Partner Visa (Subclass 309/100)
Partner visas enable Australian citizens, permanent residents and eligible New Zealand citizens to sponsor their overseas partners to migrate to Australia. You might be eligible for a partner visa if you are engaged, married or in a de facto relationship (same or opposite sex).
This is an offshore partner visa application. Similar to onshore application you may be eligible to apply for this visa If you are married or in a de facto relationship with your partner. It involves two stages – Temporary Visa (Subclass 309) and Permanent Visa (Subclass 100) and you need to apply for both at the same time.
Once the temporary stage of the visa is approved you can come and live in Australia with full work and travel rights. After you stay on the temporary visa for two years and meet all the requirements you can apply for the Parment visa.
If you have been/married with your partner for 3 years or 2 years and have a child together you might be able to apply for permanent visa straight. It works case by case and there is no certainty.
In order to apply for a partner visa, you need to show that you and your partner in genuine and committed relationship, you live together or do not live separately and apart on a permanent basis. If you are in a defacto relationship you need to show that you and your partner have been living together for the last 12 months. You might be exempt from the 12 month requirement if you register your relationship in an Australian state or territory. You would still need to show that you are living together but not necessarily for 12 months.