Help - Which Visa? Are we eligible?

Hi everyone!

I'm hoping to find some answers and try understand what our options are. I've only just joined and haven't contributed yet to this forum, that always makes me feel a bit uncomfortable about asking for help - so hopefully I will be able to contribute back at some stage! If anyone is able to assist or point me to another post which has answers that would be very much appreciated.

I am a NZ citizen currently living in Sydney - my girlfriend soon to be fiance (hopefully she doesn't read this) is from England. She's currently on a holiday visa and we would like to get her over onto another visa which allows her to live and work in NZ as well as Aus.

Which visa is best/easier to apply for, due to my situation being a NZ citizen currently living Aus - there seems to be a number of options? Which is best? Are we eligible? Does marriage make a difference? What defines a "partner"?

I'm sure you all will have a lot of clarifications questions and am happy to answer them all.

Thanks all,
Ryan

Welcome to the forum and congratulations for when your girlfriend becomes your fiancee:)

Don't be worried about asking questions, we were all newbies at one point, and you will get lots of help on here.

Hello. :)

There are various useful routes for you to look at for your lady (hope popping the question goes well :nice1).

About partnership, first of all. INZ takes proof of a live-in relationship ONLY as defining partnership. Because partner-based visas are the prime target for fraudsters, they won't look at what people SAY about their connection (and that even includes a marriage ceremony, so being married doesn't carry any extra weight for a visa), but will only accept proof of living together and sharing things about their existence. Here's what they say. http://www.immigration.govt.nz/migra...artnership.htm And here are old threads from the forum with discussion and suggestions. https://www.google.co.uk/?gws_rd=cr&...tnership+proof

Which visa you are eligible to go for first will depend on how long you have been living together - or rather, how long you can so far prove you have been living together. You can have been living together at one base, or can have been together but on the move, even in several different countries, as long as you have evidence.

If you have proof of about three months, but not up to 12 months yet, you could apply for a partner-sponsored temporary work visa. http://www.immigration.govt.nz/migra...milystream.htm However, there is no point in doing this if you're not intending to go to live in NZ fairly consistently yet - it's only meant for someone joining a NZ-based partner.

If you have 12 months' or more proof, she can apply straight away for partner-sponsored Residence. http://www.immigration.govt.nz/migra...ly/default.htm Of course, even she goes for the temporary visa first, she can move on to this one once you have the 12 months'-worth of evidence. Notice, when she gets this visa, it will come with two years' travel conditions, allowing her to come and go freely from NZ, but there is a requirement for time spent in the country (or other criteria, but that's the most commonly used one) to fulfil in order for her to get Permanent Residence later on. http://www.immigration.govt.nz/migra...quirements.htm

Notice, none of these NZ visas would give your partner any rights to live and work in Australia. That will always be a separate issue, having to go through Australian immigration processes, unless and until she qualifies for and is granted NZ citizenship (which can be at the soonest five years after getting NZ residence). http://www.dia.govt.nz/Services-Citi...nd-Citizenship

If you are wanting to go and live and work in NZ some time quite soon, before you have enough partnership proof together for one of the other visas, it may be that your partner could get a Working Holiday Visa for NZ. Like the partner-sponsored visas, that would give her the right to take any job she's offered, and you could still be together and collecting evidence of that fact. If she has previously had a NZ WHV, or if she's over the age for one, there's also the BUNAC IEP visa as a possibility. http://www.bunac.org/uk/work-abroad/...-zealand/visas

Otherwise, as a UK citizen, she has the right to visa waiver entry to NZ as a visitor, initially for six months, but of course, that wouldn't allow her to work.

Like JandM said, NZ visas don't allow one to work/live in Australia, bit partners of NZ citizens ate eligible for a special category Australian visa allowing work/travel for 5 years. It can be renewed multiple times.

Thanks for that, Auburn. I've found some relevant links.

http://www.immi.gov.au/Visas/Pages/461.aspx
http://www.sabona.com.au/articles_de...tail.ewdid=499

It looks as though, if your long-term intention is to stay and work in Australia as a base, you'll still need to prove partnership (12 months of it), and exactly what that will entail as far as Immigration Australia is concerned will depend on your own status there. http://www.immi.gov.au/allforms/booklets/1127.pdf (pages 18, and page 38 onwards) But if you're thinking that you'll be moving to NZ for part of your future, you still need to sort out your partner's situation with INZ.

Thank you so much JandM & Auburn

From what I am able to gather form all this is:

1) I'm not an "eligible New Zealand citizen" as I "moved" to Australia after 2001
2) I hold a Subclass 444 (special category) visa
3) The only visa she would be eligible for is the New Zealand Citizen Family Relationship (Temporary) visa (subclass 461)
4) As we will be married at the time of application there is no 12 month restriction (however we would have been in a relationship for over 12 months at that point as well)
5) The Subclass 444 (special category) visa can be renewed multiple times

Does that sound correct?

If so, great! This will buy us some time.