Partnership / Relationship

[meedrian]

Hi Everyone,

Good day!

I'm always been lurking around checking on this website for similar story and issues here in NZ and I think it's about time I open up myself and ask guidance from gurus here.

Anyway just a brief history: I came here on a Student visa 2011, been on work visa up to date and will expire next yr sept 2017. I applied for residency before but have to withdraw it due to poor chance of getting approve as per PPI. (had to withdraw it so I won't get any declined record).

Anyhow my question is more on partnership issue as I'm married back home and have actually sponsored my wife to stay with me and work on a open visa. She came over 2013 but unfortunately the relationship didn't work and We decided to end it late 2015. She then went back home to our country and is now happy with her life moving on without me in the picture.

I am now in a genuine relationship with someone else and is looking at having one application under her as the principal applicant she have a better job (nurse), though she's still on work visa it's obvious that her pathway to residency in the future is better than mine.

The big question is : is it possible for her to sponsor me for a partnership visa?

With my previous relationship We didn't get married here in NZ and will take 2 years for us to get an annulment back home.

Please help

Thank you. . .

[JandM]

Being married to someone else is not an absolute stop to getting a partner-sponsored visa supported by a later partner. It's only a complete block if you have married or taken on a civil union with the second partner (which would of course be illegal). F2.5 d iii here. http://www.immigration.govt.nz/opsmanual/46503.htm You might have to provide evidence from your wife that the relationship has completely broken down and that she agrees you and she are living separate lives now.

But there is a grey area in the regulations that you come under, so I can't point you to a clear answer. The difficulty may arise from your having sponsored your wife as recently as 2013. The regulations about partners sponsoring for residence are very clear that they are not allowed to be involved in a second sponsorship (whether sponsoring or being sponsored) within five years, but it's not certain whether or not this "not within five years" also applies to work visas. If there is anybody out there who has checked this out and got the answer one way or the other, they haven't shared the knowledge, and I wish somebody would. Anyway, all I can tell you in answer that part of your query is that you need to ask INZ, and that you will probably need to ask to speak to a supervisor, because the telephone answerers are a human FAQ system who answer queries by referring to a data-base, and we already know that the answer isn't in that.

[meedrian]

Thanks J and M.

I will look more into that "5 years" thing with immigration, it's so technical as it could have been more easy if one of us is a resident. In any other way coming out and starting all over again after a failed marriage/relation is always hard.

I'm planning to go on leave and sort out our separation as at this stage We can't do much as the Law in NZ and in our country requires 2 years to file for an annulment, though We can sign a "separation agreement" declaring that We ended our relationship on this day due to whatever reason it is.

In all fairness I've been here for 5 yrs now and felt like I'm long overdue to be stable and this problem with my marriage struck me and the whole family. I was about to give up all that I have and everything that I have established here (career, etc) but then got into this new relationship that drives me now to be here.

My partner now is willing to help in all means possible but I don't want her own standing (immigration status) to be affected by helping me out given that she's also on her work visa but will apply for residency next year.

[ChrisMwn]

Given that your visa has another 12 months to run, I'd also focus on collating evidence that your are currently living together? with your partner and can at some point show thats been for 12 months. The marriage/divorce thing is not particulaly important. so long as you can show genuine relationship/living together with current partner.

[meedrian]

Thanks Chris. That's what I thought given that my marriage is not in the jurisdiction of this land (NZ) as we were married in another country I can apply for partnership in the future with someone else here in NZ as long as We can supply evidenced required by INZ that will stand that our relationship is genuine.

like : living together, photos, relative/ friends statement, conversation, joint acct etc.

In a way that I know that it would be different technically if ever I return home and say my previous partner goes crazy and charge me with concubinage as We are not officially annulled at the moment. (worst case scenario)

[JandM]

given that my marriage is not in the jurisdiction of this land (NZ) as we were married in another country

INZ is concerned with partnership, with marriage as only an incidental piece of extra evidence that doesn't count very heavily towards any case.

However, the NZ government recognizes any legal marriage carried out in any country, so that, for instance, if you were to try to get married in NZ while still married elsewhere, you would be committing a crime.

[meedrian]

J and M,

At this point me and my partner are not in a rush to get married as We would like to take it slowly in terms of our relationship as we really want it to work out with this in mind I will process documents to NZ family court to make our separation legal even though we didn't get married here in NZ.

I think the only thing that I can do now is to file for a separation agreement and will wait for the outcome as they have to send a letter to the other party to give opportunity to respond wit in a certain number of days otherwise the application can be considered as "no contest".

I'm not clear on how immigration would see our case given that technically I'm still a married man and is just bound in papers with my partner before and is now having a new person in my life.

Am I implicating myself here?

[JandM]

Married or not, INZ will look at whatever proof you send in that you have been living together. They won't mind if you're still married to your first wife, as long as you're not trying to go through a marriage ceremony with your new partner before getting a divorce or annulment. But marriage is not the obstacle to getting a visa that you have been thinking.

FAR MORE POSSIBLE to be a problem is the time lag since you sponsored your wife. It's possible that you MAY not be able to get a visa until five years after you sponsored her. Like I said before, the written regulations are not clear, so you would need to ask INZ if the five-year wait would apply to you.