DeniseH

Hi all,

I just got a request for meds and pccs, but in the letter there was also :-

'Because your marriage was so recent, please provide evidence of your relationship prior to the marriage'.

We got married in Jan 04, but I was quite surprised to read this because the main application included our marriage certificate and my passport in married name. What else can I give them?

We didn't live together before we got married, so there are no bills etc in joint names. After getting married we have lived with parents, so again, no bills in our names. We have photos (wedding and holiday) but I can't see how that can prove a relationship prior to the marriage, as there is no proof of when it was taken. The only thing I can think of is stat declaration from friends...

Has anyone else been asked for further information even though already married? Can anyone help with what I can provide?

Thanks!

Denise

moneypenny20

Denise, don't panic. Quite normal as you have only just been married one year. Copies of the photos and invites are good - they will accept. Lots of letters (don't have to be stat decs if in the UK) from friends and family confirming how long they have known you, what they think of the relationship, etc etc.

Have you any letters sent to each other prior to wedding, post cards, have you kept any holiday receipts sort of thing that would give both names, all manner of odd bits of paper that would show both names.

Photos that other people have taken of you both at old events, other people's weddings, parties etc. Have you made wills in favour of each other, certified copies of these would be good.

Other people will probably come up with more, but see if you can come up with any of that lot.

Good luck

mlbonner

Hi Denise,

Stat decs are a good start. What about phone bills to prove contact; letters to both of you at the same address (dont have to be joint); show of next-of-kin (I used my gym membership form to show this evidence); Wills in each others names;
You may find it useful to do a search on de facto applications, as they are essentially the same as your visa, but have to prove 12 months de facto r'ship as well, with the sort of evidence and mentioned above.

DeniseH

Thanks to both of you for your ideas. I have had a good search but haven't found much - only photos and stat decs from friends/family. Important letters were addressed to our parents addresses. Anything old has been chucked away in preparation for moving to oz as I didn't realise we had to prove a relationship prior to marriage.

Does anyone know if photos and stat decs is enough - and is there anything on the immi website that has more info?

mlbonner

The letters at your parents address are fine - providing they're the same address at the same time.

Have a look at http://www.immi.gov.au/allforms/booklets/1127.pdf for more info

muppet79

When my, now husband, applied for his Visa we did so as a "de facto couple". We where due to be married before we left for Australia but wanted to get the Visa sorted asap so that we could start selling the house, car, etc in preperation. We therefore figured "de facto" was the way to go!

Anyway we had to prove that our relationship had been ongoing for two years. To do this we used

pictures of us both on holiday together, these where not dated but we provided several different lots, which where taken over the 2 years, so we looked different in them, ie it was obviouse they weren't taken in one go.

Emails we sent to one another

We had a joint bank account together

We had a couple of friends write letters stating that we had been together for this period.

An invitation to a friends wedding, it had both our names on it.

Do you have any old Cards that where sent to both of you , ie engagement ones? What about cards, ie birthday, christmas, that you sent to eachother?

Is there nothing that you two would of bougt together even though you where living apart? Receipts with both your names on it?

Yes I know that some of the above sounds basic and could of easily been forged but hubby and I figured that something was better than nothing, no matter how basic, if you know what I mean

Hope this maybe gives you a few ideas, good luck with it all

Cheers

yinwong

In your case, you and your husband are MARRIED legitimately with legal-binding marriage certificate... I really wonder why the CO still asked for more evidence

mlbonner

No offence to yourself (or Denise), but how do you KNOW this? Have a read of this, might make sense as to why they're stricter than perhaps "we" feel is fair http://britishexpats.com/forum/showthread.php?t=275680
I submitted evidence going back to June 2000 that I'd known my partner, but they still asked for more.... it happens, seems to depend as much on the CO as anything else.

yinwong

Understood. I've read that deceitful case before. I was just trying to point out this is not a spouse visa or "de-facto", but a married couple applying for a visa together as a family unit. The fact that they got married "recently" just before their visa application could just be part of their family planning. Anyway, I agree with you that just like anything else in this migration game... it's DIMIA and their CO's.

mlbonner

Ah, I see your point now - very true!