Your partner is alreadyin Australia. Lodge fromhere, stay lawful,and work while it is decided.
The 820 is the temporary partner visa lodged in Australia; the 801 is the permanent stage assessed two years after lodgement. One application, one charge of $11,710, and a bridging visa that keeps your partner here with work rights while the Department reads the file.
Government charges, 820/801
- Visa application charge, main applicantcovers the 820 and the 801$11,710
- Each adult dependant$5,860
- Each child under 18$2,935
- Bridging visa B, to travel while it waits$575
- Tribunal review, if refused$3,727
As at 1 July 2026. The charge is not refunded on refusal. Our professional fee is fixed and quoted in writing.
A two stage partner visa for a spouse or de facto partner who is in Australia.
The subclass 820 and 801 is the onshore partner visa for the spouse or de facto partner of an Australian citizen, permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen. The applicant must be in Australia on lodgement, usually holding a substantive visa without a no further stay condition; the charge is $11,710 for both stages, and the permanent 801 is assessed two years after the 820 application was made.
Verified as at 1 July 2026 against the Department of Home Affairs subclass 820 and 801 pages, regulation 1.15A and Schedule 2 of the Migration Regulations 1994.
Can we lodge onshore? A 30-second check
Answer the questions to see where you stand.
A guide only, not legal advice. The consultation is where the real answer comes from.
Six things every 820 application must show.
The case officer never meets you. The file is the relationship. Each of these is a place where genuine couples lose an application, and each is fixable before the charge is paid.
What the evidence looks like, pillar by pillar
- 01
A genuine and continuing relationship
Married, or de facto with a mutual commitment to a shared life to the exclusion of all others. Regulation 1.15A directs the delegate to the financial, household, social and commitment aspects, with evidence across the whole relationship, not a burst before lodgement.
- 02
Twelve months, or a registered relationship
De facto couples need twelve months of the relationship before lodgement unless it is registered under a state or territory scheme, or compelling circumstances apply. Married couples have no minimum period. The date the relationship began has to be evidenced, not asserted.
- 03
A lawful position on lodgement day
The applicant must be in Australia. Holding a substantive visa without condition 8503 means a bridging visa A follows. Lodging on a bridging visa or after a visa has expired triggers Schedule 3 criteria, which require compelling reasons to waive. Timing is everything here.
- 04
A sponsor who passes their own checks
The sponsor is a party to the application. Their status, police certificates, past sponsorships and undertakings are assessed separately. Two previous partner sponsorships, or one in the last five years, usually bars a further one without a waiver.
- 05
Health and character on both sides
The applicant completes health examinations and provides police certificates for every country lived in for twelve months or more in the last ten years. A conviction does not end the application, but an undeclared one can, through PIC 4020.
- 06
Consistency with every earlier application
Every visa either of you has ever lodged is on the Department's file. A different relationship start date, a different address, a forgotten refusal: these are read as false information. We audit the history before we write a word of the new file.
One application, four stages.
The two year clock on the permanent stage starts on the day the 820 is lodged, not on the day it is granted. That is the reason to lodge early and complete, not late and thin.
Lodge the 820 with the sponsorship
The applicant lodges the 820 online with evidence under all four pillars, both personal statements, Form 888 declarations, health and police certificates. The sponsor lodges the sponsorship application alongside. The $11,710 charge is paid at lodgement and covers both stages.
Move onto the bridging visa
A bridging visa A is granted at lodgement and takes effect when the current visa ends. It carries full work rights and Medicare enrolment for applicants who held a substantive visa. Travel needs a bridging visa B at $575, or the application is treated as abandoned on departure.
Decision on the 820
The delegate assesses the relationship, health and character. Processing times are published monthly by the Department and vary with the completeness of the file. A request for further information adds months; decision-ready files rarely receive one.
The 801 is assessed
Two years after the 820 was lodged, the permanent 801 is assessed on evidence that the relationship is continuing, dated across those two years. Couples together for three years at lodgement, or two years with a child, can be granted the 801 with the 820. Family violence provisions protect an applicant whose relationship ends because of violence.
Where the applicant stands on lodgement day decides the subclass.
The same relationship, the same charge, two different visas with different bridging, travel and timing consequences.
| Situation | Usual visa | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Applicant in Australia on a valid visa without 8503 | 820/801 | $11,710, bridging visa with work rights, stay together while it waits |
| Applicant in Australia on a visitor visa with 8503 | 309/100 from offshore, or a waiver request | 8503 blocks the onshore application unless waived for compelling circumstances that arose after grant |
| Applicant on a bridging visa, or visa expired | 820/801 with Schedule 3 submission | compelling reasons must be shown; get advice before lodging anything |
| Applicant outside Australia | 309/100 | $11,710, applicant enters on grant; visits on a 600 possible while it waits |
| Engaged, not yet married, applicant offshore | 300, then 820 at $1,955 | nine to fifteen months to marry, then the onshore partner visa at the reduced charge |
Charges as at 1 July 2026. Condition 8503 can be checked on VEVO in minutes. Do it before you plan a date.
What the 820/801 costs in government charges.
Government charges only. Health examinations, police certificates, translations and our fixed professional fee are additional.
As at 1 July 2026. The main applicant charge is the same for the 820/801 and the 309/100, and is not refunded if the visa is refused.
What life looks like between lodgement and decision.
For most onshore couples the bridging visa is the visa they live on for the longest. Its rules are worth knowing before the current visa ends.
Bridging visas A, B and C explained- 01
Work rights
A bridging visa A granted with a partner application carries full work rights, provided the applicant held a substantive visa at lodgement. Medicare enrolment follows for partner applicants once the bridging visa is in effect.
- 02
Travel
Leaving Australia on a bridging visa A ends it, and with it the onshore application. Apply for a bridging visa B at $575 before any trip, with the dates and the reason, and return inside its travel period.
- 03
Study and Medicare
Study is permitted. Medicare is available to partner visa applicants on a bridging visa in effect, on production of the application acknowledgement. Private health cover may still be sensible for the gap.
- 04
Keeping it valid
Report any change of address, relationship circumstance or new child within the timeframes. A bridging visa is cancelled with the application if the relationship ends, except where family violence provisions apply.
The onshore partner visa, answered plainly.
How long does the 820 take?
The Department publishes processing times monthly and they vary by stream and by the completeness of the file. Decision-ready applications with evidence under all four pillars are decided faster and rarely attract a request for information, which alone can add months.
Can my partner work while the 820 is processed?
Yes, if they applied while holding a substantive visa. The bridging visa A that takes effect when the current visa expires carries full work rights. Applicants who held a bridging visa or no visa at lodgement are in a different position and need advice first.
Can we travel while the 820 is being decided?
Only on a bridging visa B, applied for before departure at $575. Leaving on a bridging visa A ends the visa and the onshore application is treated as abandoned. Plan trips well ahead and tell us the dates.
We have been together less than a year. Can we lodge the 820?
As a de facto couple, only if the relationship is registered under a state or territory scheme, which Victoria allows, or compelling circumstances apply. Married couples have no minimum period. Registering takes a short waiting period, so start it early.
What happens if the relationship ends after lodgement?
The application cannot proceed unless the family violence provisions apply, or the sponsor has died, or there is a child of the relationship and the sponsor has access. Tell us before you tell the Department; the timing and the evidence matter.
Do we get permanent residence straight away?
Usually the 820 first and the 801 two years after the 820 was lodged. Couples together for three years at lodgement, or two years with a child of the relationship, can be granted both stages at once.
What does the 820/801 cost in total?
In government charges, $11,710 for the main applicant, covering both stages, plus $5,860 per adult dependant and $2,935 per child. Health, police certificates and translations are paid to third parties. Our professional fee is fixed and quoted in writing.
Where this visa connects.
- 309Open
Offshore partner visa
When the applicant is outside Australia on lodgement day, $11,710.
- EvidenceOpen
Relationship evidence
The four pillars, Form 888 and the statements, with a checklist.
- SponsorOpen
Sponsor requirements
Status, police checks, undertakings and the two sponsorship limit.
- BridgingOpen
Bridging visas
Work, travel and staying lawful while the 820 waits.
Lodge the 820 once, with the evidence right.
One consultation sets the subclass, the lodgement date around your partner's visa expiry, and the evidence plan for all four pillars, with a fixed fee for both stages.