Partner visa - advice and tips please!
 

Hello all,

Only used this forum once before, when my NZ partner first came over the UK on a WHV to be with me and I was tearing my hair out at how useless the UK's systems were for him! I can't find that thread anymore but I'm sure it's here. Anyway we've stuck it out in the UK for the last year and intend to until his visa runs out in May 2014. At that point he's returning to NZ. We have no intention of ending the relationship but are unsure as to where we'll both be; he will probably find work in Oz or NZ for a while which is pointless me being there as he will likely be either offshore or in the mines (rope access work). I love NZ and want to spend a chunk of the year there, but also have family commitments here that I feel I should be here for 2-3 months each year or so. I'm not yet sure what I'll do for work but am hoping to negotiate part-time/distance-working with my current employers. At some point in the next few years we also aim to return to Canada (where we first met), I still have 2 years WHV's I can use there (that I must apply for before Jan 2015, to use the first one within 12 months), he is not eligible for another WHV but would either stay as long as possible on tourist visas, or get work-based sponsorship.

Given all this flitting around the world (we don't really want to set up a permanent base right now, rather continue with the travelling/climbing/skiing/temporary work we've been doing until the last year), it seems to make the most sense for me to gain a residency visa in NZ through the partnership route. Can I ask some advice though please....

1) I understand that, once issued, this visa would need to be activated by entering NZ within 12 months (no problem) and would remain valid for 2 years assuming I actually want to be able to travel out of NZ. After this 2 years I could apply for a PRV if I meet the residency requirement, or, more likely, apply for an extension to travel conditions for another 2 years through (hopefully!!) my continued relationship with an NZ citizen. This would allow me to basically come and go from NZ (and work there) as I please for 4 years. Correct??

2) With the Resident Visa as above, there would be nothing stopping me having a Canadian WHV and living in Canada for the best part of 2 years as long as my travel criteria were kept current?

3) The other options are the BUNAC IEP visa (already had NZ WHV) or the work-partnership category. However it seems somewhat pointless applying for either seeing as we meet the partner visa requirements and will eventually apply for this anyway. We really want as much flexibility with future plans as possible as we really have no idea what we'll end up doing work wise! Is this sensible? Also, we don't want to loose eligibility for this visa by not living together for the next few years all the time, which given both of our work and travel tendencies we probably will not - not a lack of commitment, just situational.

4) In terms of applying for the partnership visa, I'm pretty confident our relationship would be fine, but just to check:
Dec 2010: meet in Canada, become a couple. Living separately but with plenty of photos etc etc until Sept 2011.
Sept - Nov 2011: him in NZ (Canadian visa ran out), me in Canada then travelling in States/UK (when my Canadian visa ran out) before joining him in NZ in Nov. Xmas with his family.
Dec 11 - March 12: travelling in S America together (photos, plane tickets, passport stamps etc etc).
April - June 12: me in Canada/UK, him in NZ applying for UK WHV.
June - Oct 12: He flies to UK on WHV, we immediately move to France for temporary job (employed as a couple - contract etc) for a UK company (my only thought is that this was slightly dodgy visa wise for him, so not sure if we should mention it on a visa app?? but then why would NZ immigration be bothered seeing as it's a UK/EU issue). Living together in company accom.
Oct 12 - Present: Living in UK together, joint rental agreement, some joint bills. We don't have a joint account but can provide plenty of evidence of financial interdependence - is this enough?

Can't forsee any problems with this - 3 years total of which around 20 months have been living together in one stretch. OK??

5) This may be silly but my passport expires in June 2015. I'm thinking if we're going down this route (and with possible Canadian WHVs to come) it is probably just worth getting a new one now and not having to worry about it - as far as I can tell it is ok to do this??!

6) Assuming we go with the partner visa, any hints and tips in terms of just how much evidence we need to provide/what type... cheaper medicals (Manchester/Yorkshire area)... etc etc? Also, when applying do we have to submit his passport and police records in addition to mine?

Apologies for the very long post. Just getting our heads round all of this. Thanks all!!

Re: Partner visa - advice and tips please!
 

I'll try and answer your questions:

Once you apply for and gain residency you are issued with a Resident Visa with 2 years Travel Conditions
You have to enter NZ within 12m to activate it as you said and it allows you to leave and enter NZ as a resident for the duration of the travel conditions [2yr from the first date you enter NZ]
Once the travel conditions expire, you can apply for a PRV as long as you fulfil one of the five required conditions. The usual one is that you've spent >184days in NZ in EACH of the two preceding years. If you cannot fulfil any of these conditions you can apply for further travel conditions. As a partner of a NZ citizen you can be granted further travel conditions for 24m so that gives you 4 years, yes. I don't know whether you can keep applying for further travel conditions as a partner after this-presumably you can as long as you can prove the partnership is still ongoing:unsure: I don't know though.
If outside NZ when your travel conditions expire you apply for a second or subsequent resident visa.
A PRV gives you 'permanent' travel conditions so you can leave for as many years as you like and still return and take up residency. No need to keep proving the partnership is still ongoing.

Nothing. As long as the travel conditions haven't expired then you can just turn up in NZ and still be a resident.

The temporary partnership work visa would give you an open work visa for up to two years but then it would expire and you leave NZ or you'd have to apply for residency. Given that there appears to be no time limit on how much time you have to spend in NZ to get a further 24mth travel conditions as long as you're still with the Kiwi;) then residency would be the most sensible choice. Though NZIS do take circumstances that prevent couples living together into account, you have proof now, it makes for a more 'certain' application. Though that is only my opinion, as I said they can take living apart into account as long as there is a good reason for it. The other issue is whether you can keep renewing travel conditions indefinitely as a partner. All depends on whether you're planning on settling in NZ permanently at some point as to whether it's worth the expense.


Give them the whole history, proves a genuine and long lasting stable relationship. Not sure what you mean by dodgy visa wise, to do with Schengen and length of time or what he was allowed to do on a WHV? I don't know about UK WHVs and the regulations surrounding them. Bear in mind they may ask you about any strange omissions in your relationship history;)
You have the required 12mth living together now anyway. It sounds like you have enough proof, you don't need a joint account, just proof of living together as a couple. So any proof that shows you lived at the same address. Separate bank accounts to the same address are fine.

You can renew early, you get any time remaining up to 9mth added to the new passport. You have to pay to transfer visas into a new passport. Personally I'd renew but leave it until as late as possible. Then any new visas are in a passport that will last. Also it's generally cheaper to get a new UK passport whilst in the UK rather than overseas..

Medicals: ring round the panel doctors in your area. Prices can vary quite a lot
You do need to prove his citizenship status via a passport though a certified copy is usually accepted.
http://www.immigration.govt.nz/migra...ly/default.htmAll here!

These are examples of some items that can help prove relationship status. There are more suggestions in the Operation Manual, residence, section F2.20.15
You don't need to provide every single item on the above list! So if you haven't got a joint account for example then other proof will suffice.

Hope this answers your questions. I suppose it all depends on what you plan to do longterm though as to what might be best.
Good luck!
P:)

Re: Partner visa - advice and tips please!
 

Brilliant - thanks! Sorry for the delay replying, I've been away.

By dodgy with the France thing I meant both of those - he shouldn't have been in Schengen countries for more than 3 months (it was 4) - though he was never stamped out of the UK/into France so got away with that. We THINK he was ok working in France on a UK WHV as it was for a UK company... at least our employer seemed to think so! In any case, I can't see why NZ immigration would really care if he was slightly breaking the rules on a UK visa so we'll probably mention it.

Am starting to get everything together now, though the first loooong step is to get a Canadian police check, which unfortunately requires getting £70 worth of fingerprints taken and 22 weeks processing.... ouch!! This could take a bit longer than anticipated....

I'll post this in another thread too, but I need to pay the Canadian RCMP by 'certified check or money order'. Anyone know what this actually means in terms of paying in CAD$ from the UK??

Cheers all.