Tran (Migration)

This matter concerned an application for a Partner (Provisional) (Class UF) visa, Subclass 309. The applicants, the visa applicant and the sponsor, sought review of a decision before the Administrative Appeals Tribunal. The core of the dispute revolved around whether the applicants were in a genuine and continuing spousal relationship.

The Tribunal was required to determine if the evidence presented satisfied the criteria for a genuine and continuing spousal relationship, as defined by section 5F of the Migration Act 1958 (Cth). This involved assessing various forms of evidence, including documentary proof of marriage, joint financial arrangements, shared travel, and statements from family and friends.

The Tribunal considered a comprehensive range of evidence, including a marriage certificate, joint bank account statements, utility bills, car insurance documents, travel itineraries to Vietnam, and numerous statutory declarations and written statements from the couple, their relatives, and friends. The Tribunal found that this evidence collectively demonstrated a genuine, ongoing spousal relationship to the exclusion of all others, with the couple sharing their lives on a permanent basis. The Tribunal was satisfied that the criteria for the visa were met.

Consequently, the Tribunal remitted the application for reconsideration with a direction that the first named visa applicant met the criteria for a Subclass 309 visa under cl 309.211(2) of Schedule 2 to the Regulations. This also meant the secondary applicant satisfied the criteria for visa grant under cl 309.321.