Challenging Situation for "alternative" Aussie/American couple with Partner Visa

[Fanclaire]

G'day all,

So, here's the situation. My partner of nearly three years is Aussie. I'm US American. I did a WHV in Aus for a year to be with her (with no solid "evidence" in rents/bills/etc. but there is a decent digital trail of grocery/flight/etc purchases). We traveled together for six months, my visa ran out so we came to NZ to carry on being together. We simply volunteered at different family farms together (wwoofing) for a year (with an informal 7week room share in Welly mixed in there). My visa was running out but I managed to swing a nine-month visitor visa extension, again, to carry on being with her. So, our time is running low again and we want to carry on being together without moving. We love it here in NZ. So, she's Aussie but our digital and "official" records are scant to none. We live very simply. We havent "worked" (officially, for money, requiring tax records) for over two years. We have an opportunity to live with friends and can really live with little to no money. We work hard growing food and taking care of ourselves but dont have jobs, dont need or want them. But, that makes our situation challenging. Is she eligible to sponsor me? How does she prove that NZ is her place of permanent residence? How do we demonstrate our committed relationship? Does anyone reckon we have a decent chance of getting the visa? Of all folks we definitely arent keen to burn money on a hopeless cause. Bit, at the end of the day, we love each other, we have been together for going on three years (living together for 27 months, but only six months in her rented apartment and the rest of the time in tents and other peoples' homes), and we just want to be here in NZ and garden (we're proudly independent and wouldnt think of bludging the system even if we could). Yeah, so I think that's us.

Please respond with any clarifying questions, suggestions, laughing remarks or whatever. Honesty will be much appreciated.

At the very least hopefully our situation will put some of you seemingly stressed out folks at relative ease knowing your applications are much more solid than what I fear we'll be putting together!

[JandM]

A few thoughts springing to mind. Do you have photos, or could you get them from friends, of your being together? Are there people who would tell about your living with them, or on their land, or if the tenting was on organized sites, some receipts? Have you got mail going to each of you at any of the places you've been together?

Have you seen these pages in the regulations, about the sponsoring partner? Yours is going to be an unusual application, but they do seem to be open to being convinced.
http://www.immigration.govt.nz/opsmanual/46176.htm
http://www.immigration.govt.nz/opsmanual/30880.htm

[kiwieagle]

Things that might help: your WWOOF volunteer application that shows you volunteered together, any correspondence to either of you at the same residence at the same time, letters (and records) from the owners of the farms you volunteered at stating you applied as a couple and stayed there together, letters from family and NZ resident friends that state you are a couple and how long they've known you and seen you living together, photos of you together for the last 27 months.

Have you had a look at the INZ1002 Residence Guide? It lists an Australian passport holder as a person who is able to support a partner based visa. Perhaps the wwoof volunteering records and establishing where she will reside now is the proof she needs to show NZ is her primary place of residence.

Good luck and remember FBI check can take up to 12 weeks so don't leave it too long!

[ChrisMwn]

Things that might help: your WWOOF volunteer application that shows you volunteered together, any correspondence to either of you at the same residence at the same time, letters (and records) from the owners of the farms you volunteered at stating you applied as a couple and stayed there together, letters from family and NZ resident friends that state you are a couple and how long they've known you and seen you living together, photos of you together for the last 27 months.

Have you had a look at the INZ1002 Residence Guide? It lists an Australian passport holder as a person who is able to support a partner based visa. Perhaps the wwoof volunteering records and establishing where she will reside now is the proof she needs to show NZ is her primary place of residence.

Good luck and remember FBI check can take up to 12 weeks so don't leave it too long!

If you are a US citizen and applying for an FBI certificate, use an "approved channeler" It will take, from receipt, somewhere from 6 hours to 5 days!

[kiwieagle]

If you are a US citizen and applying for an FBI certificate, use an "approved channeler" It will take, from receipt, somewhere from 6 hours to 5 days!

For those trying to save a dime and who have a bit of time to spare, it's only $18 if you do it direct.

[ChrisMwn]

sure ,all depends if you have 12 weeks to spare, or only 6 hours

[Fanclaire]

Thank you for the nice and encouraging replies! We will nervously carry on with the whole application process. Regarding support letters, in Australia they are required to be notarized, but that is not the case in NZ? We will likely end up asking a fair few folks in NZ as well as our respective family members. Does anyone have any suggestions for how we might go about this? If we have all these people mail us their letters, should we leave them unopened in their orignal envelopes or remove them for inclusion in an orderly file? What might be some of your thoughts on relying more heavily on support letters for BOTH "evidence" of our being in a genuine relationship in which we have lived together for more than the requisite 12 months as well as "evidence" of my partner being commited to living here in NZ? As I said before, "official" sorts of docs are in limited supply. Thanks in advance for all your input! Cheers all!

[ChrisMwn]

certainly no need to have letters of others notarised. (or remain unopened). You could though both do a "statutory declaration" regarding your relationship.