1911412 (Migration)

This matter concerned an application for a Partner (Temporary) (Class UK) visa, subclass 820. The applicant, a male born in Iraq, sought to be recognised as the spouse of the sponsor, an Australian permanent resident also born in Iraq. The core dispute revolved around whether the parties were in a genuine and continuing spouse relationship, as required for the visa. The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) was tasked with reviewing the delegate's decision to refuse the visa.

The Tribunal was required to determine whether the parties were in a valid marriage and, if so, whether they continued to be in a genuine and continuing spouse relationship at the time of the visa application and the decision. This involved assessing various aspects of their relationship, including financial matters, the nature of their household, social interactions, and their commitment to each other, as stipulated by the Migration Regulations 1994, specifically regulation 1.15A(3).

The Tribunal found that the parties were validly married in May 2017. However, the assessment of the spouse relationship revealed deficiencies. While there was evidence of a child born to the relationship and some supportive statements from friends and family, the financial aspects were not convincingly demonstrated. The joint bank account showed limited use and immediate withdrawal of deposited funds, with each party maintaining separate personal accounts. The sponsor also restricted Centrelink from discussing her payments with the applicant. Despite the existence of children and a marriage certificate, the Tribunal concluded that the evidence did not sufficiently establish a mutual commitment to a shared life as a married couple to the exclusion of all others, nor did it fully satisfy the requirements of living together and not living separately and apart on a permanent basis.

Consequently, the Tribunal remitted the application for reconsideration by the Minister. The Tribunal directed that the applicant met specific criteria for a Subclass 820 (Partner) visa, namely cl 820.221(1)(a) of Schedule 2 to the Regulations, indicating that the delegate's decision was set aside and the matter was to be re-examined with this finding in mind.