# Subclass 461 offshore or onshore?



## nugob (May 22, 2013)

Hi,

I'm a New Zealand citizen and my (Japanese) wife and I intend to permanently move to Australia. As a NZ citizen I can work and live in Australia, but my wife requires a subclass 461 (New Zealand citizenship family relationship). I made some enquiries with the local Australian Visa Application Centre and it seems that the application process from NZ takes at least 3 months which might be longer than we were hoping for.

When I asked at the Application Centre (DIMIA is outsourcing these services in Auckland) if instead of applying offshore my wife could enter Australia on a visitor visa together with me (on a subclass 444) and then apply for her subclass 461 I was told this wouldn't be possible because she's not residing in Australia. Is this correct? I read in a number of online forums that people in a similar situation went to Australia on a visitor visa and applied for the subclass 461 visa there and were granted a bridging visa until the decision was made. Has anything changed with these regulations? If anyone has applied for the 461 visa I would be glad to hear about it.

We're just unsure if it's better to send the application offshore or wait until we're in Aussie.

Thank you!


----------



## indianinact (Apr 6, 2013)

I think calling diac directly might help.


----------



## nugob (May 22, 2013)

Thanks indianinact. I did exactly that, but it was a bit of a catch-22 to get the information. The DIAC website states that all enquiries from outside Australia must be made to Australian visa offices abroad, but the people in the Auckland office couldn't give me a definite answer because they weren't sure and recommended I contact the Australian onshore office (which states I must call an overseas office, which doesn't have the definite answer, etc. :/ ...). So ... I asked a friend in AUS to call the onshore office. Here's the result; there are two options:

1. My wife can apply for the subclass 461 in NZ before entering Australia. This can take between 2-3 months
2. My wife can apply for her tourist visa in NZ. If she is granted her tourist visa *without "no further stay restriction"* then she can apply for the 461 in Australia. It will take 2-3 months.

The only thing I'm not yet certain is if she could actually apply in NZ, go to AUS on a tourist visa, and then come back to NZ to pick it up once it's granted. But I think it's not a good option for us because it would make communication with a case officer etc. much more difficult. Also the 461 DIAC web page says "You should not make travel arrangements to Australia until after you have been granted your visa", but that may just mean "Don't waste your money in case the visa is not granted."

So if in doubt I would recommend anyone to contact DIAC directly. This info above is from May 2013. Immigration things change all the time, so better double-check this information with DIAC if you apply at another time.

Fingers crossed she won't get a "no further stay" restriction.


----------



## janicebrown77 (Mar 4, 2014)

Interesting, I'm postings application this week, hoping it will be granted by 27th dec, as I've arranged with my family from the UK to spend NY with out aus relatives ( I'm currently in nz)
Was your wife able to travel on a tourist visa whilst awaiting the decision on the 461? 
Just hoping either way I'll be able to go with my family I'm happy to come bk to nz to wait on the decision but obviously it would save money to kill two birds with one stone. 

I'd be interested to hear how your story ended up. 

Thanks 
J


----------

