Australian visa questions answered
Forms glorious forms
Q, I am an Australian Citizen and my Thai wife has been unsuccessful in submitting her settlement visa application, they said that as the sponsor I have to fill out an application form but I am not the applicant is this correct?
A, The answer is yes, when you are applying for your Thai partner to settle in Australia with you there are two main application forms one for the applicant and one for the sponsor, the application form for the sponsor is called a 40SP which you can download from the Australian Embassy website, you should also supply two passport photographs of the sponsor with the form making sure you write your name on the back of the photographs.
Aussie result
Q, I am in the process of obtaining a three month tourist visa for my Thai partner to visit Australia with me I have recently submitted the application but we don’t want to travel to Australia for another 2 months, if we get the visa does this mean we shall loose two months of the visa, my friend got his Thai partner a visa to the U.K. and the visa started as soon as it was awarded and put in her passport, can you advise please?
A, good luck with your application, the Australian embassy work a little different to the British Embassy when a tourist visa is awarded by the Australian Embassy they tend to give the applicant a set period of time usually 3 months to utilize the visa so the applicant must travel to Australia within the stated period and then the 3 month tourist visa starts when your partner arrives in Australia, but please always check the details printed on the visa stamp.
Medical mayhem
Q, I am an Australian citizen and we have recently submitted a settlement visa application for my Thai wife to live with me in Australia, when she submitted the relevant documents including her medical report she was informed that her child from a previous marriage who is not traveling to Australia will have to under go a medical also is this correct?
A, We have seen this on numerous occasions, at Key visa when we help a client with an Australian settlement visa we automatically arrange for the Thai applicant and the Thai children to have the medical at the same time, it is not over expensive and saves time in the future whether the children are traveling or not, you can obtain the medical application form from the Australian Embassy Bangkok website, the form is called the form 26 and it must be partially completed before attending the visit to the hospital.
Settlement headache
Q, I am an Australian national and I am preparing a settlement visa application for my wife, do I need a criminal clearance report and what is the Form 888 needed for the application?
A, The answer is yes you do need a criminal clearance report from the police in Australia for a settlement visa application and your wife or fiancée also has to obtain a police clearance in Thailand for the application also, The Form 888 has to be completed for the application you preferably require two sets and these must be filled out and signed by witnesses in Australia stating they are aware of your relationship they also have to have these forms countersigned by a professional person the full list is on the Form 888 on the Australian Embassy website.