What is the Subclass 820/801 partner visa?
The Subclass 820/801 is a two-stage visa for the spouse or de facto partner of an Australian citizen, permanent resident, or eligible New Zealand citizen, applied for while you are in Australia. It is one application and one fee covering both stages: the Subclass 820 temporary visa, generally granted first, and the Subclass 801 permanent visa, which is assessed later once your relationship has been reassessed as genuine and continuing.
Who is eligible?
- You are legally married to your sponsoring partner, or in a de facto relationship that has been genuine and continuing for at least 12 months (with some exceptions, such as a relationship registered with an Australian state or territory relationships register).
- Your sponsor is an Australian citizen, permanent resident, or eligible New Zealand citizen, and meets sponsor eligibility requirements themselves.
- You are physically in Australia at the time of application and grant of the 820.
- You meet standard health and character requirements.
The genuine relationship test: four pillars
Home Affairs assesses whether your relationship is genuine and continuing across four broad categories, generally referred to as the "four pillars." You don't need equally strong evidence in every category, but a well-rounded application addresses all four:
- Financial aspects — joint bank accounts, shared bills or leases, evidence of financial support or shared assets.
- Nature of the household — shared living arrangements, division of household duties, joint responsibility for children if applicable.
- Social context — how you present as a couple to family and friends, joint social activities, statements from people who know you both.
- Nature of commitment — the history of your relationship, future plans together, and the level of commitment you've shown each other.
Full document checklist
Use this as a starting point — your case officer may request additional evidence depending on your circumstances.
- Identity: passport, birth certificate, and national identity documents for both partners.
- Relationship evidence (financial): joint bank statements, shared bills, joint loans or leases.
- Relationship evidence (household): shared tenancy or mortgage documents, mail addressed to both partners at the same address.
- Relationship evidence (social): statutory declarations from friends and family, photos together over time, event invitations addressed to both of you.
- Relationship evidence (commitment): a joint statement describing how you met and your relationship history, evidence of future plans (travel bookings, property plans).
- Marriage certificate (if married) or evidence of your de facto relationship duration.
- Sponsor eligibility documents: evidence of the sponsor's citizenship, permanent residency or eligible New Zealand citizen status.
- Health examinations arranged through a panel physician.
- Police clearance certificates from Australia and any country you've lived in for 12 months or more in the last 10 years.
- Form 47SP (application) and Form 40SP (sponsorship), or their current equivalents.
The application process and bridging visas
- Lodge onshore — submit the combined 820/801 application with your evidence while in Australia.
- Bridging Visa A — this generally takes effect once your current substantive visa expires, allowing you to remain lawfully while the application is processed.
- Subclass 820 decision — if satisfied your relationship is genuine, the temporary visa is granted.
- Waiting period — generally at least two years from the date you first applied before the permanent stage is assessed (this can be shorter in limited circumstances, such as a long-term relationship at time of application).
- Subclass 801 decision — your relationship is reassessed at this later date before the permanent visa is granted.
Processing times
Partner visas are historically one of the more heavily queued visa categories, and published processing times are updated regularly by the Department. How complete and well-organised your evidence is at lodgement has a real effect on how smoothly your case moves — an application that requires the case officer to come back for more information will generally take longer than one that doesn't.
What does a partner visa cost?
The partner visa carries one of the higher visa application charges in the migration program, covering both the 820 and 801 stages under the one application. On top of the government charge, budget for health examinations, police clearance certificates (which may need to be obtained from multiple countries), certified translations of any non-English documents, and professional fees if you engage a migration agent. Government charges are indexed and reviewed periodically, so we provide clients with a current, itemised estimate rather than a fixed figure that can go out of date.
What if my relationship ends during processing?
You are required to advise the Department if your relationship with your sponsor ends before the visa is decided — this doesn't automatically mean refusal, but you would need to demonstrate the relationship was genuine while it lasted, and in limited circumstances (such as family violence) separate provisions may allow the application to still proceed. This is a sensitive, case-specific situation and you should get advice promptly if it applies to you.
Common reasons partner visas are refused or delayed
- Thin or one-dimensional evidence — for example, only financial evidence with nothing addressing the other three pillars.
- Inconsistencies between the joint statement and supporting evidence or interviews.
- Sponsor eligibility issues, including sponsorship limitation rules.
- Missing or expired police and health checks at critical decision points.
What if my partner visa is refused?
A partner visa refusal generally carries a right to seek merits review at the Administrative Review Tribunal (ART), subject to a strict time limit that starts running from the date of the refusal letter. If you've received a refusal, read our guide to ART tribunal appeals and get advice immediately — these deadlines don't leave room to wait and see.
Why work with a MARA registered migration agent
Partner visa outcomes turn heavily on evidentiary strategy — how your relationship is documented and presented matters as much as the relationship itself being genuine. As your registered agent, we help you build a complete, consistent evidence file across all four pillars, manage sponsor eligibility issues early, and handle both the 820 and 801 stages through to grant.