Partner Visa Australia: Character Requirements for Sponsor 2023
Do you know that a Sponsorship for Partner Visa Australia application may get refused? There are several reasons behind the refusal, including not meeting the character requirement.
A refusal of your sponsorship application will make you unable to continue your Partner Visa application. In this case, you and your partner will be either asked to withdraw the application or the Department of Home Affairs will directly refuse the Partner Visa application.
Hence, checking whether you meet the sponsorship requirements is very important.
Considering that most sponsorships for partner visa Australia were refused on character grounds, ONE derland Consulting provides you with general information about character requirements for the sponsor of a partner visa below.
Character Requirements for Sponsor of Partner Visa
All good people go to heaven. Good character would be the key when applying for a partner visa. It is also applicable to the sponsorship of partner visa applications.
It sounds cliché, but the department requires you to be a good character based on physical evidence. The assessment will be conducted when you lodge your Sponsorship for Partner to Migrate to Australia application.
How to Meet The Partner Visa Sponsor Character Requirements?
If you aren’t in these circumstances, you may be assessed as meeting the character requirements:
1. Have substantial criminal record of relevant offences,
This means that the sponsor has committed a serious crime.
This cannot be tolerated for national security, because at the same time, the department also prioritises the safety of every human being who will be in the country for a specified time.
Substantial criminal record refers to:
- sentenced to death or imprisonment for life
- sentenced to a term of imprisonment of 12 months or more
- sentenced to two or more terms of imprisonment (even if served concurrently) where the total is 12 months or more
- found by a court to not be fit to plead in relation to an offence but found to have committed the offence and detained in a facility or institution
Meanwhile, the relevant offences are those offences against a law, either in Australia or overseas, involving:
- violence, including murder, assault, sexual assault or the threat of violence
- harassment, molestation, intimidation or stalking
- the breach of an apprehended violence or similar order
- firearms or other dangerous weapons
- people smuggling
- human trafficking, slavery or slavery-like practices (including forced marriage), kidnapping or unlawful confinement
- attempting to commit any of these offences
- aiding, abetting, counselling or procuring such offences.
2. Refuse to provide the department with a police clearance,
Police clearance certificate is one of the required documents in assessing your character background. If you refuse to provide the police clearance certificate, the Department has the right to interpret that there is unfinished business.
It also indicates suspicions that could burden your partner as the applicant or other people in the visa application process, like the dependent applicant(s).
Also, this is to ensure you are a safe sponsor for your partner to migrate and apply for a partner visa.
3. You do not consent to the applicant knowing about your convictions,
If you love and trust your partner, nothing should be hidden from them. It refers to a situation where you refuse to inform your partner about your past crimes, if you ever have committed.
The consequences will be similar to the above-mentioned point.
4. Consider the measures of children protection,
This is applicable when you, as the sponsor, are convicted of a criminal offence involving children.
The character requirement plays an important role in your visa and sponsorship application. How Much Does Your Character Background Impact Your Visa Application?
What if you have been convicted for a substantial criminal record with relevant offences?
Suppose you are committed in these cases above, you and your partner will receive an invitation to comment. So, the Department will not directly refuse your sponsorship application, but you will be given a chance to explain yourself.
The invitation to comment is to assess further your eligibility for sponsorship for a partner visa. Generally, you may use this chance to explain that you are a changed person and that you will never be a threat to your loved ones.
If you have some convictions listed on your Police Clearance Certificate and are not sure whether you can sponsor your partner, ease your concern by having a deep consultation with the Registered Migration Agent. All information related to your convictions will be kept confidential.
However, the department may also assess some exceptions, which we have summarised below.
Exemptions of Character Requirements for Sponsor of Partner Visa
The following exemptions of character requirements for the sponsors will be considered in assessing your character background:
1. Period of you as the sponsor completed the clearance for the relevant offences. This also needs physical evidence from a legal representative or the Police.
2. It is measured by the best interest of any children involved between the sponsor and applicant of the partner visa.
3. Period time of relationship involved between the sponsor and partner visa.
It would be best to consider these exemptions when applying for a partner visa, as the above provides a deeper understanding of your partner or sponsor.
What does it mean to you?
While you are here to learn more about character requirements for the sponsorship of a partner visa, the information above might be quite difficult to comprehend.
It would be quite a hustle for you and require most of your time. However, seeking professional advice would be better; we are here to help you with these complex situations.
