Maqsood (Migration)

This matter concerned a visa applicant, a 26-year-old Moroccan woman, who claimed to be the spouse of the review applicant, a 26-year-old Australian Permanent Resident. The dispute centred on whether their relationship met the definition of ‘spouse’ as defined in section 5F of the Migration Act 1958 (Cth). The decision was made by Christine Kannis, a Member of the Tribunal.

The Tribunal was required to determine if the parties were in a married relationship for the purposes of the Act. This involved assessing whether they were married to each other under a marriage valid for the purposes of the Act, whether there was a mutual commitment to a shared life to the exclusion of others, if the relationship was genuine and continuing, and if they lived together or not separately and apart on a permanent basis. The Tribunal also had to consider all circumstances of the relationship, including 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' marriage, solemnised in Agadir, Morocco, satisfied the requirements for a valid marriage under section 5F(2)(a) of the Act. While the parties met online in November 2014, communicated for 13 months, and first met in person in January 2016 before marrying in March 2016, the Tribunal's decision focused on the validity of the marriage itself. The Tribunal concluded that the visa applicant met the criteria for a Subclass 309 visa concerning being the spouse of an Australian citizen or permanent resident at the time of application and at the time of the decision.

Consequently, the Tribunal remitted the application for a Partner (Provisional) (Class UF) visa for reconsideration by the Minister, with the direction that the visa applicant met the specified criteria relating to being the spouse of an Australian citizen or permanent resident.