Good news for April 2021

Has anyone noticed the number of visa grants we’re getting lately? Our usual good number of Subclass 820 Onshore Partner Visa grants, as well as Subclass 600 Tourist Visas, but……

We are getting a FLOOD of Subclass 300 Prospective Marriage Visas (Fiancee Visas) and Subclass 309 Offshore Partner Visa grants! The floodgates have opened, and they are coming through probably every day. 

Please look at the “ticker” we have on the main Down Under Visa website. Front page. Scroll down a bit. We post grants up here, and you will see the number of these visas going through.

The “Visa Grants Ticker”

Subclass 300 and Subclass 309 visa grants – Why so amazing?

Amazing because 300 and 309 visas really had effectively been “on hold” throughout the COVID time. They always denied they weren’t being actioned, however the lack of actual visa grants made it more and more obvious as time went on. I suppose it figured. Subclass 300 holders are still not eligible for Travel Ban Exemptions. Subclass 309’s are, however no doubt they wanted less people entering the country. 

What it means is two things:

1. Obviously you wonderfully patient clients-of-ours have been stuck apart with no news or feedback, and with only nonsense on Facebook groups promising quick-fixes to confuse them. Now? Happiness that you could cut with a knife! Look at some of the posts on Philippines To Australia (Facebook Group). 
2. It’s the surest sign (in my view….please don’t comment with conspiracy theories about world-domination!) that the borders will be open fairly soon. Why grant masses of Prospective Marriage Visas if they couldn’t use them within the allotted timeframe? Why all the 309’s when they know that (unlike the 820’s where the visa applicants are already in Australia) it means more approved people booking flights? 

So, I think a very positive sign, plus a lot of very happy people!

NBI Clearances – Applied-for from inside Australia

I mentioned this in a previous BLOG post (second item in the post!) that we are now managing these NBI Clearance applications for Australians and for Filipina/Filipino visa applicants inside Australia. 

Once upon a time? Fairly easy (well, NEVER easy!). Maybe I should say “achievable”! But since all the banks (why? no idea!) stopped issuing International Bank Drafts, it’s not so easy and often impossible to apply from inside Australia because you can’t PAY for it!

It’s also harder to get around the Philippines these days, and many of our clients have no one who can go to the only NBI office that accepts applications from outside of the Philippines, ie the office in Manila down by the bay. 

So? We can help you. Just need to ask. CLICK HERE

We got our first three NBI Clearances for clients yesterday. Even paid an express fee and were able to collect all three NBI Clearances on the same day! They’re getting uploaded to the Department as I type. 

What was amazing about this!

The NBI are SO picky about fine details! There were even things we discovered on our first three cases that no one had told us before. NBI documentation didn’t say so. Philippines Embassy documentation didn’t say so. Several visits to the NBI to discuss this before we started? Didn’t tell us either. No, we discovered a few things on the day. 

Did it cause a problem? No, it didn’t. Because our staff member, in conjunction with our office, was able to fix the issues up on the spot. If these had been mailed in from Australia like they used to be? Would have been three rejections! Not kidding! No flexibility. 

What I’m saying is that you will benefit from having this managed by us if you need it. No delays due to stuffups. No rejections due to omissions. And collected same day. It took our staff receiving and checking and correcting received documents and a staff member 3/4 of a day to get this done, so well worth it.

Interested? CLICK HERE

Requests for Information – Partner Visas

I’d sent my “request for patience” video out before. If you haven’t watched it? Please do! Watch it again if you need a refresher.

We’re very busy with these, and MOST of you have been wonderfully patient. The occasional client has emailed 10 – 15 times a day about them (no, not appreciated), but most have understood the pressure we’re under. These are taking up literally more than half of our office staff time! Yes, that much!

So yes, thanks for the patience. Nothing will get forgotten. We always answer, and we maintain high standards always. Would be much quicker if we merely slapped it all together, but we wouldn’t have all these wonderful visa grants if we did.

Again? Remember when you get these requests that this is positive! They are finalising your visa application! 

Why do the Department want more?

Because in some cases they’re processing applications lodged in 2019 and some in 2018! That means you last relationship evidence might have been in October 2018. 30 months or so ago! What if you and your sweetheart haven’t spoken since? What if you’d actually broken up? They merely need to see if you are still together. It means (most likely!) they’ve already said “All is OK so far, but……”. Satisfy the last bit, and (as we’ve been observing) you can expect a grant fairly soon!

So don’t complain! Cooperate, and celebrate the positive turn of events!

Hope you are all well, and hope you all keep loving each other! You’re been given a precious gift when you truly fall in love. Yes, forgive me for a sloppy moment. I’m an unashamed romantic! (Why do you think I do partner visas??)

When you truly fall in love you’re given a special gift. You and your sweetheart get to see each other in a way that no one else does. You see what makes them worthy of your love, and they see the same in you. If you go through a rough patch? If time apart, uncertainty about visas and COVID are causing you to get depressed and frustrated and angry? DON’T take it out on each other. Don’t give up. Remember how you felt when you first realised that this person was meant for you. Remember it, believe in it and hang onto it! It was right then, and it’s still right … right now!

Jeff Harvie is a Registered Migration Agent from Australia, but resident in Philippines since 2010 with his Filipina wife Mila and large extended family. Experienced with the Philippines culture, cross-cultural relationships and bureaucracy as well as Australian visas and Australian Migration Law, he writes with authority and fortunately with enough informality and humour that the average Aussie gets it! Down Under Visa specialises in visas for Australians in relationships with ladies and gents from Philippines, Thailand, China and Vietnam. Read MORE