“We are nearing the financial year of 2024 to 2025 and Partner Visa applications to Australia from the Philippines continue to slow down”.
Let’s consider the 2023-24 financial year and according to the Department of Home Affairs, ‘the Philippines was the third-largest source of people granted places under the Australian Migration Program, with 11,942 places granted, representing 6.3% of the total places delivered’.
Within this, the numbers declined to 3,278 places for Partner visas with a breakdown of the following over the past three (3) years:
Partner Visa Application Grants:
2020-21: 6,218 Partner visas were granted to people from the Philippines.
2023-24: 3,278 Partner visas were granted to people from the Philippines.
Overall, the number of Partner visa grants from the Philippines has decreased dramatically, in the most recent financial period, a decline of 2940 visa grants.
Key Considerations:
Partner visa processing times do vary, but other migration agents indicate that 90% of applications are processed within 47 months (that’s 3 years and 9 months) for subclass 820 (Temporary) and 51 months (that’s 4 years and 3 months) for subclass 100 (Migrant) visas, according to Sable International.
While historical success rates for partner visas were about 50%, other experienced migration agents suggest that the decline in recent years coincided with a higher refusal rates due self-assessment and badly considered application strategies with weak documentary evidence.
Compounding the decline, recent, high and rapid Visa Application Charges (VAC) by the Department of Homes Affairs contributed to a reluctance in lodging Partner Visa applications, in-lieu of other less assumed expensive, temporary visa applications which turn out to be restrictive in relation in lodging and securing a partner visa application from the Philippines to Australia.
To add insult to the injury, general cost-of-living pressures for Australians in Australia directly impact on-shore partner visa applications by the other contributing costs involved, such as airfares, accommodation, food, etc., have risen exponentially for the Australian sponsors in support of their Filipino partner visa applicant, when they lodge a partner visa application in Australia.
Factors Affecting Success:
Understanding that genuineness of the relationship is a key factor for partner visa applications, with applicants required to provide evidence of not only their genuine relationship but seeing ‘their particular relationship, as being long-term’.
“Every partner visa application from the Philippines to Australia are scrutinised and assessed carefully and we provide ‘a prospect of success in writing’ in analysing then meticulously mapping migration strategies on how best to apply for these complicated partner visa pathways that may also include immediate family members (Children).”
Although the Filipino/Filipina partner visa applicant and their Australian sponsor assume they are saving monies by trying to do it themselves, both need to understand that documentary and relationship activity evidence regarding their ‘past, present and continuous (future) relationship’ is needed in securing the Filipino partner visa application for all three (3) pathways namely; Class TO subclass 300, Class UK subclass 820 and Class UF subclass 309”.
The Partner visa pathways have several tedious subclasses to consider, including the Prospective Marriage Class TO subclass 300 (with higher, VAC charges), on-shore Temporary Partner Class UK subclass 820 leading to a Permanent Class BS subclass 801 and off-shore Provisional Partner Visa (subclass 309) and Migrant (subclass 100) visas, according to the Department of Home Affairs.
As an overview by the end of June 2023, 361,860 Filipino-born people were living in Australia. This is 65.3% more than the number (218,870) at 30 June 2013. Filipinos are the fifth largest migrant community in Australia, equivalent to; 4.4% of Australia’s overseas-born population and 1.4% of Australia’s total population.
Australia’s permanent Migration Program incorporates economic and family migration and is the main pathway to permanent residence. It includes the SkillSelect stream, Family stream.
The Family stream allows the permanent migration of close family members, of Australian citizens, Permanent residents, and eligible New Zealand citizens. It focuses on partners but also provides the opportunity for additional family members to join their family in Australia such as children.
Table 1: Permanent migrant places granted, 2020–21 to 2023–24
Partner category:
2020–21 6,218
2021–22 3,258
2022–23 3,355
2023–24 3,278
Source: Department of Home Affairs https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/research-and-statistics/statistics/country-profiles/profiles/philippines
When considering your intentions of lodging your specific partner visa application from the Philippines to Australia, always consider that RESPALL Migration Australia has over 26 years of lodging hundreds of successful partner visa applications, always issue ‘a prospect of success in your particular partner visa application’ to ensure a ‘stress free and compelling and successful lodgement’, on your behalf.
