What If I Cannot Provide What a Section 56 Request Asks For?

What should I tell the Department if I cannot provide a requested document?

An applicant who cannot provide a requested document should tell the Department exactly why, in a written explanation lodged before the deadline. The explanation should say whether the document never existed, has been lost, is held by someone who will not release it, or cannot be issued by the authority concerned. Proof of the attempts made, such as emails, application receipts or refusal letters from the issuing body, makes the explanation credible. Our guide on how to respond to a section 56 request explains how to present it.

What alternative evidence can replace a missing document?

Alternative evidence that can replace a missing document depends on what the document was meant to prove. If the request was for a joint bank account the couple does not hold, evidence of shared expenses, transfers and financial support can show the financial aspect of the relationship. Our articles on joint bank account evidence and partner visa limited evidence explain the options.

What if we do not live together and the request asks for proof that we do?

A couple that does not live together, but receives a request for proof that they do, should explain truthfully why they live apart and provide evidence that the relationship continues despite the separation. Separation for work, study, family duties or visa reasons does not automatically defeat a partner visa if the relationship is otherwise genuine and continuing. Our article on living apart for work explains how this is evidenced.

What if an overseas authority will not issue a police certificate?

If an overseas authority will not issue a police certificate, the applicant should provide evidence of the application and the authority's response, and ask the Department how it wishes to proceed. The Department decides what it will accept, so the applicant should not assume the requirement has been waived. A certificate that is merely slow is different, and an extension request may be the right step. Our article on responding to a section 56 request for more information covers both situations.

Can Form 888 statements help fill an evidence gap?

Form 888 statements can help fill an evidence gap where people who know the couple can describe the relationship from first-hand experience. They support, but do not replace, documentary evidence, and they are most useful where they speak to the specific point the missing document was meant to prove. Our article on Form 888 example answers shows what useful detail looks like.

How does My Migration Lawyers deal with a document the client cannot get?

My Migration Lawyers deals with a document the client cannot get by working out what fact the Department is trying to establish and finding other lawful ways to prove it. The firm drafts the explanation, compiles evidence of the attempts made, assembles substitute evidence and presents the package so the case officer can see the gap has been taken seriously. Couples stuck on a request item can ask our partner visa lawyers to assess what will satisfy the Department.