j_kennedy

Can anybody help...??

Does anyone know the finner details about the New Zealand Family Catagory Visa SubClass 461 as I am trying to find out my and my husbands eligibility.

I have found some bits and pieces on www.australia.org.uk but am not getting the answers I want....

My husband is a NewZealander..we met in Oz in 1998. Him (and I) were in Oz for over a year and then he moved back to England with me where we have been ever since (4.5 years) We now want to move to Oz together but I am not sure if he will be eligible under this catagory as it isn't clear.

Bit of a long shot, but does anyone have any experience with this visa. I believe its a relatively new subclass of the Spouse visa?

Sarah2004

What is your nationality? Your husband does not need a visa to work and live in Oz as a New Zealander but he cannot sponsor you to get Australian residency if you are British.

Jaj

New Zealanders - other than those deemed 'eligible NZers' - cannot
sponsor for spouse visas.

For information on 'eligible NZers' see http://www.nz-oz.gov.au or
http://www.immi.gov.au/allforms/pdf/1162.pdf

The 461 visa was introduced to allow non-eligible NZers to sponsor
family members for temporary stays in Australia.

Note the term 'temporary'. Although your visa can be renewed every 5
years:
- you never qualify for Australian PR or the rights that come with it
- you never get Australian citizenship
- if your NZ citizen partner dies, or you break up, you can still
renew your visa only if you do not leave Australia for too long *and*
you have not become a member of any other family unit.

What this means is that your long term position in Australia would be
very tenuous if your spouse died, for example. And you would not be
able to go to NZ as there is no 'widow' category for spouse visas
there.

461 visa holders have to maintain health insurance as they are
generally not eligible for Medicare. Claiming any kind of welfare on
a 461 is near-impossible.

Do either of you have a chance of qualifying for skilled or employer
nominated based permanent residence?

Unless the answer is yes, I would strongly suggest you consider the
alternative option of going to New Zealand, where you can become a NZ
citizen after about 2 years. You could then use your NZ passport to
live in Australia if you wished, giving you more security there plus
the right to go back to NZ any time in the future.

A lot of people seem to be going for these 461 visas without realising
the problems in staying long term in Australia on this status. Using
the 461 as a short-term stopgap is one thing, but it is really not
suitable for long-term residence.

Jeremy

PS If you have any children then you should apply to register them as
NZ citizens by descent - http://www.citizenship.govt.nz

Children born to 'non-eligible' NZ citizens in Australia do not have
Aus citizenship unless they spend their first 10 years living in
Australia.


    >On Thu, 02 Oct 2003 15:41:05 +0000, j_kennedy <member@british_expats.com> wrote:
    >Can anybody help...??
    >Does anyone know the finner details about the New Zealand Family
    >Catagory Visa SubClass 461 as I am trying to find out my and my husbands
    >eligibility.
    >I have found some bits and pieces on www.australia.org.uk but
    >am not getting the answers I want....
    >My husband is a NewZealander..we met in Oz in 1998. Him (and I) were
    >in Oz for over a year and then he moved back to England with me where
    >we have been ever since (4.5 years) We now want to move to Oz
    >together but I am not sure if he will be eligible under this catagory
    >as it isn't clear.
    >Bit of a long shot, but does anyone have any experience with this visa.
    >I believe its a relatively new subclass of the Spouse visa?
    >--
    >Posted via http://britishexpats.com

This is not intended to be legal advice in any jurisdiction

j_kennedy

Interesting...thanks for the websites too. I'll have a look at these. Moving to NZ isn't really an option...Its not somewhere my husband and I want to live.

The NZ Citizen Family Catagory is the only one I can really go for from what I can see. Its that or dont move and I we want to move! I am 5/10 points too low on the skilled migration catagory and I dont think there is any way I'm going to be able to pick up on these points.

Can I ask another thing if you or anyone else knows....Is it realisitic for me to complete the application myself or is it best to use one of these "No visa no fee" companies? They charge £650 plus which seems an awful lot for completing a form etc?? I would like to do it myself, but dont know if this is riskier?

My husband is a kiwi and I am british citizen and we are in a genuine marriage so really is there any reason they would reject our application?? From what I can see this is the main basis of it??

j_kennedy

I am british and my husband is a new zealander. I dont want to be a resident particularly, I just want to live over there with him for a while.

j_kennedy

So my kiwi husband wont have to apply for any visa when he enters australia...he is free to go in and stay there for as long as he wants??

cinderella

Hi Jo,

We have just applied for this visa for my husband. I am a Kiwi, he is British. My children all have NZ Passports, so we can just enter OZ when we like on our NZ passports. (The children & myself all have dual nationality - british & NZ)

The 461 subclass, will give you a 5 year temp visa. That allows you to come and go from OZ as and when you like. Your husband will not be able to sponsor you for PR though. And you must also stay together as a family unit. It is a very easy form to fill out, you basically have to prove you are married to a Kiwi and you both intend to live on OZ.

When you 5 years runs out you can reapply for another 5 years.

We sent my husbands application of and within a week he had a letter asking him to have his medical.

We sent the following with the application

Certified copies of:

Birth certs (me and husband)
Marriage cert
2 x photos each
Copy of Passports (me and husband)

Proof of relationship - copies of:

Mortgage agreement
Joint bank account statement

Hope this helps. Let me know if you need any more info.

cinderella

Your husband is free to use his NZ passport to enter OZ whenever he likes.

j_kennedy

Thanks for your reply....

So it looks like its not as complicated as it sounds....I have read things that say there is a requirement for statements from both parties about the relationship and statements from friends/relatives to confirm we are a 'proper' married couple and copies of passport stamps to show we undertake holidays together etc. It all seemed really daunting, but from what you have said its not that bad??

You, and someone else, have emailed me and mentioned something about PR....sorry, but what is this?

Jaj

    >On Fri, 03 Oct 2003 10:42:37 +0000, cinderella <member@british_expats.com> wrote:
    >The 461 subclass, will give you a 5 year temp visa. That allows you to
    >come and go from OZ as and when you like. Your husband will not be able
    >to sponsor you for PR though.

Unless either partner qualifies for PR through normal channels like
general skilled or employer nominated.


    >And you must also stay together as a
    >family unit.


A big problem if the Kiwi partner dies. If you are planning to live
long term in Australia on this visa, you need to be thinking about
long-term possibilities like that.

It's also a problem for children when they grow up and are no longer
part of the family unit, although it's not an issue for kids who have
NZ citizenship.


    >When you 5 years runs out you can reapply for another 5 years.

But you'll only be granted a visa if the renewal requirements are met.
Not normally a problem if you are still living with your Kiwi spouse,
but possibly a problem otherwise.

At least under the law as it currently stands.

Jeremy

This is not intended to be legal advice in any jurisdiction

cinderella

PR = Permanant Residency.

The documents we sent seem to have been adequate. The form you need is online. You need form 147.
here is the link.

http://www.immi.gov.au/allforms/forms_alpha2.htm#t

Jaj

    >On Fri, 03 Oct 2003 09:04:17 +0000, j_kennedy <member@british_expats.com> wrote:
    >The NZ Citizen Family Catagory is the only one I can really go for from
    >what I can see. Its that or dont move and I we want to move! I am 5/10
    >points too low on the skilled migration catagory and I dont think there
    >is any way I'm going to be able to pick up on these points.

It's important to know whether the gap is 5 or 10 - that can make a
big difference if you're marginal on the pass mark.

If you work in Australia for 6 months on a 461 visa in a skilled
occupation (before your application) you can be awarded 5 bonus
points.

Is claiming spouse skill points an option?

Where in Australia do you plan to live? If you settle in Victoria,
South Australia, or Tasmania, you might be able to get a nomination
for a Skill Matching or STNI permanent visa.

Depending on your skills and where you plan to live in Australia,
might an employer be able to sponsor you for permanent residence
through ENS or RSMS. Maybe doing (eligible) study in Australia could
be an option. Does your husband have any relatives in Australia
(citizen, PR or 'eligible' NZ citizen) who could sponsor for skilled
migration?

If you really want to live in Australia rather than NZ, you and your
husband should really be thinking about what PR options you have.
Especially you, if you're not the Kiwi partner, unless you're happy to
return to the UK at some point in the future.

These are all things that a competent migration agent should be able
to advise you on.

    >Can I ask another thing if you or anyone else knows....Is it realisitic
    >for me to complete the application myself or is it best to use one of
    >these "No visa no fee" companies? They charge £650 plus which seems an
    >awful lot for completing a form etc?? I would like to do it myself, but
    >dont know if this is riskier?
    >My husband is a kiwi and I am british citizen and we are in a genuine
    >marriage so really is there any reason they would reject our
    >application?? From what I can see this is the main basis of it??

Assuming you're ok with forms and putting together proof of your
relationship, you can do it yourselves. Where you may need
professional advice is on whether it's possible to obtain PR after
getting your 461.

As an aside, if your husband only has indefinite leave to remain in
the UK, he will risk losing this status once you move away from the
UK. If you're married and have been living in the UK for 3 years,
applying for naturalisation as a British citizen should be
straightforward for him (you don't lose NZ citizenship). An
application at least should be submitted before leaving the UK.
That way, he does not lose his status in the UK.

I've posted a lot of information on this under the thread 'Persuasion
Tactics'

Jeremy

This is not intended to be legal advice in any jurisdiction