Australia Outlines How Foreign Spouses of Citizens Can Apply for Citizenship

• Australia's Department of Home Affairs has clarified the citizenship path for foreign spouses of Australian citizens, confirming marriage does not fast-track the process
• Foreign spouses must navigate a two-stage partner visa process before becoming eligible to apply for permanent residency
• A four-year residence requirement on a valid Australian visa applies before a citizenship application can be lodged

Australia's Department of Home Affairs has set out the formal pathway foreign spouses of Australian citizens must follow to eventually obtain citizenship, confirming that marriage to an Australian national confers no special advantage in the process.

The Department's official guidelines make clear that a foreign spouse follows the same citizenship by conferral route as any other permanent resident, with the clock beginning from the moment they first set foot in Australia on a valid visa.

How the Australian partner visa works

The process starts with the partner visa, which involves two applications submitted simultaneously. A foreign spouse lodges both the temporary partner visa (subclass 820) and the permanent partner visa (subclass 801) at the same time, with both fees paid together upon lodgement.

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The subclass 820 allows the spouse to live in Australia on a temporary basis while the permanent application is being assessed.

Eligibility for the permanent subclass 801 visa is calculated from the date the original application was lodged, with the permanent visa processing commencing two years after that date. Once granted, the subclass 801 permits the holder to remain in Australia permanently.

The 4-year citizenship residence requirement

To qualify for Australian citizenship by conferral, the Department of Home Affairs requires that an applicant must have lived in Australia on a valid visa for four continuous years immediately before submitting their citizenship application. Within that four-year window, the final 12 months must have been spent on a permanent visa.

Absence limits also apply. An applicant must not have been outside Australia for more than 12 months across the entire four-year period and no more than 90 days in the 12 months directly preceding the application.

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Importantly, time spent on the temporary subclass 820 visa counts towards the four-year residence requirement. This means a foreign spouse does not need to wait a further four years after receiving permanent residency before applying for citizenship.

In a typical scenario, the timeline unfolds as follows: a spouse arrives in Australia on the subclass 820 visa at year zero, becomes eligible for the permanent subclass 801 visa at year two, and may be eligible to apply for citizenship by year four, provided all residence and absence conditions have been satisfied.

The Department of Home Affairs notes that exemptions, discretions and special circumstances may apply in individual cases. A Residence Calculator is available on the Department's website to help applicants determine whether they meet the residence requirement before lodging a citizenship application.

Australia names 8 foreigners eligible for citizenship

Earlier, YEN.com.gh wrote about the eight categories of foreigners who may be eligible to apply for Australian citizenship by conferral.

Eligibility does not guarantee approval: each application is assessed individually, and applicants must meet additional requirements under Australian law.

Source: YEN.com.gh