By Mosiqi Acharya
An Indian man has been refused a temporary partner visa after the sponsor advised the Immigration Department that the relationship had ended.
The man applied for a Partner (temporary) Subclass 820 visa in August 2017.
A year later, a delegate of the Department of Home Affairs, refused to grant the visa on the basis the applicant’s relationship with the sponsor had ended and the applicant did not meet any of the alternative criteria.
The applicant approached the Administrative Appeals Tribunal of Australia (AAT) but failed to submit in relation to the withdrawal of the sponsorship and did not provide evidence of meeting the alternative criteria.
The tribunal found the man and the sponsor were not married to each other and they did not satisfy an ‘essential requirement of a spouse relationship’.
The tribunal also considered if the pair was in a ‘de-facto relationship’ which allows a person to be eligible for a partner visa.
But the applicant presented no evidence that he was in a relationship with the sponsor.
‘There is no evidence that at present, the applicant and the sponsor continue to live together or not apart on a permanent basis or that they maintain a joint household or share housework,’ the tribunal noted.
‘There is no evidence that they share their finances, have joint liabilities or jointly contribute to expenses.
‘There is no evidence that the applicant and the sponsor continue to represent themselves to others as being in a relationship or that they socialise together.
‘There is no evidence that there continues to be a mutual commitment to the relationship or that the parties draw companionship and support from each other,’ the tribunal said.
