2007681 (Migration)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered an application for a Partner (Provisional) (Class UF) visa, subclass 309. The dispute concerned whether the visa applicant was the spouse of the review applicant, an Australian citizen, at the time of the visa application and at the time of the decision. The delegate had not been satisfied that the parties were in a genuine spousal relationship.

The Tribunal was required to determine whether the parties were in a spouse relationship, as defined by section 5F of the Migration Act 1958 (Cth). This definition requires that the parties be married to each other under a marriage valid for the purposes of the Act, have a mutual commitment to a shared life as a married couple to the exclusion of all others, that the relationship be genuine and continuing, and that they live together or not separately and apart on a permanent basis. The Tribunal also had to consider all the circumstances of the relationship, including the financial and social aspects, the nature of their household, and their commitment to each other, as outlined in regulation 1.15A(3) of the Migration Regulations 1994.

The Tribunal found that the parties were validly married in Victoria in July 2017, satisfying the requirement of being married under a marriage valid for the purposes of the Act. However, the Tribunal did not make findings on the other criteria for a spouse relationship. Therefore, the Tribunal remitted the application for reconsideration by the Minister, with a direction that the visa applicant met the criteria under cl 309.211 and cl 309.221 of Schedule 2 to the Regulations.