Marriage To A Non-Australian: Two Tips To Prepare For The Following Visa Paperwork
Whether you fell in love while out of the country exploring the great wide world, or you stumbled across the love of your life as they explored this lovely country, the fact remains that getting married to a non-Australian is not as simple as booking the reception hall. Your spouse-to-be is going to need the right kind of visa to live and work in Australia after they say "I do" and that visa is not an automatic right that comes with the wedding vows. When it comes to receiving immigration advice, it is a criminal offence in Australia for this to be given by anyone other than a registered migration agent. However, before you make an appointment to see one, there are a couple of things you can do to be prepared for the journey ahead.
Document Your Love
A migration agent can help you to fill in the paperwork to apply for the correct visa, and they can give the advice you need about what type of visa you need, but it is up to you to provide the necessary evidence to prove your love is a legitimate one. The evidence you collect will be included with your visa application. The following items will help with your assertion that your love is real and not just about getting a stranger an Australia visa:
- Photographs of the two of you together, and also with each other's families.
- Boarding passes and travel itineraries as evidence you have physically met in person.
- Copies of emails, private messages or screenshots of Skype conversations. You can black out intimate exchanges, but these conversations prove you are corresponding on a regular basis.
The more evidence you have to support your claim that you are a legitimate couple, the better your chances of having the visa application approved without a request for more information.
Learn Patience
If you are not a patient person, now is a good time to take up a new hobby. Partner visa applications can take as long as 12 months if you are lodging for a citizen who comes from what is classed as a high-risk country. The high-risk refers to the level of possibility that the marriage is not a legitimate one because the person moving to Australia is coming from an impoverished situation.
Visa processing times can further be extended by incorrect information or not enough support documentation being provided. They say that true love does not always run smooth, and when it comes to visa applications this is a time in your life where you are just going to have to wait.
Getting professional migration advice can help to make sure the paperwork is lodged correctly the first time, so don't hesitate to seek this help when it's time to start planning the wedding of your dreams.