Australian partner visa 2026: complete guide (820/801, 309/100, 300)

If you're reading this, chances are you've fallen in love with someone Australian, or an Australian has fallen in love with you. Either way, you're now facing one of the most significant visa applications you'll ever make.

The partner visa is both straightforward in concept and complex in execution. The Department of Home Affairs wants to see that your relationship is genuine. That's the core question. But proving something as personal as love through government forms and supporting documents? That's where it gets complicated.

We'll be honest: the partner visa process is expensive (over $9,000), time-consuming (often 2+ years from application to permanent residency), and emotionally demanding. You'll need to document your most intimate life moments for assessment by a case officer who has never met you. But for couples who are genuinely committed to building a life in Australia together, it remains one of the most reliable pathways to permanent residency.

This guide walks you through everything: which visa subclass is right for your situation, what evidence actually matters, the mistakes that cause delays and refusals, and how to navigate the two-stage process from temporary visa to permanent resident.

Who is eligible for an Australian partner visa?

Both you and your Australian sponsor have to qualify. You face one set of tests, your sponsor faces another, and a problem on either side can sink the whole application. You must be 18 or older, in a genuine relationship (married, de facto, or registered), and meet health and character requirements. Your sponsor must be 18 or older, an Australian citizen, permanent resident, or eligible New Zealand citizen, with no significant criminal record and no active sponsorship limitations.

For you (the applicant): You must be at least 18 years old and in a genuine relationship with your sponsor, whether that's a marriage, de facto partnership, or registered relationship. You'll need to pass health checks (a medical examination is required, see our guide to health examinations for what's involved) and character requirements, which means providing police certificates from every country you've lived in for 12 months or more in the last 10 years. You'll also sign the Australian Values Statement, cannot have outstanding debts to the Australian government, and must not have provided false or misleading information in any previous visa application (see our guide to PIC 4020 and the consequences of false information).

For your Australian partner (the sponsor): They need to be at least 18, an Australian citizen, permanent resident, or eligible New Zealand citizen, and cannot have a significant criminal record for relevant offences. The sponsor's obligations go well beyond signing Form 40SP, and our complete guide to the partner visa sponsor's role walks through what the Department actually expects. "Significant" means a sentence of imprisonment of 12 months or more (or multiple sentences totalling 12 months or more), and "relevant offences" covers violence, harassment, stalking, breach of apprehended violence orders, firearms offences, people smuggling, human trafficking, slavery-like practices (including forced marriage), kidnapping, and attempts or aiding of any of these. Crucially, they also cannot be subject to sponsorship limitations.

This last point catches many couples off guard. The Department restricts how many times someone can sponsor partners: a maximum of two in their lifetime, with a five-year waiting period from when their previous sponsored partner visa application was lodged. If your partner was themselves sponsored on a partner visa, the five-year wait runs from when their own permanent visa was granted. These rules exist to prevent visa fraud, and while waivers are possible in exceptional circumstances, they're not guaranteed.

One more thing for onshore applicants: If you've previously had a visa refused or cancelled since you last entered Australia, you may be subject to what's known as a "section 48 bar." This doesn't necessarily stop you from applying for a partner visa, but it adds extra requirements when you apply, including statutory declarations and a sponsor form that you must submit with the application. Likewise, if you're no longer on a substantive visa (a main visa, for example one that has expired so you're now on a bridging visa or are unlawful), Schedule 3 criteria may apply. That means you'll need to show compelling reasons for the visa to be granted. Both situations are navigable, but getting them wrong can mean your application is invalid from day one. In this case it is best to get advice from an experienced immigration lawyer.

Which partner visa pathway should you choose?

Where you are decides which of the three pathways you can use. Use the onshore visa (820/801) if you're in Australia, the offshore visa (309/100) if you're abroad, and the Prospective Marriage visa (300) if you're engaged and plan to marry in Australia. The 820/801 and 309/100 cost AUD $9,365 combined. The 300, plus the follow-on application, totals roughly $10,925.

How does the onshore partner visa (820/801) work?

The onshore partner visa is for applicants who are physically in Australia and want to stay while their application is processed. You apply for the subclass 820 (temporary) and 801 (permanent) together as a combined application, though they're assessed at different times.

The major advantage here is the Bridging Visa A. If you hold a substantive visa at the time of application, you'll be granted a bridging visa that activates if your current visa expires before a decision is made. This bridging visa comes with full work rights, Medicare access, and permission to travel (though you'll need a separate Bridging Visa B if you want to leave and return while on the bridging visa, more on that later).

You must be physically in Australia both when you apply and when the visa is granted. If you're thinking of flying an overseas partner in on a tourist visa specifically to apply onshore, be careful: that plan is usually blocked by the No Further Stay condition most visitor visas carry. The cost is AUD $9,365, which covers both stages. Processing typically takes 8-21 months for the temporary 820, then another 6-16 months for the permanent 801 after you become eligible (roughly two years after your initial application).

How does the offshore partner visa (309/100) work?

The offshore partner visa is for applicants living outside Australia. It works almost exactly like the onshore pathway. The same AUD $9,365 combined fee covers both the temporary 309 and permanent 100 stages, and you apply for both subclasses together.

You must be outside Australia when you apply and when the 309 is granted. Once you have the temporary visa, you can move to Australia, live, work, and travel freely. The permanent stage follows about two years later, just like the onshore pathway.

Processing times tend to run 9-16 months for the 309 and 13-32 months for the 100. The cost is the same: AUD $9,365 for the combined application.

According to Freedom of Information data (FOI DA24/02/00115) covering January 2023 to February 2024, the refusal rate for both the 309 and 100 visas sits at 8%. That's relatively low, but it still means roughly 1 in 12 applications don't make it through.

How does the Prospective Marriage visa (300) work?

The Prospective Marriage visa is for engaged couples planning to marry in Australia, giving you 9 to 15 months to enter and get married. After the wedding, you apply for the onshore partner visa (820/801) at a reduced follow-on fee, continuing the pathway to permanent residency.

To be eligible for the 300, you must have met your partner in person after you both turned 18, and you'll need to show evidence of ongoing contact since then. You'll also need to demonstrate genuine plans to marry within the visa period, including a Notice of Intention to Marry or equivalent documentation.

Here's where it gets important: the Prospective Marriage pathway is more expensive and more complex than the direct partner visa routes. You pay AUD $9,365 for the 300 visa, then another $1,560 for the subsequent 820/801 application (a reduced fee for 300 holders). That's approximately $10,925 in visa fees total, compared to AUD $9,365 for going straight to a partner visa.

The 300 also has a significantly higher refusal rate of 22% according to the same FOI data. That means roughly 1 in 5 applications are refused, likely because assessing the genuineness of an engagement is harder than assessing an established marriage or long-term de facto relationship. If you are weighing the engagement pathway against going straight to a partner visa, our side-by-side breakdown of the Prospective Marriage 300 vs the 820 and 309 partner visas lays out the trade-offs in detail.

What kind of relationship qualifies for an Australian partner visa?

The Department recognises three types of relationship: marriage, de facto partnerships, and registered relationships. Married couples can apply straight away. De facto couples need to have lived together for 12 months (with a few exceptions). Registered relationships are treated like marriage in the seven Australian states and territories that offer registration.

Married couples can apply immediately. There's no minimum relationship duration. Your marriage must be legally valid under Australian law: both parties must have given real consent, the marriage must be non-polygamous, and both must have been at least 18 at the time of marriage. This includes marriages conducted in Australia, overseas marriages that Australia recognises, and same-sex marriages (fully recognised since December 2017). You'll need your marriage certificate, with a certified translation if it's not in English. One common mistake: religious marriage certificates aren't always legally valid. Make sure your marriage was registered with the relevant government authority.

De facto couples face an additional hurdle: you must demonstrate that you've been living together for at least 12 months before applying. The clock starts when you move in together, and you'll need evidence covering that entire period. This requirement can be waived in three situations: if you've registered your relationship with an Australian state or territory, if you have a dependent child together, or if there are compelling and compassionate circumstances (though you'll need to demonstrate why). For a detailed comparison of what's required for each relationship type, see our guide on de facto vs married partner visas.

Registered relationships are essentially civil partnerships recognised by Australian states and territories. If you've registered your relationship in NSW, Victoria, Queensland, Tasmania, ACT, or South Australia, you're treated similarly to married couples and the 12-month cohabitation requirement doesn't apply. Western Australia and the Northern Territory do not operate a relationship register.

For same-sex couples: Since December 2017, you have full equality under Australian migration law. The same requirements, evidence standards, and processing times apply regardless of the gender of you or your partner. Same-sex marriages conducted overseas are recognised in Australia, provided they meet Australian legal standards. There is no separate process or additional scrutiny.

How does the Department assess whether your relationship is genuine?

The Department judges your relationship across four areas, known as the four pillars: your finances, your household, your social life as a couple, and your commitment to each other. A strong application covers all four. Case officers look for a pattern of genuine, continuing commitment, not one-off gestures.

What financial evidence proves a genuine partner visa relationship?

This pillar shows that you share money and financial responsibilities. The Department wants to see that you have relied on each other financially over time, not just a joint bank account opened the week before you applied.

Strong evidence includes:

If you don't have many joint finances yet, start building them now. Open a joint savings account and use it regularly. Add each other to utility bills. The earlier you start, the more history you'll have to show.

What household evidence does the Department want to see?

The household pillar shows that you live together and share daily life. Prove it with documents like a joint lease, utility bills in both names, mail sent to a shared address, and statutory declarations from people who have visited your home. Case officers look for evidence that goes back before you applied and that spans months, not weeks.

If you've been in a long-distance relationship due to work, study, or immigration reasons, you'll need to explain this clearly. Provide evidence of visits, regular communication, and concrete plans to live together. Long-distance relationships aren't automatically disadvantaged, but unexplained periods of living apart will raise questions. For couples who met online or have spent most of the relationship apart, our guide on meeting online and long-distance partner visa applications covers the evidence patterns that work.

What social evidence strengthens a partner visa application?

The social pillar shows that family, friends, and the wider community see you as a couple. Other people backing up your relationship tells the case officer it is real and public, not built for the visa. Strong evidence includes detailed statutory declarations (Form 888), photos with each other's families and at shared events, joint memberships, and travel together.

You'll need statutory declarations from friends and family. Aim for at least two, but four or more is better. These shouldn't just say "I know John and Sarah are a couple." They should describe specific events the witness observed, how they've seen your relationship develop over time, and concrete examples of your commitment to each other. Our detailed walkthrough of Form 888 covers how to brief your witnesses and what a strong declaration actually looks like.

Photos are helpful here too: photos together at events, holidays, family gatherings, and with each other's friends and relatives. Evidence of travel together, social media posts showing your relationship publicly, and joint memberships (gym, clubs, community organisations) all contribute.

What commitment evidence does the Department expect?

The commitment pillar shows you are in a long-term, exclusive relationship and that you plan a future together. You prove it with written statements, by naming each other on wills, superannuation, and life insurance, and with real decisions you have made for each other.

Evidence includes:

How much evidence is enough for a partner visa?

Quality matters far more than quantity for partner visa evidence. ImmiAccount caps uploads at 100 documents per applicant, but a joint bank account showing 24 months of shared transactions proves far more than 50 photos from a single holiday.

Focus on evidence that shows ongoing, consistent commitment over time. Case officers are looking for patterns, not one-off gestures.

How does the partner visa two-stage process work?

The partner visa comes in two stages. First you get a temporary visa (820 onshore or 309 offshore). Then, roughly two years after you first applied, the Department reassesses you for the permanent visa (801 or 100). Long-term couples (three years together, or two with a child) can be granted both stages at once.

Stage one is the temporary visa (820 for onshore, 309 for offshore). Once you apply, the Department checks whether your relationship is genuine and continuing, whether you meet the health and character requirements, and whether your sponsor is eligible. If approved, you get the temporary visa with full rights to live, work, and study in Australia, plus Medicare access. One important detail: your sponsor must submit their own separate sponsorship application through ImmiAccount. This is a separate form from your visa application, and you both have to submit yours. Missing the sponsor application is a surprisingly common mistake.

Stage two is the permanent visa (801 for onshore, 100 for offshore). Approximately two years after your initial application, you become eligible for the permanent stage. The Department will reassess your relationship at this point. They want to confirm you're still together and the relationship remains genuine. You'll need to provide updated evidence: recent household bills, your current lease or mortgage documents, an updated sponsor statement, and at least two new statutory declarations (Form 888) from people who can speak to your ongoing relationship. If you've separated, the permanent visa will be refused. This isn't automatic just because you got the temporary visa.

The exception for long-term couples: If you've been in your relationship for three or more years at the time of decision (or two years with a dependent child), you may receive both stages together. This "combined assessment" eliminates the waiting period and the uncertainty of a second assessment.

After permanent residency: Once you hold the permanent partner visa (801 or 100), you're eligible to apply for Australian citizenship after meeting the residency requirement: generally one year as a permanent resident, within four years of lawful residence in Australia.

For a practical look at how to manage the long wait between applying and the decision (travel, address changes, evidence top-ups, and what to do if your circumstances change), see our guide on what happens after you lodge a partner visa.

How long does an Australian partner visa take to process?

Partner visa processing times range from around 7 months to over two years depending on the subclass and applicant circumstances. Median onshore 820 processing is 17 months, offshore 309 is 16 months, and the 300 sits at 15 months, with permanent stages (801/100) generally faster.

The spread between the 25th and 90th percentiles tells the real story. A quarter of onshore 820 applicants wait 15 months or less, but one in ten waits two years. The permanent stage (801/100) is generally faster, but still ranges widely depending on your circumstances.

What makes applications faster? Completeness. The single most effective thing you can do is submit a complete application with all required documents upfront. Missing documents trigger information requests, which can add 3-6 months. Every request essentially restarts your place in the queue.

What causes delays? Complex character issues requiring external checks, relationship concerns triggering investigation, applications from processing centres with large backlogs, and security checks that are outside the Department's direct control.

How much does an Australian partner visa cost in 2026?

The Australian partner visa is one of the most expensive visas. The combined 820/801 and 309/100 government fee is AUD $9,365. The Prospective Marriage pathway totals roughly $10,925 across both applications. On top of the fee, budget for medicals, police checks, certified translations, and (if you want it) professional advice.

Beyond visa fees, you'll need to budget for medical examinations ($300-500 per person), police certificates ($50-150 per country), certified document translations if your documents aren't in English ($50-150 per document), and professional photos and certified copies ($50-100).

If you choose to use a migration agent, fees typically range from $4,000 to $7,000 depending on complexity.

What are the most common partner visa mistakes that cause delays?

Five mistakes cause most partner visa delays: dates that don't match across documents, burying case officers in irrelevant material, weak statutory declarations, forgetting the sponsor's separate application, and not explaining anything unusual. You can prevent every one of them by checking your application carefully before you submit.

1. Inconsistent dates and timelines. Your statement says you moved in together in March 2023. Your sponsor's statement says April. Your lease starts in February. Case officers notice these discrepancies, and they raise red flags. Before submitting, cross-check every date across both statements and all supporting documents.

2. Overwhelming the case officer with documents. More isn't better. Uploading hundreds of photos and screenshots of every text message doesn't strengthen your case. It slows processing and buries the important evidence. Thirty well-chosen documents that clearly demonstrate the four pillars are better than 100 marginal ones.

3. Weak statutory declarations. "I know John and Sarah and they are a genuine couple" is almost worthless. Case officers want specific details: events the witness attended, observations about how you interact, concrete examples of your life together. Coach your witnesses on what to include.

4. Ignoring the sponsor's role. Your sponsor has their own application to complete and their own eligibility to demonstrate. If they have character issues, previous sponsorship limitations, or were themselves sponsored on a partner visa, these can affect your application. Assess sponsor eligibility before you start.

5. Not explaining unusual circumstances. Long-distance periods, significant age gaps, short relationships before marriage, meeting online are all common and perfectly fine if explained honestly. They become problems when left unexplained, because case officers will fill in the gaps with their own assumptions. If your relationship has a notable age gap or crosses cultures, our deep-dive on age gap and cross-cultural scrutiny covers the specific patterns case officers look for.

How do bridging visas work for onshore partner visa applicants?

When you apply for an onshore partner visa, you automatically get a Bridging Visa A (BVA). It kicks in when your current substantive visa expires, and it comes with full work rights and Medicare access. The catch: the BVA cancels the moment you leave Australia, unless you have first got a Bridging Visa B (AUD $190).

When you apply for an onshore partner visa, you automatically get a Bridging Visa A (BVA). This visa sits dormant until your current substantive visa expires, then it switches on. The BVA gives you full work rights, Medicare access, and it stays valid until your partner visa is decided.

Here's the critical part: if you travel overseas while on a Bridging Visa A without first obtaining a Bridging Visa B, your bridging visa cancels the moment you leave Australia. You may not be able to return until your partner visa is decided, which could be years.

A Bridging Visa B costs AUD $190 and allows you to leave and return within a specified period. If you have any international travel planned while your application is processing, apply for the BVB before you book flights.

Can I include my children in a partner visa application?

Yes. You can add dependent children to a partner visa as secondary applicants. This includes biological, adopted, and stepchildren. They must be under 18, or aged 18 to 25 and financially dependent on you, or 18 or older with a disability that stops them living independently.

To qualify as a dependent, children must be under 18, or aged 18-25 and financially dependent on you, or over 18 with a disability that prevents independent living.

You'll need to provide birth certificates, evidence of custody arrangements if applicable, and consent from any other parent or guardian. For adult dependents, you'll need evidence demonstrating their financial dependency.

Remember, additional applicants add to the cost: $2,345 for children under 18, $4,685 for those 18 and over.

What happens if your partner visa is refused?

A partner visa refusal is serious but not necessarily final: you generally have 28 days to appeal to the Administrative Review Tribunal (ART), with appeal fees around $3,496. ART data shows partner visa set-aside (overturn) rates substantially above the tribunal average, particularly for the 820, 309, and 300 subclasses.

For onshore applicants: You can appeal to the Administrative Review Tribunal (ART) within 28 days of the decision. The appeal fee is approximately $3,496, partially refundable if you win. And the odds are better than you might expect. ART caseload data (as at 30 November 2025) shows set-aside rates for partner visa subclasses are significantly higher than the ART average:

The remaining percentages account for cases that were withdrawn or resolved through other means. These figures suggest that a meaningful number of partner visa refusals don't survive independent review, particularly for the 820, 309, and 300 subclasses. That said, an appeal is still expensive and stressful, and not every case is worth pursuing. Consult a migration lawyer immediately to assess whether an appeal makes sense for your specific situation.

For offshore applicants: You can also appeal to the ART. Because you have an Australian sponsor (who is by definition a citizen, permanent resident, or eligible New Zealand citizen), they can lodge the appeal on your behalf. The same 28-day deadline and fee apply.

Common refusal reasons include insufficient evidence of a genuine relationship, weak documentation across the four pillars, inconsistent information between statements and evidence, sponsor ineligibility, and health or character concerns.

Frequently asked questions

Final thoughts

The partner visa demands thorough preparation, honest documentation, and patience. Processing times are long. The fees are substantial. The evidence requirements ask you to prove something deeply personal through bureaucratic channels.

But for couples who are genuinely committed to building a life together in Australia, this pathway works. The key is treating the application with the seriousness it deserves: start collecting evidence early, address potential concerns directly, maintain absolute consistency across every document, and don't leave anything unexplained.

Your relationship is genuine. Now your job is to document it so comprehensively that a case officer who has never met you can see that too.

Start your application with Tern. We check both applicant and sponsor eligibility upfront, guide you through evidence collection across all four pillars, and provide immigration advice at every step to help you get it right the first time.