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Third Sponsorship Limitation Overcome at MRT Based on IVF Plans and Emotional Support Needs

Visa TypePartner Visa
CategoryPartner Visa

Case Summary

A partner visa application was refused because the Australian citizen sponsor had previously sponsored two prior partners, engaging the Regulation 1.20J five-year restriction. We successfully argued at the MRT that compelling circumstances — including the couple's long-standing relationship, plans for IVF, and the sponsor's need for emotional and financial support — justified a waiver.

Background

Our client, a citizen of South-East Asia, applied for a Partner Visa sponsored by her Australian citizen husband. This was the husband's third sponsorship of a partner, which brought the application within Regulation 1.20J of the Migration Regulations 1994 — a provision designed to deter serial sponsorships by requiring a five-year gap between the second and third sponsorships. The application was refused, and we were instructed to appeal to the MRT. To succeed, we needed to demonstrate compelling circumstances affecting the sponsor sufficient to justify the waiver.

Challenges

  • This was the sponsor's third spouse sponsorship, directly engaging the Regulation 1.20J restriction
  • The Department refused to grant a waiver, placing the onus on us to establish compelling circumstances at the MRT
  • The range of compelling circumstances needed to individually and collectively meet the threshold
  • IVF plans and the uncertainty of the applicant's visa status introduced strong time sensitivity to the matter

How We Helped

We submitted to the Tribunal that the applicant and sponsor had a genuine and long-standing relationship, and identified multiple compelling circumstances affecting the sponsor: first, the couple's plans to pursue IVF, which would be missed if the applicant's visa status remained uncertain; second, the sponsor's reliance on the applicant for emotional support; and third, the sponsor's financial dependence on the applicant. We argued that this combination of factors, taken together, met the compelling circumstances threshold.

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Key Success Factors

  • Genuine and long-standing relationship established through comprehensive evidence
  • The couple's IVF plans and the time-sensitive nature of that opportunity highlighted as compelling circumstances
  • Evidence of the sponsor's emotional and financial reliance on the applicant
  • The Tribunal's holistic consideration of multiple factors in aggregate
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Outcome

Taking the combination of compelling factors into account and accepting the genuineness of the couple's relationship, the Tribunal was satisfied that the circumstances warranted a waiver of Regulation 1.20J and the Partner Visa was granted.

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