SMC including partner...been together 6 years but only lived together for 10 months

[em720]

Hello helpful people of the internet,

I've tried to make the title fairly self explanatory! I'm including my partner on my SMC application (currently at the EOI stage) but am not claiming any points for his job/quals.

We've been together for 6 and a half years, non-stop, but the opportunity to live together only arose in November 2015. We lived together for 10 months, until September 2016, as we then left the UK to travel and head to New Zealand in October 2016.

I understand the following: "A partner will only be granted residence if both people in the partnership have been living together for at least 12 months". - Is there any leeway with this? Ie we've been together for a long time but just fall short of the minimum 12 months living together arrangement. We have been living together obviously since we arrived in NZ (in a van from December 2016 - Feb 2017, although I'm not sure they will count that), from February 2017 we've been sharing a house, but don't have our names on any contract / bills - we are just flatting informally with friends. So I assume this last two months don't count either? We are getting post delivered here, so could that be an acceptable form of evidence?

Any advice much appreciated. Hopefully they look at the whole picture rather than "must've lived together for 12 months", but if that is the only option, then will they accept our 10 months back home + 3 months house sharing in Wellington?

Many thanks!

[JandM]

If you were travelling, having left your previous home behind (so neither of you was holidaying with a different base to go back to), and you can show you were together during that time, that should count, too. There has been a case on here where a couple were granted their partner-sponsored visa on the basis of proving they were on all the same flights, boat journeys, staying in the same hotel, etc., travelling from Spain and seeing the world on their way to NZ.

A shared lease or or rental is just ONE way of showing joint occupancy - it's not absolutely mandatory. https://www.immigration.govt.nz/new-...on/partnership You should also be able to show that you were 'living together' while staying with your friends, if they will give you letters stating that you had your own private shared space for just the two of you within their home (and, as you say, getting your post there will help).

In case you haven't seen them before, these old threads https://www.google.co.uk/#q=site:enz...tnership+proof have discussion of partnership evidence and examples.

[em720]

Thanks JandM.

Technically, after our lease ended in September 2016, we both moved to our respective homes with parents, for the last month before we went away. to pack, say goodbye, etc!! So perhaps they will see this as a 'break' of some sort. However yes since we set off travelling in October 2016, we have booked everything together, so I can easily dig out those details when needed. That's useful to know that they will also accept those sorts of things as evidence.

I will have a look at the old threads now.

Thank you, as usual, for your help!