Zafar (Migration)

This matter concerned an application for a Partner (Residence) (Class BS) visa (Subclass 801) by the applicant, Mr. Zafar. The dispute arose because the applicant failed to provide further material or respond to the Tribunal's correspondence, and the Tribunal ultimately affirmed the decision to refuse the visa. The decision was made by Donna Petrovich, a Member of the Tribunal.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the applicant was in a genuine and continuing marital relationship with the sponsor at the time of the decision, as required by regulation 801.221(2) of the Migration Regulations 1994. This involved assessing the nature of the relationship, including its financial and social aspects, the living arrangements of the parties, and their mutual commitment to each other, in accordance with section 5F of the Migration Act 1958 and regulation 1.15A(3).

The Tribunal reasoned that the sponsor had withdrawn her sponsorship in 2021 and that the relationship between the applicant and sponsor had broken down. Evidence indicated that the parties had not lived together since July 2018 and that the sponsor had expressed a desire for divorce. The applicant himself admitted at a hearing that the relationship had broken down, with limited contact and separate living arrangements in different countries. The Tribunal considered that these circumstances demonstrated a lack of a genuine and continuing marital relationship, and that the sponsor was no longer acting as the sponsoring partner.

Consequently, the Tribunal affirmed the decision not to grant the applicant the Partner (Residence) (Class BS) visa, finding that the applicant did not satisfy the criteria for the grant of the visa.