The proposed changes to sponsored family visas, has passed the Senate and are now waiting for the royal assent to become law. One of the major changes is the requirement that the sponsorship application must be lodged and approved prior to the visa application being lodged.
Although the final Bill details and immigration regulations are still unknown, these new rules once in effect will have a major impact, especially on the onshore applications.
Cases where a partner is in Australia on a temporary visa and has to wait for the sponsor to be approved first prior to lodging the partner visa application will need to be properly planned and managed.
The Bill's intention also includes additional obligations on current and future partner/fiance visa sponsors and imposing sanctions on family visa sponsors if the obligations are not met.
If you are planning to lodge partner visa, we suggest you do that without delay!
Contact us to speak to our Registered Migration Agent today.