# Getting Married to a foreigner



## AnthonyP (Aug 18, 2013)

Hi Guys, 
Just thought I should put this question to the forum since one of my friends is going through this right now. Although he is a Permanent Resident his fiancé is not . What would be the best way for them to get together ? should he travel to her home country and get married there and then apply for her partner visa. or can he get her over on a visitor visa and get married to her in AUS (This sounds a bit dodgy but would like to know if its possible) . 

Cheers , 
Anthony P


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## espresso (Nov 2, 2012)

Hi AnthonyP, 

he could get his partner to Australia on a visitor visa to get married - no problem with that. However, that will not allow her to stay in Australia. Same problem with getting married overseas. In both cases she still needs a visa to live with him in Australia, which is not possible on a visitor visa. 

What I would recommend: They can apply for a Prospective Marriage Visa (subclass 300), while she is still abroad. Once the visa is granted, she can join him in Australia and they *must marry within nine months* of the grant. However, visa processing itself can take multiple months (sometimes even 1 year or more). If they decide to get married while waiting for the visa grant, they can switch to a normal Partner Visa (309) application at no extra charge. Starting the process as soon as possible is definitely a good idea, because the process will take some time. DIAC Booklet 1 has more information on all partner visa subcategories. 

Cheerio, 
Monika


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## AncientGlory (Aug 23, 2012)

One of my friends is going through the same thing. The question is that under which VISA is she going to come to Australia? If it is a any type of VISA that has the condition "No further stay" then she has to go back to her country after the VISA expires.

My friend's fiance can come here with a visitor VISA, but she cannot apply for any other VISA while she is here. Which means she has to go back and apply for further VISAs from her country. So he says that best thing is to get married in her country and apply for the partner VISA.

However depending on the country, your case could be different.


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## AncientGlory (Aug 23, 2012)

espresso said:


> Hi AnthonyP,
> 
> he could get his partner to Australia on a visitor visa to get married - no problem with that. However, that will not allow her to stay in Australia. Same problem with getting married overseas. In both cases she still needs a visa to live with him in Australia, which is not possible on a visitor visa.
> 
> ...


You beat me to it with more concrete information. This is why we have experts I guess.


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