One of the more popular options for engaged Australian Filipina couples is the fiancée visa (aka fiancé visa and PMV), more correctly known as the Prospective Marriage Visa. This is the one you apply for when she is in the Philippines, and you intend to marry her in Australia in the next 12 months or so.

What it is NOT is a “try before you buy” visa where you can bring a nice young lady to Australia for a few years, and then send her packing if you decide she’s not the right girl for you. This visa requires commitment from both of you to marrying and remaining together, and it is on this basis that the Australian Government will grant a visa to her.

Prospective Marriage Visa – What does it do?

This is a visa that allows you to bring your Filipina fiancée to Australia from Philippines, with the intention of marrying her and then applying for a (simplified) Onshore Partner Visa so she may remain inside Australia after you’ve married her. And you have 9 months from the date of the visa grant to get this done in. Plenty of time really, when a couple is serious about wanting to marry and be together.

Prospective Marriage Visa – What do you need?

• You must have met in person, like all partner visa applications.
• You need to both be free to marry. Don’t think of applying of either of you is still legally married to someone else.
• You need to be ready and prepared to marry within 9 months of the visa grant.
• You need to be able to demonstrate a committed relationship and an intention to marry and remain together that they will not doubt or question.
• She needs to pass health criteria, ie. she shouldn’t have anything transmissible, nor should she (and/or any dependent children included in the application) have health conditions that will be a drain on the country in cost and/or in resources.
• She needs a fairly clean criminal record
• You need to have no history of doing serious jail time for violent crimes or sexual crimes that would put the lady and/or her kids in danger
• You need to be able to support her for the first two years

That’s the basics. The devil is in the detail, of course. Fortunately Down Under Visa are rather good at guiding visa applicants and putting together successful Prospective Marriage Visa applications. This is a “serious visa”, though. Be prepared for a lot of work, and for a high standard in information, documents and relationship evidence that we need from you.

Why a Prospective Marriage Visa and not an onshore Partner Visa?

We can help you with either. We really don’t mind, as long as you get to make an informed decision……hence our BLOG articles.

A Prospective Marriage Visa is an offshore visa, which means it’s applied-for outside of Australia. The visa applicant needs to be in Philippines (or another country other than Australia) when the application is lodged, and also when it’s granted. It does mean you can’t be together every day during the processing time, however:

1. We may apply for a tourist visa for you so you can spend a significant amount of the waiting time together, and;
2. They’re actually not taking all that long lately. Manila is pretty efficient, and visa applications have been moving pretty fast over the last year or so.

And the fact you have 9 months to organize a wedding in Australia and to settle in to a new life as a committed couple, that’s not bad at all. Yes, there’s still pressure. And we get the very rare clients who run out of time and get a rude shock at the end of that 9 month period, however for most people it’s plenty of time to do what you have to do.

By contrast, an onshore partner visa means you need to get married and lodge a prepared partner visa application all before the current visa runs out. Hey, not knocking them. We manage plenty of onshore partner visa applications and have plenty of happy clients. But it does mean more pressure because you have a deadline which may be quite short. Deciding halfway through a 3 month tourist visa that you want to get married and apply for a partner visa onshore, this is fairly crazy and definitely not recommended.

Sound like something you would like to do? Like to bring your Filipina fiancée to Australia and marry her? Fill out our free online visa assessment form HERE and let’s see if we can help you.