Partner Visa Sponsor Returning to Live in Australia

If you are a partner visa sponsor returning to Australia with a husband, wife or de facto partner who is not Australian, the hardest question is usually not whether your partner qualifies. It is the order in which to do things. The rules that apply to a partner visa sponsor returning to Australia depend on where your partner is when the application is lodged, which visa they hold on arrival, and whether you yourself are an Australian citizen or a permanent resident.

This guide is written for the Australian partner. It explains the two main ways a partner visa sponsor returning to Australia can bring a partner home: lodging a Subclass 309 application before the move, or moving first and lodging a Subclass 820 application in Australia. It explains the visitor visa and condition 8503 trap, how to show that the relationship continued while the couple were packing up two lives, what evidence shows you are re-establishing in Australia, what happens when children are moving too, and what a permanent resident who has been away for a long time must check before boarding a plane. It ends with a step-by-step order of tasks.

If you need advice on your own move now, the firm's partner visa lawyers act for Australian sponsors who are relocating home with a partner, and you can read our full guide to Australian partner visas for the wider framework.

Who counts as a partner visa sponsor returning to Australia?

A partner visa sponsor returning to Australia is an Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen who has been living overseas with a foreign partner and now intends to move back to Australia with that partner. The partner is the visa applicant. The returning Australian is the sponsor.

The sponsor's status is a legal requirement, not a formality. For the Subclass 820 and the Subclass 309, the applicant must be the spouse or de facto partner of an Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen, and must be sponsored by that person (clauses 820.211(2), 309.211 and 309.213 of Schedule 2 to the Migration Regulations 1994). The relationship and the sponsor's status are assessed at the time the application is made. The sponsorship must then be approved and still in force when the visa is decided (clauses 820.221(4) and 309.222(1)).

That timing has a practical effect. A partner visa sponsor returning to Australia must already hold the right status on the day the application is lodged. Becoming a citizen or permanent resident a month later does not rescue an application lodged too early. Our FAQ on who can sponsor a partner visa sets out the categories, and our FAQ on why a temporary visa holder cannot sponsor a partner explains who is excluded.

Citizens and permanent residents are not in the same position

An Australian citizen has no residence requirement to be a sponsor. A citizen who has lived abroad for twenty years is still an Australian citizen and can sponsor. A permanent resident is different. Regulation 1.03 defines an Australian permanent resident as a non-citizen usually resident in Australia whose continued presence in Australia is not subject to any time limit imposed by law. A permanent resident partner visa sponsor returning to Australia after a long absence may therefore have to show that Australia is still, or is again, their usual home. That issue is covered later in this guide.

Eligible New Zealand citizens are defined by reference to their Special Category Visa history around 26 February 2001, not by where they live now. Our FAQ on whether a New Zealand citizen can sponsor a partner visa explains that test. The firm's separate guide for an Australian living overseas who wants to sponsor a partner covers the sponsor who intends to stay abroad for some time. This article is about the sponsor who is coming home.

What is the real problem for a partner visa sponsor returning to Australia?

The real problem for a partner visa sponsor returning to Australia is sequencing: deciding whether the visa application or the move comes first, because each choice opens some options and closes others. Most couples want to travel together, arrive together and start their new life together. The law does not always allow all three at once.

There are three moving parts:

• Where the partner is when the application is lodged. A Subclass 309 application is made while the applicant is outside Australia. A Subclass 820 application is made while the applicant is in Australia.
• Which visa the partner holds on arrival. If the partner enters on a visitor visa, the conditions on that visa may limit what can be lodged in Australia.
• What the sponsor can prove at lodgement. The sponsor's status, the continuing relationship and, increasingly, the couple's plan to live together in Australia.

Our comparison of onshore and offshore partner visas and our FAQ on the difference between the Subclass 820 and Subclass 309 explain the two visa streams. The rest of this guide applies them to a partner visa sponsor returning to Australia.

Option one: lodge a Subclass 309 before the move

Lodging a Subclass 309 before the move means the partner applies while still living overseas, the couple wait for a decision, and the partner travels to Australia once the visa is granted. It is the cleaner path legally, because it avoids most of the onshore validity problems. It is often the slower path practically, because the partner generally has to stay outside Australia for the visa to be granted.

The Subclass 309 partner visa is the temporary stage of the offshore partner visa. The permanent Subclass 100 is generally assessed later. Our guide to the offshore partner visa explains both stages.

What the 309 path looks like for a returning sponsor

For a partner visa sponsor returning to Australia, the Subclass 309 path usually runs like this:

• The couple prepare the application while both are still living together overseas, which makes household and financial evidence easier to collect.
• The partner lodges the Subclass 309 online. The sponsor then completes the sponsorship form through ImmiAccount using the reference the applicant gives them.
• The sponsor may move to Australia first to find work and a home, or the couple may stay together abroad until the visa is granted.
• Once the visa is granted, the partner travels to Australia.

The sponsorship form does not have to be lodged at the same moment as the visa application for a Subclass 309. The sponsor can complete it after the applicant lodges. Our FAQ on the documents a sponsor provides lists what the sponsor is usually asked for.

Can the partner visit Australia while the 309 is processed?

Yes, a partner can usually apply for a visitor visa to visit Australia while a Subclass 309 application is being processed, but the partner must generally be outside Australia when the Subclass 309 is granted. A visit is a visit. It is not a way to move to Australia early. Our FAQ on visiting Australia while a Subclass 309 is processing and our guide to visiting Australia during partner visa processing explain the risks. Our FAQ on being outside Australia when the Subclass 309 is granted covers the timing at grant.

This is the point where many couples change their plan midway. The sponsor has already moved home, the partner visits, and the couple then ask whether they can switch to an onshore application. Sometimes that is possible. Sometimes the visitor visa conditions prevent it. Our FAQ on changing from a Subclass 309 to a Subclass 820 explains why that switch needs advice before the partner boards the plane, not after.

The first entry date after grant

A Subclass 309 may be granted with a date by which the holder must first enter Australia. A partner visa sponsor returning to Australia who plans to finish a work contract or sell a home overseas after grant should check that date carefully. Our guide to the partner visa first entry deadline and our guide to what happens when a partner arrives in Australia explain what to plan for.

Option two: move first and lodge a Subclass 820 in Australia

Moving first means the partner enters Australia on another visa, usually a visitor visa, and then lodges a Subclass 820 application while in Australia. It lets the couple arrive together and live together in Australia while the application is processed. It also carries the greatest legal risk for a partner visa sponsor returning to Australia, because whether the onshore application is valid depends on the visa the partner arrived on.

The Subclass 820 partner visa is applied for together with the permanent Subclass 801. The applicant must be in Australia when the application is made. Our guide to the onshore partner visa explains the process.

Why the visa on arrival matters

The visa the partner travels on decides three things for an onshore application:

• Whether a no further stay condition applies. If the visitor visa carries condition 8503, the partner generally cannot make a valid application for most visas in Australia, including a partner visa, unless the condition is waived first.
• Whether the partner will hold a substantive visa when lodging. If the visitor visa is still in effect at lodgement, the Schedule 3 criteria for people without a substantive visa should not usually be engaged.
• Which bridging visa follows. A Subclass 820 application made while the partner holds a substantive visa usually results in a Bridging A visa that comes into effect when the earlier visa ends.

Our guides to moving from a tourist visa to a partner visa, applying for a partner visa while on a tourist visa and our FAQ on applying for a partner visa on a tourist visa explain these points in more detail. Our guide to bridging visa activation for partner visas explains when the bridging visa starts.

Be honest about the purpose of the visit

A visitor visa is granted for a visit. If the couple already intend to lodge a partner visa in Australia, that intention should not be hidden from the Department in the visitor visa application. Answers given in a visitor visa application become part of the partner's immigration history and will be compared with the later partner visa application. A partner visa sponsor returning to Australia should therefore be careful about what the couple say about the purpose of travel and the relationship. Our FAQ on mentioning a partner in a visitor visa application explains the issue.

False or misleading information in any application can lead to refusal under public interest criterion 4020 and to later bars. Our guide to partner visa false information refusals explains the risk.

Condition 8503: the trap for a partner visa sponsor returning to Australia

Condition 8503 is the single most common reason the move-first plan fails for a partner visa sponsor returning to Australia, because a visitor visa with that condition generally prevents the partner from lodging a valid Subclass 820 in Australia. Condition 8503 is a "no further stay" condition. It is printed on the visa grant notice and can be checked through VEVO.

The condition is not attached to every visitor visa. It depends on the visa and the decision maker. The problem is that couples often do not look at the grant notice until after the partner has arrived. By then, the only lawful options may be to request a waiver or to leave and apply from outside Australia.

A waiver of condition 8503 is not automatic. It is generally available only where compelling and compassionate circumstances have developed since the visa was granted, over which the person had no control, and which have resulted in a major change to their circumstances. A plan to migrate that existed before the visa was granted is unlikely to meet that test. Our guides to condition 8503 and the Subclass 820 and the condition 8503 waiver, and our FAQs on condition 8503 and partner visas and on legal help with a no further stay condition, explain how the waiver is assessed.

The practical rule for a partner visa sponsor returning to Australia is simple. Check the partner's visitor visa grant notice before you book flights, not after you land.

Section 48 and Schedule 3 risks for a partner visa sponsor returning to Australia

Section 48 and Schedule 3 can make an onshore application harder or invalid, and a partner visa sponsor returning to Australia should rule both out before choosing the move-first path. These issues are less common for a couple relocating from overseas, but they do arise.

• Section 48. A person in Australia who does not hold a substantive visa and has had a visa refused, or cancelled, since last entering Australia is generally limited in the visas they can apply for in Australia. Partner visas remain available, but extra validity requirements apply, including that the sponsorship form be lodged with the application (item 1124B(3)(e) of Schedule 1). Our guide to the partner visa section 48 bar and our FAQ on section 48 and partner visas explain the rule.
• Schedule 3. If the partner's visitor visa has expired before the Subclass 820 is lodged, the partner will not hold a substantive visa and will generally have to meet the Schedule 3 criteria or show compelling reasons for not applying them. Our guide to Schedule 3 partner visa criteria and our FAQ on Schedule 3 and partner visas explain the test. The firm's Schedule 3 waiver lawyers act where this has already happened.

The simplest protection for a partner visa sponsor returning to Australia is timing. A Subclass 820 lodged while the partner's visitor visa is still in effect, and without condition 8503, avoids most of these problems. A couple who arrive and then wait until the visitor visa has nearly expired put the whole plan at risk for no reason.

Which path suits a partner visa sponsor returning to Australia?

The right path for a partner visa sponsor returning to Australia depends on whether the couple can live apart for a while, whether the partner can obtain a visitor visa without condition 8503, and how much legal risk the couple will accept in exchange for arriving together. There is no single correct answer. There is a correct answer for each couple once the facts are known.

The Subclass 309 path usually suits a couple where:

• the partner cannot easily obtain a visitor visa, or has a visa history that makes an onshore application uncertain;
• the couple can live apart for some months, or can stay together overseas while the application is processed;
• the sponsor needs time to find work and a home in Australia before the partner arrives; or
• the couple want to avoid any risk of condition 8503, section 48 or Schedule 3.

The Subclass 820 path usually suits a couple where:

• the partner has already been granted a visitor visa or another visa without condition 8503;
• the couple want to live together in Australia from the start;
• the partner's immigration history is simple; and
• the couple can lodge promptly after arrival while the partner still holds a substantive visa.

Our article on which partner visa pathway fits your situation and our FAQ on onshore applications lodged from overseas and offshore applications lodged in Australia explain what goes wrong when the location rule is ignored.

The cost of choosing wrongly

The Department of Home Affairs partner visa application charge is AUD 11,710 for most applicants (Home Affairs, checked October 2026; charges usually change each 1 July). It is not refunded if the application is refused or withdrawn. An invalid onshore application does not usually lead to a refund either. A partner visa sponsor returning to Australia who lodges in the wrong place, or on the wrong visa, can lose both the charge and months of time. Our guides to the cost of a partner visa and to invalid partner visa applications explain the consequences, and our FAQ on who pays the partner visa fee answers a common question between couples.

Relationship evidence during the relocation

For a partner visa sponsor returning to Australia, relationship evidence during a relocation should show that the couple's shared life continued even while their households were being moved, sold or split between two countries. The Department and the Tribunal do not expect a couple to live under one roof every day. They do expect a consistent explanation.

The legal test is that the couple have a mutual commitment to a shared life to the exclusion of all others, that the relationship is genuine and continuing, and that they live together or do not live separately and apart on a permanent basis (sections 5F and 5CB of the Migration Act 1958). A temporary separation for a practical reason, such as one partner moving ahead to start a job, is not a permanent separation. Our guides to temporary separation and partner visas and living apart for work explain how the Department approaches it.

Separate residences during the move

When a partner visa sponsor returning to Australia moves first, the couple will have separate residences for a time. The evidence should show:

• Why the couple are apart. A job start date, a lease start date, a notice period at the partner's work or the sale of a home overseas.
• That the separation is temporary. Flight bookings, a shared plan and a date when the couple expect to live together again.
• That the relationship continued. Regular communication, money sent between the partners, joint decisions about the new home and visits where possible.

Our FAQ on time apart and the 12-month de facto requirement and our guide to long-distance relationships and partner visas explain how a period apart is assessed.

Time spent living together overseas still counts

The years a couple spent living together overseas are part of their relationship history and remain strong evidence. A couple who lived together abroad should collect evidence from that period before they leave, because leases, utility accounts and bank statements are much harder to obtain from overseas later. Our FAQ on living together overseas for 12 months explains how that time is counted for de facto couples, and our guide to the de facto partner visa 12-month rule explains the exceptions.

If the couple married overseas, the marriage must be valid where it took place and recognised in Australia. Our guide to whether an overseas marriage is recognised in Australia covers that question.

Evidence that you are re-establishing in Australia

For a partner visa sponsor returning to Australia, evidence of re-establishing in Australia shows that the couple genuinely intend to live together in Australia and that the sponsor can meet their undertaking. It matters most for a partner visa sponsor returning to Australia who has been away for many years, and for a permanent resident who must show that Australia is again their usual home.

Useful evidence includes:

• Work. A letter of offer, an employment contract or evidence of a business being set up in Australia.
• A home. A lease in both names, a lease in the sponsor's name with the partner listed as an occupant, a purchase contract, or written confirmation of living with family while the couple look for a home.
• An address. Bank accounts, a driver licence, Medicare enrolment and electoral enrolment updated to the Australian address.
• Moving the household. Removal company invoices, shipping documents and evidence of closing accounts overseas.
• Family life. School enrolments for children and registration with a local doctor.

Our FAQs on having a lease in both names and on moving house during a partner visa application, and our guides to household evidence, applying without a joint lease and financial evidence, explain how each type of document is used.

The sponsor's undertaking

The sponsor undertakes to provide adequate accommodation and financial assistance to meet the applicant's reasonable living needs for the first two years. For a Subclass 309, that period runs from the partner's arrival in Australia. For a Subclass 820, it runs from grant. The sponsor must also tell the Department if they withdraw their support.

There is no fixed minimum income for the sponsor. But a partner visa sponsor returning to Australia without work, savings or a home should be ready to explain how the couple will live in the first months. The same applies to a partner visa sponsor returning to Australia after a career break. Our FAQ on whether there is a minimum income for a sponsor and our guides to partner visa income requirements and applying when you are unemployed explain how this is assessed.

Travelling together: what the couple should check

Travelling together is possible for a partner visa sponsor returning to Australia, but only if the partner holds a visa that lets them enter Australia and suits the lodgement plan. The sponsor's Australian passport, or the permanent resident's valid visa, does not give the partner any right to enter.

Before the couple book flights together, they should check:

• The partner's visa. Is it a visitor visa, a granted Subclass 309, or another visa? Does it carry condition 8503?
• The sponsor's own entry. Australian citizens are expected to leave and enter Australia on their Australian passport. A permanent resident must hold a visa with a valid travel facility, or a Resident Return visa.
• The lodgement date. For an onshore plan, when exactly the Subclass 820 will be lodged after arrival.
• Any travel after lodgement. If the partner lodges a Subclass 820 and later needs to go overseas, for example to finish packing up the old home, a Bridging A visa does not allow re-entry. A Bridging B visa must usually be granted before departure.

Our guides to the partner visa Bridging B visa and overseas travel during a partner visa, and our FAQs on travelling while a partner visa is processing and how long a partner can be overseas while an application is pending, explain the rules. Evidence of trips taken together also helps the application. Our FAQ on travel together as evidence and our guide to partner visa travel evidence explain how to present it. If the couple must travel on different flights, our FAQ on travelling separately explains whether that matters.

What if the partner visa sponsor returning to Australia is a permanent resident?

A permanent resident partner visa sponsor returning to Australia must check two things before lodging: that they can lawfully re-enter Australia as a permanent resident, and that they are usually resident in Australia when the application is made. An Australian citizen does not face either issue.

The travel facility and the Resident Return visa

A permanent visa allows travel to and from Australia for five years from grant. This is the travel facility. Once it expires, a permanent resident who leaves Australia, or who is overseas when it expires, needs a Resident Return visa (Subclass 155 or Subclass 157) to return to Australia as a permanent resident. A permanent resident who has lived overseas for many years may find that their travel facility has expired. The Resident Return visa should be dealt with before the move. A separate article in this series covers sponsors with an expired travel facility in detail.

The usually resident question

The definition of Australian permanent resident in regulation 1.03 requires the person to be usually resident in Australia. Whether a person is usually resident turns on their physical residence and their intention to make Australia their home. A temporary absence does not necessarily break it. A long absence, with a home, a job and a family life overseas, may. For a permanent resident partner visa sponsor returning to Australia, the evidence of re-establishing in Australia described earlier is also evidence about the sponsor's own status. Lodging a Subclass 820 after the sponsor has moved back and set up a home may be safer than lodging a Subclass 309 while the sponsor is still living overseas. Our guide to the partner visa sponsorship rules and limitations and our FAQ on proving the sponsor is an Australian citizen explain the status evidence the Department expects.

Other sponsor checks that do not change with the move

Moving home does not change the other sponsor rules. Under regulation 1.20J, a person can generally have no more than two partner sponsorships approved in a lifetime, cannot have a new sponsorship approved within five years of an earlier sponsored application, and cannot have one approved within five years of their own application as a sponsored partner. Sponsors may also need police certificates, including from the country they are leaving. The firm's sponsorship limitation lawyers and our guide to overseas police certificates explain both checks.

Children moving to Australia too

Children moving with a partner visa sponsor returning to Australia need their own visa pathway, and the right pathway depends on whether the child is already an Australian citizen. Many couples assume all children travel on the same basis. They do not.

• The couple's own child born overseas. A child born overseas to an Australian citizen parent may be eligible for Australian citizenship by descent. That is a separate application. A child who is an Australian citizen does not need a visa and is not included in the partner visa.
• The partner's child from an earlier relationship. A dependent child of the visa applicant can usually be included in the partner visa application as a secondary applicant.
• A child whose other parent stays overseas. Consent from the other parent, or a court order, is usually required. Form 1229 is the Department's consent form.

Our guides to adding children to a partner visa and Form 1229 child consent, and our FAQs on including children in a partner visa, a baby who is an Australian citizen and consent from the other parent, explain each situation. Sponsors of concern rules also protect children included in an application, so a sponsor with a relevant criminal record should take advice early.

The order of steps: a checklist for a partner visa sponsor returning to Australia

The order of steps for a partner visa sponsor returning to Australia is: confirm your own status, choose the lodgement path, collect overseas evidence, check the partner's visa, then move and lodge in the correct order. The checklist below sets out that sequence. It is general. Your own order may differ once your facts are reviewed.

• Confirm the sponsor's status. Citizen, permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen. A permanent resident checks the travel facility, any Resident Return visa needed, and whether they will be usually resident in Australia at lodgement.
• Check the sponsorship limits. Earlier sponsorships, the sponsor's own partner visa history and any criminal record.
• Choose the path. Subclass 309 before the move, or Subclass 820 after arrival. Decide this before anyone books flights.
• Collect evidence while still overseas. Leases, utility bills, joint accounts, marriage or relationship registration documents, photographs and Form 888 statements from people who know the couple.
• Obtain police certificates. For the partner, and for the sponsor where required, from the country the couple are leaving.
• For the 309 path, lodge before the move. The sponsor completes the sponsorship form after the applicant lodges.
• For the 820 path, check the partner's visitor visa. Confirm there is no condition 8503 and note the expiry date.
• Arrive and lodge promptly. Lodge the Subclass 820 while the partner's visitor visa is still in effect.
• Re-establish and record it. Job, lease, address changes, Medicare and school enrolments. Upload these as evidence.
• Tell the Department of changes. Changes of address and circumstances while the application is undecided must be notified.

Our guides to the partner visa document checklist, Form 888 statements, partner visa change of address and Form 1022 for partner visas cover each step. Section 104 of the Migration Act requires an applicant to tell the Department about changes in circumstances while the application is undecided.

Common mistakes a partner visa sponsor returning to Australia makes

The most common mistakes a partner visa sponsor returning to Australia makes are booking travel before checking the partner's visa, lodging in the wrong place, and leaving overseas evidence behind. Each one is avoidable.

"We will fly in together and sort out the visa later"

This is the most expensive mistake. If the partner's visitor visa has condition 8503, the onshore application may not be valid. If the couple wait until the visitor visa has expired, Schedule 3 applies. The visa plan must come first.

"I am Australian, so my partner can come with me"

This is wrong. Australian citizenship or permanent residence gives the sponsor the right to live in Australia. It gives the partner nothing until a visa is granted.

"A few months apart will look like we have separated"

This is usually wrong. A temporary separation with a clear practical reason, and evidence that the relationship continued, is common in relocation cases. What causes problems is an unexplained separation, or inconsistent accounts of why the couple were apart.

"We can collect the overseas documents later"

This is often wrong in practice. Former landlords, banks and employers overseas may be hard to contact once the couple have left. Evidence from the years lived together abroad is some of the strongest evidence a partner visa sponsor returning to Australia has.

"My permanent residence is permanent, so I can sponsor from anywhere"

This is wrong. A permanent resident must be usually resident in Australia, and may need a Resident Return visa to re-enter. Our guide to an extended overseas absence during a partner visa explains related issues.

What Tribunal decisions show about couples living in separate countries

Published Tribunal decisions show that relationships involving time in different countries, visits, and relocation are regularly examined on review, and that some refusals in these situations have been remitted. The decisions below are drawn from reported remittals. In each case, the Tribunal set aside the refusal and remitted the matter to the Department. They are described only by what the published headnote records, and no outcome in one case predicts the outcome in another.

Living in separate countries after living together:

• PHAM (Migration) [2019] AATA 3680. A Subclass 309 matter about a genuine de facto relationship where the couple were living in separate countries, had previously lived together, and the relationship history was in issue.
• Kaneva (Migration) [2019] AATA 388. A Subclass 820 matter about a genuine relationship and shared life where the couple had travelled and lived together overseas and in Australia and managed financial commitments.

Work-related separation:

• Leow (Migration) [2023] AATA 2645. A Subclass 820 matter about a genuine and continuing relationship involving a work-related separation, a relationship registered before marriage and a joint bank account.

Arrival on a visitor visa:

• Tang (Migration) [2026] ARTA 374. A Subclass 820 matter about a genuine and continuing relationship where the couple were validly married in the home country, a previous application had been refused, and the headnote records the sponsor's regular visits and the applicant's arrival on a visitor visa.

Schedule 3 and relocation:

• Sandhu (Migration) [2018] AATA 1483. A Subclass 820 matter about whether compelling reasons existed for not applying the Schedule 3 criteria, including the length of the relationship and the difficulty of relocating offshore while the application was processed.
• Lin (Migration) [2020] AATA 5356. A Subclass 820 matter in which the application was lodged outside the relevant Schedule 3 timeframe and compelling reasons for a waiver were considered, including temporary physical separation from an Australian citizen partner and child.

These decisions illustrate the issues a partner visa sponsor returning to Australia may face. They are not predictions. They do show why the couple's explanation of time apart, and the timing of an onshore lodgement, should be dealt with before lodgement rather than at review. If an application has already been refused, our guides to partner visa refusal appeal options and the partner visa appeal deadline explain the next steps. An application to the Administrative Review Tribunal must generally be made within 28 days after notification of a refusal (7 days in immigration detention), and that limit cannot be extended. The firm's partner visa refusal lawyers and visa refusal lawyers act in these reviews.

How My Migration Lawyers helps a partner visa sponsor returning to Australia

My Migration Lawyers helps a partner visa sponsor returning to Australia by settling the order of the move and the visa before any money is spent or any flight is booked, and then presenting the couple's own circumstances and evidence in the form the law requires. The firm deals with complex relocation matters, including permanent resident sponsors returning after long absences, partners holding visitor visas with condition 8503, couples who have lived in several countries, and families with children from earlier relationships. The firm acts in many matters of this exact type and is capable of handling them.

On a relocation matter, our work usually includes:

• Sponsor status check. We confirm the sponsor's citizenship or permanent residence, check the travel facility and any Resident Return visa need, and consider whether a permanent resident will be usually resident in Australia at lodgement.
• Sponsorship limits and character. We check earlier sponsorships, the sponsor's own visa history and any police certificate requirements.
• Partner visa history check. We review the partner's earlier visa applications and grant notices, including any condition 8503 and any refusal that could engage section 48.
• Lodgement sequence advice. We advise whether a Subclass 309 before the move or a Subclass 820 after arrival fits the couple, and set the dates for each step.
• Evidence review. We review the evidence from the years lived together overseas, the explanation for any time apart, and the evidence of re-establishing in Australia.
• Children. We advise on including dependent children, consent from another parent, and whether a child may be an Australian citizen by descent.
• Dealing with the Department. We lodge, respond to requests for information and notify changes of address and circumstances.
• Review if needed. If a decision goes against the couple, we advise on review by the Administrative Review Tribunal within the time limit.

The firm is led by Weiwei Zhang, Principal Lawyer. You can read more about My Migration Lawyers, browse the partner visa questions centre, read our FAQ on getting legal help while living overseas, or see our urgent visa lodgement service if a visa is about to expire.

My Migration Lawyers acts for couples across Australia and overseas by video consultation, including clients of our partner visa lawyers in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide, the Gold Coast, Canberra, Hobart and Parramatta. The firm also acts as immigration lawyers in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide, the Gold Coast, Canberra, Hobart and Parramatta.

Every relocation is different, and no lawyer can promise the outcome of an application. What My Migration Lawyers can do is tell a partner visa sponsor returning to Australia honestly which path is open, what order to follow and what evidence will be needed, so that the move home and the visa support each other rather than work against each other.

Book a consultation with My Migration Lawyers to plan your move home and your partner's visa in the right order. You can also call us on 1300 040 300.