Kokeh (Migration)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered an application for a subclass 309 partner (provisional) visa made by the visa applicant on 30 June 2017, based on her claimed relationship with the sponsor, an Australian citizen. The visa application had previously been refused by a delegate on 9 May 2018, on the grounds that the applicant did not satisfy clause 309.211 of the Migration Regulations 1994. The core dispute before the Tribunal was whether the visa applicant was the spouse of the sponsor, as required by clause 309.211 and 309.221.

The legal issues before the Tribunal were to determine if the visa applicant and the sponsor were in a married relationship for the purposes of Australian law, and if that relationship was genuine and continuing, with a mutual commitment to a shared life to the exclusion of all others, and not lived separately and apart on a permanent basis. In assessing these matters, the Tribunal was required to consider all circumstances of the relationship, including evidence relating to the financial and social aspects, the nature of the household, and the commitment to each other, as outlined in regulation 1.15A(3).

The Tribunal found that the visa applicant and the sponsor were validly married in the Republic of Liberia on 4 February 2017, as evidenced by a marriage certificate and the presence of witnesses. The Tribunal accepted this marriage registration and concluded that the marriage was valid for the purposes of the Migration Act 1958, as required by section 5F(2)(a). The Tribunal also noted the submission of numerous documents, including photographs and personal correspondence, which were considered in assessing the genuineness and continuation of the relationship. The Tribunal ultimately remitted the decision under review.