 defines by reference to financial hardship. The detail is covered in the article on Subclass 820 work rights and bridging visas.

Can You Travel on a Partner Visa Bridging Visa?

Yes, but only if you hold a Bridging visa A or a Bridging visa B and obtain a Bridging visa B before you leave. A Bridging visa A, C or E is a visa to remain in Australia only. If you leave Australia while it is in effect, it ceases under subsection 82(8) of the Act and cannot be revived. A Bridging visa B is the only partner visa bridging visa that permits you to leave and return.

What a Bridging visa B requires

The Bridging visa B (Subclass 020) is not automatic. You apply for it separately, using Form 1005 or Form 1006 (including the online versions in ImmiAccount), and a visa application charge applies. The criteria in Part 020 of Schedule 2 require that:

• you hold a Bridging visa A or a Bridging visa B at the time of application and at the time of decision (clause 020.211);
• you have made a valid application in Australia for a substantive visa that can be granted in Australia, and it has not been finally determined (subclause 020.212(2));
• your reasons for leaving and re-entering Australia are substantial (subclause 020.212(2));
• your return to Australia would not be contrary to the public interest (clause 020.213); and
• you satisfy public interest criterion 4021, the passport requirement (clause 020.223).

The requirement to hold a Bridging visa A or B is the reason a Bridging visa C or Bridging visa E holder cannot obtain a Bridging visa B. For those applicants, the partner visa bridging visa offers no lawful way to leave and return during processing. The Bridging visa B guide and the overview of bridging visas A, B, C and E explain the general rules.

"Substantial" is not defined in the legislation. PAM3 says it takes its ordinary meaning of real, actual and important, and gives examples such as visiting a seriously ill family member, attending a funeral or wedding, work or study commitments, and obtaining documents needed for the substantive visa application. The decision maker must be satisfied both that the reason is important and that it is real, so supporting evidence matters.

The travel facility period

A Bridging visa B is granted with a travel facility period, which is the window in which you may leave and re-enter Australia. Once the travel facility period ends, the Bridging visa B only permits you to remain in Australia. There is no provision to extend a travel facility period after the Bridging visa B is granted.

Two cessation rules then become critical:

• If the travel facility period ends while you are outside Australia, the Bridging visa B ceases under subsection 82(5). You cannot apply for a new Bridging visa B from overseas, because a Bridging visa B application can only be made in Australia. You would need a new substantive visa, such as a visitor visa, to return.
• If you leave Australia after the travel facility period has ended, the Bridging visa B ceases under subsection 82(6).

Grant of a Bridging visa B also ends the Bridging visa A or Bridging visa B you already hold for the same application. The new Bridging visa B carries over the nil conditions that apply to partner applicants.

What happens if you leave Australia without a Bridging visa B

If your partner visa bridging visa is in effect and you leave Australia without a Bridging visa B, it ceases the moment you depart. You become a person outside Australia with a pending onshore partner application and no visa to return on. To come back, you must apply for and be granted another visa, and that visa may carry its own conditions or be refused.

The position is different if your Bridging visa A was not yet in effect because you still held a substantive visa when you left. PAM3 confirms that in that situation, the Bridging visa A is not ceased by your departure. If you return on that same substantive visa, the Bridging visa A remains held and comes into effect when the substantive visa ceases. But if the substantive visa ceases while you are still overseas, the Bridging visa A ceases at that time too. Many applicants lose their partner visa bridging visa in exactly this way, without realising it has happened.

Departure can also create problems beyond the partner application. Public interest criterion 4014 creates a risk factor for a person who left Australia as an unlawful non-citizen or as the holder of a Bridging visa C, D or E, subject to the exceptions in PIC 4014(5). Where PIC 4014 applies to a later visa, such as a visitor visa used to return, the person cannot be granted that visa within three years of departure unless compelling or compassionate circumstances are shown.

A person who held a Bridging visa C, left Australia and later returns on another visa can sometimes obtain a replacement Bridging visa C under subclause 030.212(2A), but only once the visa they returned on has ceased. A person who held a Bridging visa A and returns on a temporary visa can apply for a further Bridging visa A on Form 1005. These are repair steps, not a plan, and they depend on the return visa being granted in the first place.

Travel risks while the partner visa is being decided

Even with a Bridging visa B, overseas travel carries risk at two points in the process. First, clause 820.411 requires the applicant to be in Australia, but not in immigration clearance, when the Subclass 820 is granted. If you are overseas when the Department is ready to decide, the decision maker may defer for a reasonable period or may refuse. PAM3 describes a period of up to six months as generally reasonable for deferral, but that is policy guidance, not a right.

Second, an application to the ART for review of a Subclass 820 refusal can only be made by an applicant who is physically present in Australia, under subsection 347(3) of the Act. If you are refused while overseas and your Bridging visa B or substantive visa does not get you back in time, you may lose the review right entirely. The ART review guide explains what the review process involves.

PAM3 also warns that if the Tribunal affirms the refusal while a Bridging visa B holder is outside Australia, the Bridging visa B ceases and the person cannot return unless they are granted a substantive visa. Any applicant with a pending partner application or review should obtain advice before booking travel, not after.

Partner Visa Bridging Visa Traps That Cause Real Harm

Most serious partner visa bridging visa problems come from a small number of predictable traps: a no further stay condition, lodging after the last visa expired, letting a substantive visa lapse, the section 48 bar, withdrawing the application, and being granted the wrong bridging visa. Each is avoidable if it is identified before lodgement or before the triggering event.

Condition 8503 and other no further stay conditions

Condition 8503 provides that the holder will not, after entering Australia, be entitled to be granted a substantive visa, other than a protection visa, while the holder remains in Australia. Conditions 8534, 8535 and 8540 operate in a similar way for other visa types. Under subsection 46(1A) of the Act, a person whose visa carries a no further stay condition generally cannot make a valid application for a Subclass 820 while in Australia.

The common error is to assume that because a bridging visa is not a substantive visa, the 8503 problem disappears once a bridging visa is granted. It does not. PAM3 confirms that a person subject to condition 8503 can still make a valid application for a bridging visa, because a bridging visa is not a substantive visa. But a partner visa bridging visa only arises from a valid partner visa application. If the partner application is invalid because of condition 8503, there is no partner visa bridging visa, and the applicant may be left with no lawful status once their visa ends.

The only path is a waiver under subsection 41(2A) of the Act and subregulation 2.05(4). The visa holder must show that, since the visa was granted, compelling and compassionate circumstances have developed over which they had no control and which resulted in a major change to their circumstances. The PAM3 instruction on no further stay conditions states that, generally, marrying or starting a de facto relationship with an Australian citizen or permanent resident is not a matter outside the visa holder's control. A relationship alone will rarely be enough. The Subclass 820 and condition 8503 article explains the waiver in more detail.

Lodging after your visa expired: Schedule 3

If you did not hold a substantive visa when you lodged, your partner visa bridging visa will usually be a Bridging visa C or E, and the Subclass 820 itself becomes subject to Schedule 3. Under subparagraph 820.211(2)(d)(ii), the applicant must satisfy Schedule 3 criteria 3001, 3003 and 3004 unless the Minister is satisfied there are compelling reasons for not applying them.

Criterion 3001 requires the application to be made within 28 days after the applicant last held a substantive visa, among other trigger points. Criteria 3003 and 3004 require the decision maker to be satisfied that the reasons for not holding a substantive visa were beyond the applicant's control, that there are compelling reasons to grant the visa, that the applicant substantially complied with the conditions of their last visa, and other matters. If the application is lodged outside the timeframe, everything turns on the "compelling reasons" waiver.

The policy is strict. PAM3 says that, as a general rule, a genuine relationship and the hardship of separation are not compelling reasons, because every partner applicant has a relationship and separation is common across the caseload. It also says that where there is an Australian citizen child with a demonstrable link to the applicant, a decision may be made to waive Schedule 3 in the best interests of the child. The Schedule 3 partner visa waiver article and the Schedule 3 waiver service page explain how these claims are built.

The partner visa bridging visa does not solve Schedule 3. Applicants are sometimes told that once they hold a Bridging visa C they are "lawful again" and the problem has gone. They are lawful again, but criterion 3001 looks at when they last held a substantive visa, not whether they now hold a bridging visa.

Letting a substantive visa lapse

The cleanest partner visa bridging visa outcome is a Bridging visa A, and it is only available if you hold a substantive visa when you lodge. Couples who wait until the last week of a visitor or student visa, then discover a document problem, can slide past the expiry date and lose the Bridging visa A outcome entirely. Missing that date by a single day changes the class of bridging visa, the conditions attached to it, the availability of a Bridging visa B and the Schedule 3 position.

Lodge a valid application while your current visa is still in effect. If there is any doubt about whether the application will be valid on the intended day, obtain advice early. The onshore partner visa requirements guide explains the lodgement requirements, and the partner visa document checklist helps you prepare in time.

The section 48 bar

Section 48 of the Act limits the visas a person can apply for in Australia if they do not hold a substantive visa and have had a visa refused or cancelled since last entering Australia. Regulation 2.12 permits a Subclass 820 application despite section 48, but paragraph 1124B(3)(e) imposes additional validity requirements for the Subclass 801 application, including a completed sponsorship form signed by the sponsoring partner at the time of lodgement. If those requirements are missed, the combined application is invalid and no partner visa bridging visa arises from it.

Section 48 can also follow you overseas. Subsection 48(3) provides that a person who leaves and re-enters Australia while holding a bridging visa is taken to have been continuously in the migration zone. Travelling on a Bridging visa B does not reset a section 48 bar. The partner visa after a visa refusal article covers section 48 for partner applicants.

Withdrawing the application or a relationship breakdown

If you withdraw the Subclass 820 and Subclass 801 application, the partner visa bridging visa ceases 35 days after the effective date of withdrawal, for a bridging visa granted on or after 19 November 2016. If you hold no other visa at that point, you become unlawful. Withdrawal is sometimes done in a hurry after a relationship ends, without anyone checking what happens to the applicant's status.

A relationship breakdown does not automatically end the partner visa bridging visa. The bridging visa continues until a cessation event occurs, such as refusal or withdrawal. But you must tell the Department about the change of circumstances under section 104 of the Act, usually through Form 1022. Some applicants may still have a pathway, for example under the family violence provisions. The Subclass 820 relationship breakdown article sets out the options.

The wrong partner visa bridging visa

PAM3 warns decision makers that granting the wrong class of bridging visa can cause adverse consequences, and gives an example. A person who should have received a Bridging visa C is granted a Bridging visa A, leaves Australia without a Bridging visa B, and returns on a temporary visa. They then cannot validly apply for a replacement Bridging visa A, because they did not hold a substantive visa when they lodged. They cannot obtain a Bridging visa C either, because the initial Bridging visa C had to be applied for on the partner visa form at the time of lodgement. Their only option is a Bridging visa E.

Check the grant notice and VEVO. If the class does not match your status at lodgement, raise it immediately rather than relying on it.

What Happens to Your Partner Visa Bridging Visa If the Application Is Refused?

If the Department refuses the Subclass 820 and Subclass 801 application, a partner visa bridging visa granted on or after 19 November 2016 ceases 35 days after the refusal decision, unless a valid application for ART review is made. It does not cease on the day of refusal. That period exists so that the applicant remains lawful while deciding whether to seek review or arrange departure.

Do not treat the 35 day bridging visa period as the time you have to apply for review. The time limit for applying to the ART is set separately by the Act and is shorter. It is strictly applied, and a late application generally cannot be accepted. The refusal letter states the deadline. Read it on the day it arrives. The partner visa refusal appeal options article explains the choices available once a refusal is received.

PAM3 sets out the main cessation events for a Bridging visa A, Bridging visa B and Bridging visa C granted on or after 19 November 2016:

• The partner visa is granted: the bridging visa ceases when the associated substantive visa is granted, although for a combined partner application it remains held until the Subclass 801 is decided.
• The application is refused: the bridging visa ceases 35 days after the refusal decision.
• Review is sought and the Tribunal decides: the bridging visa ceases 35 days after the Tribunal's decision, other than a decision to remit.
• The application or review application is withdrawn: the bridging visa ceases 35 days after the effective date of withdrawal.
• The application is found to be invalid: the bridging visa ceases 35 days after that finding.
• Another bridging visa is granted for the same application: the earlier bridging visa ceases when the new one is granted.

For bridging visas granted before 19 November 2016, cessation was linked to notification of the decision rather than the decision itself. Few current partner applicants are in that group, but older matters still need to be checked against the earlier rules.

Common reasons for refusal are explained in the Subclass 820 refusal reasons article and in why partner visas get refused. Many refusals follow a section 57 natural justice letter or an unanswered section 56 request for more information. A response to either letter is the last point at which the refusal, and the countdown on the partner visa bridging visa, can be avoided.

Your Partner Visa Bridging Visa During ART Review

If you lodge a valid ART review application in time, your partner visa bridging visa continues while the Tribunal reviews the refusal. The partner application is not "finally determined" while review is pending, and the bridging visa does not cease on refusal day plus 35 days. Instead, under the cessation rules, it ceases 35 days after the Tribunal's decision, unless the Tribunal remits the matter.

The Tribunal can affirm the refusal, set it aside and substitute a new decision, or set it aside and remit the matter, which means the Tribunal sends the application back to the Department to reconsider in accordance with its directions. If the Tribunal remits, the partner visa bridging visa does not cease because of the Tribunal decision. It continues until a later cessation event occurs on the reconsidered application, such as grant or a fresh refusal. PAM3 also notes that when the Tribunal remits a Subclass 820 refusal and the applicant is eligible for the Subclass 801 to be considered, that application should be prioritised with due regard to the Tribunal's findings.

Several partner visa bridging visa points arise during review:

• You must be in Australia to apply for review. Subsection 347(3) requires the review applicant for a Subclass 820 refusal to be physically present in Australia when the review application is made.
• Travel during review carries extra risk. If you hold a Bridging visa B and the Tribunal affirms the refusal while you are overseas, the bridging visa ceases 35 days after the Tribunal decision. If you are still outside Australia, you cannot return unless you obtain a substantive visa.
• A Bridging visa B can still be sought during review. A Bridging visa A or B holder whose application is at the Tribunal may apply for a further Bridging visa B, because the partner application has not been finally determined.
• Court proceedings need a new bridging visa. If the Tribunal affirms and you seek judicial review, the partner visa bridging visa does not carry over. A separate bridging visa must be applied for on judicial review grounds, and the timing of that application is critical.

The Administrative Review Tribunal replaced the Administrative Appeals Tribunal on 14 October 2024. The bridging visa rules continue to operate in the same way for review applications made to the ART. The visa refusals service page, the partner visa refusals page and the visa appeal lawyer guide explain how review matters are run.

What Tribunal Decisions Show About Applicants Without a Substantive Visa

Tribunal decisions show that the most contested partner visa bridging visa cases are not really about the bridging visa at all. They are about Schedule 3: whether an applicant who lodged without a substantive visa can be granted the Subclass 820 despite criteria 3001, 3003 and 3004. The partner visa bridging visa kept these applicants lawful through processing and review, but the outcome depended on whether compelling reasons were made out.

In each of the following decisions, the Tribunal set aside the refusal and remitted the matter, which means it sent the application back to the Department to reconsider. A remittal is not a grant. The issues listed are the issues the decisions were reported on:

• Raganas (Migration) [2020] AATA 2401: the applicant held no substantive visa at the time of application or within 28 days before it, and the last substantive visa was held more than three years earlier.
• Fu (Migration) [2020] AATA 3922: the applicant was not the holder of a substantive visa at the time of application, and there was an Australian citizen child from the relationship.
• Bedi (Migration) [2020] AATA 5208: the application was made more than 28 days after the last substantive visa was held, and the Tribunal considered compelling reasons for not applying the criteria, including an Australian citizen child of the relationship.
• Hassan (Migration) [2021] AATA 2159: a court remittal in which the applicant was not the holder of a substantive visa at the time of application, the sponsor had significant illnesses, and compelling reasons were found to exist.
• Sandhu (Migration) [2018] AATA 1483: the Tribunal considered whether compelling reasons existed for not applying Schedule 3, including the length of the relationship and the difficulty of relocating offshore while the application was processed.
• Naidu (Migration) [2023] AATA 1830: a court remittal concerning compelling reasons to waive Schedule 3, a child born of the relationship and a long-standing relationship.

These decisions were made by the Administrative Appeals Tribunal before the ART commenced. They illustrate the kinds of circumstances the Tribunal examined in each case. They do not establish that any particular fact will be accepted as compelling in a later case, and the Department's policy remains that a relationship and separation hardship alone are generally not enough. What they do show is that the evidence of an applicant's circumstances, gathered and presented properly, decides these matters.

How to Check and Protect Your Partner Visa Bridging Visa Status

You protect your partner visa bridging visa by confirming what you hold, keeping your contact details current, complying with any conditions, and getting advice before any event that can end it. Most status problems in the onshore caseload were visible on VEVO or in ImmiAccount weeks before they caused harm.

A practical routine for any onshore partner applicant:

• Read the bridging visa grant notice. It should state the class, when it comes into effect, the conditions and the cessation events. Keep it with your records.
• Check VEVO at three points: after lodgement, on the day your substantive visa expires, and before any travel.
• Keep the Department informed. Section 104 requires you to notify changes in circumstances, using Form 1022 where relevant. Update your address and email through ImmiAccount so that letters reach you.
• Answer every request on time. Requests for information, health checks and the Form 80 personal particulars form have deadlines. A refusal for non-response starts the cessation clock on the partner visa bridging visa.
• Do not travel without a Bridging visa B in effect if your Bridging visa A is in effect, and do not travel at all on a Bridging visa C or E without advice.
• Do not withdraw without advice. Withdrawal starts the 35 day cessation period and may leave you unlawful.
• Keep building the relationship evidence. The bridging visa only buys time. The Subclass 820 is decided on the relationship, so continue collecting evidence of a genuine relationship and preparing evidence through the processing period.

If you appointed a representative, the Department communicates through them. The Form 956 and 956A article explains how that appointment works. If you lodged yourself and are now worried about your partner visa bridging visa position, the article on hiring a lawyer after lodgement explains how a lawyer can step in, and the second opinion guide explains what a review of an existing file involves.

The relationship itself is assessed on the four aspects of the relationship, the relationship statement and supporting Form 888 statements. De facto couples should also check the de facto partner visa rules, same-sex couples can read about the LGBTI partner visa, and couples whose sponsor has sponsored before should read about sponsorship limitations. None of these change the bridging visa class, but each can change whether the partner visa is granted, and therefore how long the partner visa bridging visa needs to last.

How My Migration Lawyers Handles Partner Visa Bridging Visa Issues

My Migration Lawyers treats the partner visa bridging visa as a status question that must be answered before lodgement, not after. Every onshore partner matter starts with a status audit, because the bridging visa outcome, the travel options and the Schedule 3 position are all fixed on the day the application is lodged.

In practice, the firm's approach to partner visa bridging visa issues follows these steps:

• Confirm status at the intended lodgement date. My Migration Lawyers checks the client's current visa, its expiry date and its conditions on VEVO, including any condition 8503 or other no further stay condition, and any visa refusal or cancellation that may engage section 48.
• Identify the partner visa bridging visa that will arise. The firm explains to the couple whether the application will produce a Bridging visa A, C or E, when it will come into effect and what conditions it will carry, before anything is lodged.
• Resolve barriers first. Where a no further stay condition applies, the firm assesses whether a waiver request can genuinely be made out. Where the client has no substantive visa, the firm assesses the Schedule 3 position and the evidence available to support compelling reasons.
• Lodge a valid application on time. The firm prepares and lodges the combined Subclass 820 and Subclass 801 application while the client still holds a substantive visa wherever that is possible, so that the strongest partner visa bridging visa outcome is preserved.
• Manage travel. Where a Bridging visa B is needed, the firm reviews the reasons for travel, the timing of the decision and the risks of being overseas at the wrong moment, then prepares the application.
• Respond to refusal or review. If a refusal issues, the firm identifies the review deadline immediately, lodges ART review where appropriate, and keeps the client's bridging visa position under watch through the review.

My Migration Lawyers acts in many onshore partner matters involving bridging visa complications, including applicants who lodged without a substantive visa, applicants with condition 8503, applicants whose bridging visa ceased on departure, and applicants facing refusal. These cases are often complex, and the firm is equipped to handle them. Matters are supervised by Weiwei Zhang, Principal Lawyer. No outcome can be promised in any migration matter, but a clear assessment of your partner visa bridging visa position before you act is the step that prevents most avoidable harm.

The firm acts for clients across Australia, including through its partner visa lawyers in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide, the Gold Coast, Canberra, Hobart and Parramatta. Consultations are held by video, so location is no barrier. You can learn more about My Migration Lawyers and its partner visa lawyers, or read what to expect from a consultation.

If you are about to lodge an onshore partner visa, if your visa is close to expiry, or if you are unsure which partner visa bridging visa you hold or what it allows, speak to a lawyer before you act.

Book a consultation with My Migration Lawyers to have your partner visa bridging visa position assessed. You can also call 1300 040 300.