The concept of marriage has been poked, battered and bent in the recent years.

Instead of marrying your high school sweetheart or bumping (literally or metaphorically) into the love of your life at the local corner cafe after clumsily spilling your full strength cappuccino down the front of their shirt, Australians now have greater opportunities to travel overseas.

Inevitably, this has led to many Australians finding love interests in other cultures from different parts of the world. Many have found that the whirlwind romance comes to an end as soon as their visas are expired.

However, if it continues and seems like it may become more than just a holiday fling, there are alternate avenues to explore the relationship’s future prospects, and it begins with the Prospective Marriage Visa.

The Prospective Marriage visa (subclass 300), also better known as the ‘fiancé visa’ is for people who want to come to Australia to marry their prospective spouse. This is a visa that will allow your partner to stay in Australia for nine months.

To lodge this application, you must be outside of Australia and at the time the visa is granted.  Once you have decided on the time you are ready to get married, you can keep the ceremony sentimental by tying the knot in any country of your choice. This means that it does not have to be in Australia.

Like any normal marriage, there are boundaries, requirements and guidelines (not just for the hubby!) that must be followed accordingly. You must intend to marry and live as husband or wife with your prospective spouse and you must be sponsored by your prospective spouse.

The next term that must be followed is that you and your prospective spouse must have met in person (sorry girls, you actually need to find Ryan Gosling before you can marry him!). This is a vital requirement for your application.

For those of you in same-sex relationship, you may apply for a Partner visa based on the de facto relationship. Furthermore, you must certain meet age, health and character requirements. These criteria’s can be hard to navigate on your own, if you have any questions relating to this, please contact us here at Results Migration.

Above all, the most important aspect of this visa application is that you prove your intention to marry. Your application must include evidence that represent your plans to wed your prospective spouse within nine months of being granted the visa.

If you decide to get married outside of Australia, you can provide a notice, a letter, or matrimony from the person who will perform the wedding service. If you want to be married on Australian soil, you must complete a Notice of Intended Marriage form and give it to the person who will perform the matrimony service. This must be done between at least 1-18 months before you wed your prospective spouse.

The Prospective Marriage visa is one step that leads to Permanent Residency in Australia. After this application is successful, the applicant may then apply for the Partner visa. Furthermore, as soon as the application is approved, you gain full work rights! If you would like more information on Permanent Residency and the Partner visa, please give us a call and we will happily take you step by step through the process.

So you want some more time? Unfortunately, this visa is only valid for nine months. It cannot be extended and you cannot be granted another Prospective Marriage visa in Australia even if you have not yet married your sponsor but still intend to do so. However, all is not lost and Results Migration may be able to find other avenues that you and your spouse could choose. As you can see, there are many concerns that should be the least of your worries when you should be spending as much time with your loved one, enjoying your new life as a couple. Let us take all the stress off you, come in and see us now!