STATUTORY DECLARATION – PARTNER VISA (SPONSOR)
Statutory Declarations Act 1959
What is STATUTORY DECLARATION
For the Australian Partner visa, you need have you sponsor approved after the Partner visa submitted. The Statutory Declaration is a criteria to assess your genuine exclusive relationship.
STATUTORY DECLARATION Four Elementors
For the Australian Partner visa, there are for main criteria to demonstrate the genuine and exclusive committed relationship
Finances
Show how you and your partner share financial matters. You could give evidences:
- joint mortgage or lease documents
- joint loan documents for major assets like homes, cars or major appliances
- joint bank account statements
- household bills in both names
Your household
Show how you and your partner share domestic matters. You could give evidences:
- a statement about how you share housework
- household bills in both names
- mail or emails addressed to you both
- documents that show joint responsibility for children
- documents that prove your living arrangements
Commitment
Show how you are committed to a long-term relationship with each other. You could give evidences:
- proof you have knowledge of each other’s background, family situation or other personal details. You could tell us this at an interview
- proof you have combined your personal matters
- the terms of your wills
- proof you stay in touch when apart
Social matters
Show evidence that others know about your relationship, such as
- joint invitations or evidence you go out together
- proof you have friends in common
- proof you have told government, public or commercial bodies about your relationship
- proof you do joint sporting, cultural or social activities together
- proof you travel together
you need have you sponsor approved after the Partner visa submitted. The Statutory Declaration is a criteria to assess your genuine exclusive relationship.
Statuary Declaration about Financial Commitments
Describe financial commitments you and your partner share, for example joint/individual bank accounts, ownership of property or other major assets, pooling of financial resources and sharing of day to day household expenses
Statuary Declaration about Social Commitments
Describe the social aspects of your relationship including social activities, attending special events or joint travel you and your partner undertake.
Statuary Declaration about Household Arrangements
Describe the nature of your household including any joint responsibility for the care and support of children, your living arrangements and sharing of the responsibility for housework.
Statuary Declaration about Long Term Relationship
Describe the nature of your commitment to each other including the degree of companionship and emotional support you draw from each other and whether you see the relationship as a long-term one.
Proof of your relationship – Statutory Declaration
- you have a mutual commitment with your spouse of de facto partner to the exclusion of all others
- your relationship is genuine and continuing
You should also show how long you guys have lived together or if there are reasons to live separately and apart on a permanent basis.
You should also show the date your relationship commenced and when the relationship begins.
Why do partner visas get rejected?
Lack of evidence to prove a genuine and committed relationship is the most common reason for the refusal of partner visas.
Partner visa refusal rate
In 2017 about 59.6% of the applications for partner visas were lodged without a migration agent out which 47% of those applications were refused. Evidence to prove a genuine, committed relationship requires much in-depth information which a layman or woman would not understand.
The Biggest Mistakes Made on Partner Visa Applications
With the non-refundable application fee being over $7,000, these can be very costly mistakes. Fortunately, there are practical methods you can do (or not do) to greatly improve your chances of success.
1. Inconsistency
Consistency across all documents for your visa application is crucial as inconsistency will be a red flag to the immigration official reviewing your application. Applicant may only pay attention to their partner visa application, however, you should be aware of all documents you have submitted are consistency, might even back to your student visa stage if it applies. Some of the information requested on these will seem repetitive, and some will be identical, such as your address details, certain information about your relationship, travel, your history and even you visa conditions.
It might be an honest mistake or oversight, but all of this information and provided documents are treated as visa evidence that immigration officials will use to determine the strength of your application, and might refuse your application without further request.
We would recommend:
- complete and careful cross-check of the timeline against all your documents before submission.
- ensure the relationship statement flows coherently.
- have the professional to review
2. Insufficient Relationship Statement
One of the most common mistake is that we see often is making your relationship statement too brief. Please bear in mind that this is the foundation for your partner visa, the statement is crucial to your application.
It is important to get it right!
We would recommend:
- We usually spend at least 6-10 hours on assessing and drafting your relationship statement
- Relationship statement is anywhere from 6-10 pages
- Provide a very detailed description according to the officer assessing elements
3. Conflicting evidence
This is another of the common partner visa mistakes we see that is easily avoided. It is important that any changes compared to previous evidences submitted are updated on both forms and correspondence to ensure the Home Affairs Department understands the current situation.
For example: Separate or conflicting addresses might indicate to the case officer that your relationship has terminated, or the relationship is not genuine.
We would recommend:
- We usually assess all potential mistaken evidences prior
- Relationship forms are well prepared
- evidences from friends and family members as well
4. Aspects of your relationships
the last but not the least, only demonstrate on aspect is not enough and will get refusal at the final result. It’s essential to talk about the big moments in your partnership, but just as easy to miss the day to day aspects. You need to go into the domestic details of your life together.
We recommend to cover all following aspects of your relationship:
- Financial aspects of your relationship
- How you share money – Evidence to demonstrate joint ownership..
- Who pay bills – Major household appliances and any other assets…
- Do you both have access to bank accounts – loan agreements for property
- Household Aspect
- Where do you live – correspondence addressed to either or both parties at the same address
- What is your household routine -shared responsibility for care and support
- Who does which chores – shared responsibility for housework
- Social Aspect
- What do you do on the weekend – the parties present themselves as a couple socially
- Do you have regular things you do together – joint travel and plans for the future
- Who are your mutual friends – Statements of parents, family members, relatives, friends ( legal statement carry more weight)
We would recommend:
Well establish the relationship is:
-
Genuine
-
Continuing
-
Mutual commitment to a shared life to the exclusion of all others
-
living together (or not living apart permanently)
DIDN’T SOLVE YOUR PROBLEMS?
Using a registered migration agent with MARA
Registered migration agents must keep up-to-date with current laws and procedures. Only registered migration agents can give you immigration assistance.
Immigration assistance is:
- help to prepare a visa application
- providing advice to a visa applicant about their application
- helping prepare a document in connection with the sponsorship of a visa applicant, or to advise the sponsor
- preparing for proceedings, before a court or a merits review tribunal such as the Administrative Appeals Tribunals, or representing someone at those proceedings
- helping to prepare a request to the Minister to exercise certain powers under the Migration Act in relation to a visa applicant