Partner Visa Schedule 3 Waiver Lawyer for Overstayers

A partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer is the person to call when your visa has ended in the last few weeks or months and you want to stay in Australia with your Australian partner. If your visitor, student, work or other substantive visa has expired, you are now an unlawful non-citizen. The clock is already running. A partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer works on two problems at once: keeping you safe right now, and building the strongest possible Subclass 820 application while the facts are still fresh and the period of overstay is still short.

This page is written for the recent or short overstayer. Your visa ended days, weeks or a few months ago. You have an Australian citizen, permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen partner. You may not yet have spoken to the Department of Home Affairs. You may be frightened of being detained, and unsure whether to leave or stay. A partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer at My Migration Lawyers can tell you where you stand in law, what to do this week, and what not to do.

For the general legal framework, read our guides to the Schedule 3 criteria for partner visas and the Schedule 3 partner visa waiver. For the service itself, see the Schedule 3 waiver service for partner visas. This article focuses on timing, speed and the first decisions that decide whether a waiver case is strong or weak.

What Does a Partner Visa Schedule 3 Waiver Lawyer Do for a Recent Overstayer?

A partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer confirms your exact immigration status, protects you from avoidable harm in the first days, and then prepares and lodges an onshore partner visa application with a written case for compelling reasons that addresses Schedule 3 directly.

Schedule 3 to the Migration Regulations 1994 contains additional criteria for people who apply for certain visas when they do not hold a substantive visa. For the onshore Subclass 820 partner visa, clause 820.211(2)(d)(ii) requires an applicant who is not the holder of a substantive visa to satisfy Schedule 3 criteria 3001, 3003 and 3004, unless the Minister is satisfied that there are compelling reasons for not applying those criteria. The "waiver" is the decision not to apply those criteria.

For a recent overstayer, the work of a partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer is front-loaded. Most of the value is created in the first week. The tasks include:

• obtaining your visa history from VEVO and Department records, so the date your last substantive visa ended is fixed precisely;
• checking whether any bar prevents a valid application, such as section 48 or condition 8503;
• working out whether you are still inside the 28-day window in criterion 3001;
• advising on bridging visas and on how to deal with the Department safely;
• advising you not to leave Australia until the consequences are understood;
• identifying the real facts in your life that may amount to compelling reasons, and evidencing them; and
• lodging a valid application and a written Schedule 3 submission without delay.

The same work also covers the relationship case. Schedule 3 is only one part of the Subclass 820. The relationship must still be genuine and continuing, and the application must still be complete. Our Subclass 820 partner visa guide sets out the full criteria.

Why a short overstay is a different case from a long one

A short overstay is usually a stronger starting point than a long one, but only if you act quickly. Departmental policy for Subclass 820 lists the length of time the applicant has been an unlawful non-citizen, the reasons the applicant became unlawful and the reasons the applicant did not seek to become lawful sooner as matters the decision maker should consider. A person who overstayed by three weeks and lodged at once tells a very different story from a person who did nothing for years. A partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer uses that difference, but it shrinks every week you wait.

Why Speed Matters When Your Visa Has Just Ended

Speed matters because the 28-day period in criterion 3001 is fixed, because your bridging visa options change over time, and because every week of unlawful stay becomes part of the record the Department weighs.

Many people assume they can take a few months to save money, gather documents or wait for a wedding before lodging. That assumption is dangerous. A partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer will usually advise that the application be lodged as soon as a valid, well-prepared application can be made. The relationship evidence can be strengthened after lodgement. The overstay period cannot be shortened after the fact.

The 28-day window in criterion 3001

Criterion 3001 requires the visa application to be made within 28 days after the relevant day. For most recent overstayers, the relevant day is the last day they held a substantive visa. If you held more than one substantive visa, the time limit runs from the cessation of the last one. A substantive visa is any visa other than a bridging visa, a criminal justice visa or an enforcement visa, so time spent on a bridging visa does not restart the clock.

If you lodge a valid Subclass 820 application within that window, criterion 3001 is satisfied. If you lodge after it closes, criterion 3001 is not met and the application depends on compelling reasons under clause 820.211(2)(d)(ii).

How the 28 days are counted

The first of the 28 days is the day after the last day you held the visa. The application must be lodged on or before midnight of the 28th day. Departmental policy for Schedule 3 states that if the 28th day falls on a weekend, or on a public holiday or bank holiday in any place in Australia where the application could have been made, the criterion is satisfied if the application is lodged by midnight on the next day that is not a Saturday, Sunday, public holiday or bank holiday.

A partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer will not rely on your memory of the expiry date. Visa grant letters, VEVO results and Department records sometimes show a different end date from the one people remember, particularly where a visa was cancelled, where a further application was refused or where a visa ceased because of a condition. One day can decide which criterion applies.

What changes on day 29

On day 29, criterion 3001 can no longer be satisfied by lodging. The application can still be made. Departmental policy is clear that criteria 3001 and 3002 do not prevent a valid application. They operate at the decision stage: if the criterion is not met and no waiver is granted, the Subclass 820 cannot be granted.

From day 29, your case becomes a compelling reasons case. That is where a partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer earns their place. The task is to show the decision maker why, on your real facts, the Schedule 3 criteria should not be applied. That is a legal argument supported by evidence, not a form to fill in.

Does lodging inside the 28 days settle every Schedule 3 question?

No. Lodging within 28 days satisfies criterion 3001, but criterion 3004 is a separate criterion. On its terms, criterion 3004 applies to an applicant who ceased to hold a substantive visa on or after 1 September 1994 and has not since been granted a substantive visa. Where it applies, the decision maker must be satisfied of six separate matters, including that the applicant became a person without a substantive visa because of factors beyond their control, and that they intend to comply with the conditions of any visa granted.

This is the point most online commentary skips. Many sources say that lodging within 28 days "avoids Schedule 3". That is too simple. A partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer analyses criteria 3001, 3003 and 3004 separately, and prepares the compelling reasons argument in any case where criterion 3004 may not be met. Criterion 3003 is historical and concerns people who were unlawful on 31 August 1994, so it rarely affects recent overstayers.

Are You a Recent or Short Overstayer?

You are a recent or short overstayer if your last substantive visa ended weeks or a few months ago, you are still in Australia, and you have not been granted any new substantive visa since. This page is for you.

Common situations include:

• a visitor visa holder who met their partner in Australia and stayed past the visa end date (see our guide to moving from a tourist visa to a partner visa);
• a student whose course ended, whose visa expired or who did not lodge a further application in time;
• a temporary worker whose visa ended after a change in employment;
• a person whose further visa application was refused and who did not, or could not, seek review;
• a person whose visa was cancelled (see visa cancellation advice); and
• a person who believed a pending application kept them lawful, but whose bridging visa had in fact ceased.

If your overstay is measured in years rather than weeks or months, the analysis is different in emphasis, and the evidence must explain a much longer period. A partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer can still assess your position, but the urgency points on this page apply most strongly to recent cases.

If your relationship is a de facto relationship, the relationship requirements differ from those for married couples. Our page on the de facto partner visa in Australia explains the legal category. The Schedule 3 analysis is the same for married and de facto applicants.

The First Week With a Partner Visa Schedule 3 Waiver Lawyer

The first week is about facts, safety and validity: confirming your status, ruling out bars to a valid application, choosing the right bridging visa position, and stopping any step that would make the case worse.

The sequence below is how a partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer at My Migration Lawyers typically approaches the first week. Every matter is different, and the order changes when the facts require it.

Day one: the status check

My Migration Lawyers obtains your status and visa history itself. The firm checks VEVO using your passport details and, where needed, obtains Department records and any Tribunal records. You are not asked to produce old grant notices or application copies you do not have.

The status check answers precise questions. On what date did your last substantive visa cease? Did any bridging visa follow it? Was any visa refused or cancelled since you last entered Australia? Did any visa carry condition 8503 or another no further stay condition? Were you immigration cleared on your last entry? Each answer changes the advice.

Checking for bars to a valid application

A partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer checks validity before anything else, because an invalid application achieves nothing. Two common traps are:

• Section 48. If you have had a visa refused or cancelled since you last entered Australia, section 48 of the Migration Act 1958 may limit the visas you can apply for onshore. Partner visas are a prescribed exception in some circumstances under regulation 2.12, and the relevant requirements in Schedule 1 must be met.
• Condition 8503. If any visa you held carried a no further stay condition, a waiver under section 41(2A) may be needed before a valid application can be made. Our article on Subclass 820 applications and condition 8503 explains this.

If a bar exists, the 28-day window does not pause while it is resolved. That is one more reason a partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer starts on the first day.

Your bridging visa options in the gap

Your bridging visa position depends on what you do next, and a wrong step can change it for the rest of the case. A general overview is in our guide to bridging visas in Australia. For a recent overstayer, the key points are these.

If you lodge a valid Subclass 820 application while unlawful, you will usually receive a Bridging visa C, provided you have not held a Bridging visa E since your last substantive visa and you meet the other requirements. A Bridging visa C usually carries condition 8101, which prohibits work. Our article on Subclass 820 work rights and bridging visas explains when a further Bridging visa C without that condition may be sought.

Departmental policy also describes a Bridging visa D (Subclass 040) for an unlawful non-citizen who presents to the Department and states an intention to apply for a substantive visa within five working days. That can protect a person in the short period before lodgement.

The trap is the Bridging visa E. If you are granted a Bridging visa E, for example on the basis that you are making arrangements to leave Australia, and you later lodge a partner visa, you will usually not be eligible for a Bridging visa C. You may instead receive a Bridging visa E, which often carries work and reporting conditions. A partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer will consider this before you sign any bridging visa application.

You will not be eligible for a Bridging visa A or a Bridging visa B if you lodge while unlawful, because those classes depend on holding a substantive visa or a Bridging visa A or B. That means no travel facility while the partner visa is processed.

Contacting the Department safely

Contact with the Department should be planned, not avoided and not improvised. An unlawful non-citizen is exposed to detention under the Migration Act 1958, and the safest position is usually to become the holder of a bridging visa as soon as possible, through a valid application or through the appropriate bridging visa.

A partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer decides with you whether to lodge first or to make contact first, prepares what is said, and attends to the paperwork. A Form 956 appointment lets the firm receive correspondence and deal with the Department on your behalf. If you have already been contacted by a compliance officer, tell the firm at once.

Do not leave Australia without advice

Do not book a flight until a partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer has checked your position. Leaving can feel like the honest or simple choice, and sometimes it is the right choice. But departure while unlawful can create a three-year exclusion period for some later visas, it ends any bridging visa in effect, and it may close the onshore pathway altogether. The exclusion period rules are explained in the next section.

Leaving Australia While Unlawful: The PIC 4014 Exclusion Period

Yes, leaving Australia while unlawful can create an exclusion period. Public interest criterion 4014 provides that a person affected by a risk factor cannot be granted a visa that includes PIC 4014 unless three years have passed since they left Australia, subject to a discretion.

Departmental policy on exclusion periods states that, as a general rule, a person is affected by the PIC 4014 risk factor if they left Australia as an unlawful non-citizen, or as the holder of a Bridging visa C, Bridging visa D or Bridging visa E.

The exceptions in PIC 4014(5)

The timing exceptions matter enormously to a recent overstayer. Under PIC 4014(5), the risk factor does not apply if:

• the person left Australia within 28 days after a substantive visa they held ceased to be in effect; or
• the bridging visa held at departure was granted within 28 days after a substantive visa ceased, or was granted while the person held another bridging visa that was itself granted while they held a substantive visa or within 28 days after it ceased.

So the same 28-day period that matters for criterion 3001 also matters for PIC 4014. A person who leaves inside the 28 days is generally not caught. A person who leaves later, while unlawful, generally is. A partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer will check which side of that line you fall on before you make any decision about departure.

The waiver within PIC 4014

Even where the risk factor applies, PIC 4014 allows the visa to be granted within the three years if the decision maker is satisfied there are compelling circumstances affecting the interests of Australia, or compassionate or compelling circumstances affecting the interests of an Australian citizen, permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen. An Australian partner may be relevant to that discretion. It is still a discretion, and it should never be assumed.

Why this matters for the choice between onshore and offshore

Departmental policy for Subclass 820 says the Schedule 3 waiver is not intended for people who can leave Australia and apply offshore. A partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer therefore weighs both pathways honestly. Sometimes departure and an offshore Subclass 309 application is the safer course. Sometimes it is not, because of children, health, care obligations or the exclusion period. The right answer depends on your facts, and it should be given before you leave, not after.

Building Compelling Reasons Quickly

Compelling reasons are built from the real facts of your life and your partner's life, proved by evidence, and explained in a structured written submission. The law does not list what counts. Departmental policy says delegates should consider each case on its own facts.

For a recent overstayer, building the case quickly does not mean building it carelessly. It means a partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer identifies the strongest facts in the first meeting, starts collecting evidence the same week, and lodges once the application is valid and coherent, with the submission strengthened afterwards where needed.

What is generally not enough on its own

Departmental policy for Subclass 820 states that, as a general rule, a genuine relationship and the hardship of separation if the applicant had to apply offshore are not compelling reasons on their own. The reason given is that a genuine relationship is the basis of every partner visa, and separation is common in offshore processing.

This is why a submission that simply says "we love each other and do not want to be apart" usually fails. A partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer will tell you plainly if your case currently rests on those facts alone, and will look for what else is genuinely present.

What can amount to compelling reasons

Policy gives several pointers. The most important for recent overstayers are:

• An Australian citizen child. Policy states 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.
• Circumstances beyond the applicant's control. Policy accepts it is reasonable to find compelling reasons where circumstances beyond the applicant's control led them to become unlawful or prevented them from becoming lawful, such as severe illness or incapacity.
• Serious health issues affecting the applicant, the Australian partner or family members, where those issues make departure or separation significantly harmful.
• Care and dependency, such as where the applicant is the main carer for the partner, the partner's children or another family member in Australia.
• Pregnancy and the care of a newborn, where supported by medical evidence.

The decision maker also weighs the history: any non-compliance with visa conditions, the length of unlawful stay, why the person became unlawful, why they did not seek to become lawful sooner, the family composition, and any steps taken to become lawful. Policy also warns against people who deliberately manipulate their circumstances to create compelling reasons.

Why the reason you overstayed matters

For a short overstay, the explanation of how it happened is often the centre of the case. Did a medical emergency stop you lodging? Did you rely on a representative who failed to lodge? Did a refusal arrive while you were dealing with a family crisis? Did you misunderstand your visa end date because of a cancellation or a refused application?

Departmental Schedule 3 policy says causation matters. It is not enough that difficult events happened. They must have caused you to become a person without a substantive visa. The policy also notes that being unaware of your status, or misunderstanding your visa period, is more difficult to assess. A partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer will test your explanation against your documents, so that the account you give is accurate, consistent and supported.

Questions a partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer asks at the first meeting

The first meeting with a partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer is a fact-finding exercise. The questions are direct, because the answers decide the strategy. Expect to be asked:

• When did you first realise your visa had ended, and what did you do next?
• Why was no further application lodged before the visa ended?
• Has any visa been refused or cancelled since you last arrived in Australia?
• Have you worked or studied since the visa ended?
• Are there children, a pregnancy or anyone who depends on your care?
• Do you, your partner or close family members have serious health issues?
• What would happen to your partner and family if you had to leave for an extended period?
• Have you had any contact with the Department or compliance officers?

Honest answers protect you. A partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer can only build a case on facts that can be proved, and an answer that later proves inaccurate can damage credibility on every other point. If a fact is unhelpful, the lawyer needs to know it early so it can be addressed, not discovered by the decision maker.

Evidence a partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer gathers in the first fortnight

The evidence depends on the facts relied on. Typical categories include:

• medical reports from treating practitioners about the applicant, the partner or family members;
• birth certificates and evidence of the child's link to the applicant, and evidence about the child's needs;
• evidence of care arrangements and dependency;
• evidence about the circumstances that caused the overstay, such as hospital records or correspondence;
• evidence of the steps taken to become lawful once the problem was known; and
• relationship evidence across the four aspects the Department assesses: financial aspects, the nature of the household, social aspects and the nature of the commitment.

My Migration Lawyers asks you only for documents you can realistically obtain. The firm writes to practitioners where a formal report is needed, and obtains visa history itself. Our partner visa document checklist and the Subclass 820 evidence checklist show the relationship side of the evidence.

Compelling reasons are assessed at the time of decision

Compelling reasons are assessed on all the circumstances known up to the time of decision. Departmental policy cites the Full Federal Court in Waensila v MIBP [2016] FCAFC 32 for that principle. This has two consequences for a recent overstayer.

First, you do not need a perfect file on the day of lodgement. Further evidence can be provided while the application is being decided. Second, circumstances can change, for better or worse. A partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer keeps the case under review and updates the Department when material facts change, including through a Form 1022 notification of changed circumstances where required.

Lodging the Subclass 820 Application Onshore

The Subclass 820 and Subclass 801 are lodged together as one combined application, made online while the applicant is in Australia. For a recent overstayer, the goal is a valid, complete application lodged as early as the facts allow.

A partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer prepares the application, the sponsorship and the supporting documents as one coordinated package. If you do not yet have an account, our guide to creating an ImmiAccount explains the platform, although the firm usually manages lodgement. The differences between Subclass 820 and Subclass 801 are explained separately.

The relationship case cannot be neglected

A strong Schedule 3 submission does not save a weak relationship case. The application includes one relationship statement and the Form 888 statements of people who know the couple. Our guides to the partner visa relationship statement, Form 888 for partner visas and Form 888 examples explain what each document does. Statements are your own evidence, prepared with you and reviewed and corrected by you before they are signed.

The relationship is assessed through the four aspects: financial aspects, the nature of the household, social aspects and the nature of the commitment. Our guides on partner visa relationship evidence and preparing evidence of a genuine relationship cover this in detail.

The written Schedule 3 submission

The submission is where a partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer sets out the legal case. It typically:

• states the applicant's visa history and the exact dates, taken from the records;
• identifies which Schedule 3 criteria are not met and why;
• explains how the applicant became unlawful and what they did once they knew;
• sets out each fact relied on as a compelling reason, with the evidence attached to it;
• addresses the factors in departmental policy, including the length of unlawful stay and any non-compliance; and
• explains why it is not reasonable to expect the applicant to leave and apply offshore, where that is the case.

The submission is written in the applicant's interest, but it must be accurate. It presents your own account and evidence in the form the law requires. Nothing is invented, and nothing is exaggerated.

What a partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer checks before lodgement

Before the application is lodged, a partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer runs a final check. The visa history in the application must match the records. The answers about previous refusals, cancellations and conditions must be complete. The sponsor's details and the relationship information must be consistent with the relationship statement and the Form 888 statements. Any character matters must be disclosed and addressed, and a Form 80 may be needed.

The final check also confirms that the Schedule 3 submission and the relationship evidence tell one consistent story. A decision maker reads the whole file. If the submission says the overstay began because of a hospital admission, the dates in the medical records must match. A partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer treats consistency as part of the evidence, because inconsistency is one of the most common reasons a decision maker doubts an account.

Bridging visa and lodgement timing

If you lodge while unlawful and you have not held a Bridging visa E since your last substantive visa, the combined application is usually also an application for a Bridging visa C. A partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer checks this before lodgement and confirms the bridging visa grant afterwards. Processing then runs its course. Our page on Subclass 820 processing times and our article on how long an onshore 820 takes explain what to expect.

Why Waiting Makes a Schedule 3 Waiver Harder

Waiting makes a Schedule 3 waiver harder because the length of unlawful stay, and the reasons for not becoming lawful sooner, are factors the decision maker weighs directly. Every week of delay is a week that must be explained.

Delay causes other harm as well:

• Criterion 3001 is lost. After day 28, the application becomes a compelling reasons case in every instance.
• The PIC 4014 exception is lost. After day 28, departing while unlawful generally triggers the risk factor.
• Bridging visa options narrow. Taking a Bridging visa E in the meantime can mean no Bridging visa C later.
• Compliance risk grows. An unlawful non-citizen can be located by compliance officers at any time, and the conversation is very different when the person has not taken steps to regularise their status.
• The narrative weakens. "I overstayed by three weeks and lodged as soon as I understood" is a credible account. "I knew for a year and did nothing" invites the policy concern about people who make little or no effort to become lawful.

Policy gives an example of a case where compelling reasons may not exist: an applicant who has remained unlawful for a number of years, made little or no effort to become lawful, and relies only on the relationship and the hardship of separation. A partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer works to make sure a recent overstayer never fits that description. If you need help today, read our page on urgent immigration lawyer advice.

Managing Compliance Contact After Lodgement

Once a valid application is lodged and a bridging visa is granted, you are lawful again, but contact with the Department continues and must be managed carefully. A partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer remains the point of contact throughout.

Bridging visa conditions and reporting

If you hold a Bridging visa C, you must comply with its conditions, including any no work condition. If you hold a Bridging visa E, there may be reporting conditions requiring you to attend or contact the Department at set times. Breach of a bridging visa condition can lead to cancellation and can damage the compelling reasons case, because compliance with visa conditions is one of the factors weighed. A partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer explains each condition in writing and keeps track of any reporting dates.

Requests for further information

The Department may ask for more documents or information under section 56. Our article on the section 56 request for more information explains these requests. The answer should be accurate, complete and on time. A partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer drafts the response and uses it, where appropriate, to update the compelling reasons evidence.

Adverse information and natural justice

If the Department holds information that would be part of the reason for refusal, it will usually invite comment under section 57. Our guide to the partner visa section 57 natural justice letter explains these letters. In a Schedule 3 case, a section 57 letter often concerns the visa history, earlier statements to the Department or the explanation for the overstay. The response is a legal document and should be prepared by your partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer.

If compliance officers make contact

If compliance officers contact you after lodgement, you should cooperate, be truthful and tell the firm immediately. If you have been contacted before lodgement, your partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer will advise on how to respond and on the bridging visa that should be sought. Never sign a bridging visa application or a departure form without understanding what it means for the partner visa.

Keeping the file current while you wait

A partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer does not close the file on the day of lodgement. Because compelling reasons are assessed at the time of decision, new medical reports, a birth, a change in care arrangements or a change in your partner's health may need to be provided. If your relationship changes, the law on relationship breakdown during a Subclass 820 and the partner visa family violence provisions may become relevant. A partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer keeps the Department informed in the right form and at the right time.

What Tribunal Decisions Show About Applications Lodged Outside the Timeframe

Tribunal decisions show that Subclass 820 refusals based on Schedule 3, where the application was lodged outside the relevant timeframe, can be sent back to the Department when the Tribunal is satisfied there are compelling reasons for waiver. A remittal means the Tribunal sends the matter back to the Department to reconsider with a direction. It is not a grant of the visa.

The decisions below are published Tribunal decisions on the Subclass 820. Each is described only by the issues reported for it. All are decisions of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT), which pre-date the Administrative Review Tribunal (ART). The ART replaced the AAT on 14 October 2024.

• Harpreet Singh (Migration) [2019] AATA 5689 (Subclass 820). Reported issues: Federal Circuit Court remittal; Schedule 3 criteria; application lodged outside of relevant timeframe; compelling reasons for waiver.
• MOKTAN (Migration) [2020] AATA 5890 (Subclass 820). Reported issues: Federal Circuit Court remittal; Schedule 3 criteria; application lodged outside of relevant timeframe; compelling reasons for waiver.
• Thota (Migration) [2020] AATA 4222 (Subclass 820). Reported issues: Schedule 3 criteria; application lodged outside of relevant timeframe; compelling reasons for waiver; oral evidence of the sponsor's son and daughter-in-law.
• Adhikari (Migration) [2020] AATA 4221 (Subclass 820). Reported issues: Schedule 3 criteria; application lodged outside of relevant timeframe; compelling reasons for waiver; sponsor's pregnancies.
• Lin (Migration) [2020] AATA 5356 (Subclass 820). Reported issues: Schedule 3 criteria; application lodged outside of relevant timeframe; compelling reasons for waiver; temporary physical separation with Australian citizen partner and child.
• NGUYEN (Migration) [2019] AATA 3689 (Subclass 820). Reported issues: Schedule 3 criteria; application lodged outside of relevant timeframe; compelling reasons for waiver; sponsor's mental health condition.

What these decisions show

Three practical lessons follow. First, the compelling reasons in these matters were tied to concrete facts: a child, a pregnancy, a partner's health, family evidence given orally. Second, two of the matters had already been through the courts before they reached the Tribunal again, which shows how contested Schedule 3 cases can become. Third, the outcome was a remittal, not a grant, so the Department still had to reconsider the application. A partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer prepares the original application so that the evidence the Tribunal later relies on is before the Department from the start.

If the Schedule 3 Waiver Is Refused: ART Review

If the Department refuses the Subclass 820 because Schedule 3 is not met and no waiver is granted, you may be able to seek merits review in the Administrative Review Tribunal. The ART decides the matter afresh and can consider new evidence about compelling reasons up to the time of its decision.

The review deadline is short and strictly applied. It runs from when you are notified of the decision, and the Tribunal cannot extend it. A fee is payable to the Tribunal. Read the refusal letter the day it arrives, and contact a partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer immediately.

For more detail, see our guides on Subclass 820 visa refusals, partner visa refused appeal options, what to expect at the ART after a refusal and why partner visas get refused. My Migration Lawyers also acts in partner visa refusal matters, general visa refusal reviews and, where a legal error is involved, judicial review. If a refusal has already happened and you are considering a new application, read applying for a partner visa after a visa refusal.

Common Mistakes Recent Overstayers Make

The most common mistakes are delay, leaving without advice, taking the wrong bridging visa, and lodging a relationship-only argument. Each one can be avoided with early advice from a partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer.

• Waiting to "get everything ready". The relationship evidence can be added to after lodgement. The overstay period cannot be shortened.
• Leaving Australia without checking PIC 4014. Departure after the 28-day period while unlawful generally triggers the risk factor for visas that include PIC 4014.
• Accepting a departure Bridging visa E without advice. It can affect the bridging visa you receive when you later lodge the partner visa.
• Assuming the 28 days solves everything. Criterion 3004 is a separate test.
• Relying only on the relationship. Policy says a genuine relationship and separation hardship are generally not compelling reasons on their own.
• Giving an inconsistent account of the overstay. The explanation must match the records the Department already holds.
• Working while on a Bridging visa C with condition 8101. A breach of conditions damages the compliance history that the decision maker weighs.
• Ignoring correspondence. Section 56 requests and section 57 letters have deadlines.

If you have already lodged and are worried about how your application was prepared, our articles on hiring a lawyer after lodgement, getting a second opinion and changing immigration lawyer explain your options. For a neutral comparison of representatives, see migration agent or lawyer for a partner visa and partner visa lawyer or DIY.

How to Choose a Partner Visa Schedule 3 Waiver Lawyer When Time Is Short

Choose a partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer who can start this week, who will check your history from the records rather than from memory, and who will give you written advice on the 28-day position, bridging visas and departure risk before anything is lodged.

When time is short, practical questions matter more than marketing. Ask the partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer you are considering:

• How quickly can you confirm my exact visa end date and status?
• Will you analyse criteria 3001, 3003 and 3004 separately for my dates?
• What bridging visa will I receive if I lodge now, and what should I avoid signing?
• What is the PIC 4014 position if I leave?
• Which of my facts do you consider capable of being compelling reasons, and which are not?
• Who will supervise my matter, and who will deal with the Department?

A good partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer will answer these questions plainly, including when the honest answer is unwelcome. A registered migration agent may also assist with partner visas, and the choice of representative is yours. Our guide to choosing Australian migration lawyers and our page on the best partner visa lawyer in Australia set out further factors. The immigration lawyer for partner visas guide explains what the work involves across the whole application.

How My Migration Lawyers Helps as Your Partner Visa Schedule 3 Waiver Lawyer

My Migration Lawyers acts as a partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer for recent and short overstayers who want to remain in Australia with their Australian partner. The firm treats these matters as urgent from the first contact, because the first week decides so much. It acts in many matters of this exact type, including applicants close to the end of the 28-day window, applicants just past it, applicants contacted by compliance officers, and applicants who have been told to leave. These cases are often complex, and the firm is capable of handling them.

On a recent overstayer matter, the firm's work follows these steps:

• Status check within days. My Migration Lawyers obtains your visa history from VEVO and Department records, fixes the date your last substantive visa ended, and counts the 28-day period exactly.
• Validity and bars. The firm checks section 48, condition 8503 and immigration clearance, and resolves any bar before lodgement.
• Safety advice. The firm advises in writing on bridging visa options, on contact with the Department, and on whether you should stay or leave, including the PIC 4014 position.
• Criteria analysis. The firm applies criteria 3001, 3003 and 3004 to your dates and tells you honestly whether a compelling reasons case is needed and how strong it is.
• Compelling reasons and evidence. The firm identifies the real facts that can carry the case, writes to practitioners for reports, and prepares your relationship statement and Form 888 statements with you.
• Submission and lodgement. The firm drafts the Schedule 3 submission and lodges the combined Subclass 820 and Subclass 801 application, then confirms your bridging visa.
• Through to decision. The firm manages Department and compliance contact, section 56 requests, section 57 letters and changes of circumstances.
• Review if needed. If the Department refuses, the firm advises on ART review within the deadline.

Matters are supervised by Weiwei Zhang, Principal Lawyer. No outcome can be promised in any migration matter, but a partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer who acts in the first week gives a short overstay case the best foundation its facts allow. You can read more about My Migration Lawyers, its partner visa lawyers, our guide to choosing a partner visa lawyer, and our overview of partner visas in Australia.

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. Read what to expect from a consultation.

If your visa has ended in the last few weeks or months and you want to stay with your partner, speak to a partner visa schedule 3 waiver lawyer before you take any other step.

Book a consultation with My Migration Lawyers to have your Schedule 3 position assessed. You can also call 1300 040 300.