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820/801 Partner (apply in Australia)

820/801 Partner (apply in Australia)

Overview of Australia’s onshore 820/801 Partner visa pathway, including eligibility, process, and key statistics.

Allows the partner or spouse of an Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen to live in Australia.1

  • Subclass 820 Partner visa (Temporary): This visa lets the de facto partner or spouse of an Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen live in Australia temporarily. Getting this visa is the first step towards a permanent Partner visa (subclass 801).2
  • Subclass 801 Partner visa (Permanent): This visa lets the de facto partner or spouse of an Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen live in Australia permanently. It is usually only for people who currently hold a temporary Partner visa (subclass 820).3

You apply for the temporary and the permanent partner visas together.1

Eligible applicants must apply for this visa in Australia. Family members who apply with you must also be in Australia.4

At a glance

Section titled “At a glance”

Figure 1: Process diagram for partner visa (temporary)2

Section titled “Figure 1: Process diagram for partner visa (temporary)2”
Check:Your eligibilityfor this visaApply:for both subclass820 and 801 visasGrant (temporary):your visa(subclass 820)Supply:Additional documentsafter 2 yearsGrant (permanent):your visa(subclass 801).

Statistics

Section titled “Statistics”

Figure 2: Partner category — planning levels, lodgements, program outcome, and onhand at 30 June, by financial year567

Section titled “Figure 2: Partner category — planning levels, lodgements, program outcome, and onhand at 30 June, by financial year567”

Figure 3: Partner category — grant and refusal rate in the 2024-25 financial year7

Section titled “Figure 3: Partner category — grant and refusal rate in the 2024-25 financial year7”
OutcomeRate
Grant93.9%
Refusal6.1%

Figure 4: Subclass 820 visa processing times for visa applications granted between 01 July 2024 and 30 September 20258

Section titled “Figure 4: Subclass 820 visa processing times for visa applications granted between 01 July 2024 and 30 September 20258”

Program month

Percentile

25th

50th

75th

90th

Jul 20249 months11 months16 months25 months
Aug 20249 months10 months13 months22 months
Sep 20249 months10 months14 months22 months
Oct 20248 months9 months11 months15 months
Nov 20247 months9 months11 months14 months
Dec 20247 months9 months12 months17 months
Jan 20259 months12 months15 months26 months
Feb 20259 months12 months15 months23 months
Mar 202512 months15 months17 months29 months
Apr 202510 months14 months17 months24 months
May 202512 months14 months16 months22 months
Jun 202511 months14 months17 months19 months
Jul 202513 months15 months17 months18 months
Aug 202512 months13 months17 months20 months
Sep 202513 months16 months18 months24 months

Figure 5: Subclass 801 visa processing times for visa applications granted between 01 July 2024 and 30 September 20258

Section titled “Figure 5: Subclass 801 visa processing times for visa applications granted between 01 July 2024 and 30 September 20258”

Program month

Percentile

25th

50th

75th

90th

Jul 20247 months11 months19 months27 months
Aug 20247 months11 months22 months31 months
Sep 20248 months14 months23 months27 months
Oct 20247 months11 months19 months25 months
Nov 20246 months9 months14 months20 months
Dec 20246 months7 months12 months24 months
Jan 20257 months8 months12 months24 months
Feb 20258 months9 months14 months17 months
Mar 20258 months8 months13 months16 months
Apr 20258 months8 months9 months15 months
May 20258 months8 months9 months14 months
Jun 20257 months7 months8 months10 months
Jul 20258 months9 months15 months18 months
Aug 20258 months9 months12 months18 months
Sep 20259 months9 months11 months18 months

References

Section titled “References”

  1. Department of Home Affairs, Partner visas (apply in Australia): immi.homeaffairs.gov.au ↩ ↩2

  2. Department of Home Affairs, Partner visa (subclass 820), Overview: immi.homeaffairs.gov.au ↩ ↩2

  3. Department of Home Affairs, Partner visa (subclass 801), Overview: immi.homeaffairs.gov.au ↩

  4. Department of Home Affairs, Partner visa (subclass 820), Eligibility, Be in Australia when you apply: immi.homeaffairs.gov.au ↩

  5. Department of Home Affairs (via Wayback Machine), Migration Program planning levels: web.archive.org. ↩

  6. Department of Home Affairs, Migration Program planning levels: immi.homeaffairs.gov.au. ↩

  7. Department of Home Affairs, 2024-25 Migration Program Report, 3.1. Partner Category: comparison of processing activity and program outcome: homeaffairs.gov.au ↩ ↩2

  8. Department of Home Affairs, Freedom of Information disclosure log, Data Access Request - DA25/10/00449: homeaffairs.gov.au ↩ ↩2

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