Lombardo (Migration)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered an application for a Partner (Provisional) (Class UF) visa, subclass 309, made by Mr. Lombardo and Ms. Ha, who claimed to be married. The primary dispute before the Tribunal was whether the applicant, Ms. Ha, was the spouse of the sponsor, Mr. Lombardo, as defined by section 5F of the Migration Act 1958 (Cth).

The Tribunal was required to determine if the relationship between Mr. Lombardo and Ms. Ha was genuine and continuing, and if they met the criteria for a subclass 309 visa. This involved assessing various aspects of their relationship, including financial, household, social, and commitment elements, as outlined in subregulation 1.15A(3) of the Migration Regulations 1994.

In its reasoning, the Tribunal considered a substantial amount of evidence presented by the applicants, including financial documents such as a joint bank account and evidence of shared expenses, photographic evidence of joint social activities and wedding celebrations, flight records indicating travel together, and statutory declarations from the parties and their acquaintances. The Tribunal found that the evidence, particularly the pooling of financial resources, shared household responsibilities, photographic evidence of joint social activities, regular visits and cohabitation, and regular communication, demonstrated a genuine and continuing relationship.

Consequently, the Tribunal remitted the applications for Partner (Provisional) (Class UF) visas for reconsideration. The Tribunal directed that the first named visa applicant, Mr. Lombardo, met the criteria for a subclass 309 visa, and the application for the second applicant, Ms. Ha, was also remitted for reconsideration.