The 309 was lodged from Jakarta in June and the acknowledgement came back the same day. Now it is September, your partner’s birthday is in November, and the question is whether she can come for it. The answer is usually yes, on a visitor visa, provided three things are done properly: the pending partner application is declared, the visitor visa is understood for what it is, and she is outside Australia on the day the 309 is granted. Get those right and visits are part of the plan. Get them wrong and the visit can cost the grant.
Short answer: A 309 applicant can visit Australia while the application is processed, usually on a subclass 600 visitor visa at $250, declaring the pending 309. The applicant must be outside Australia when the 309 is granted, so visits are planned around the expected decision and the Department is told when she leaves. The visitor visa gives no work rights and may carry condition 8503, which does not affect the offshore 309.
Why the applicant has to be offshore at grant
The 309 is an offshore visa. Clause 309.411 requires the applicant to be outside Australia when the visa is granted. If your partner is in Melbourne on a visitor visa on the day the delegate is ready to decide, the delegate cannot grant, and the file waits or, in the worst case, is refused on that ground. Consequently the Department asks applicants to notify it of travel to and from Australia while the application is pending, and to leave when asked so the grant can be made. Some offices will grant onshore on request in limited cases; do not build the plan around it.
Applicant and sponsor: who does what
Apply for the visitor visa from outside Australia, answer yes to the question about other applications and give the 309 transaction reference number. Show funds, a return ticket and the reason for the visit; the pending partner application is a reason, not a problem. On arrival, keep the 309 file updated with the arrival date. Before the visitor visa expires, or when the Department signals a decision is close, leave, and notify the Department of the departure date through ImmiAccount. Do not work. Condition 8101 on most visitor visas prohibits it, and a breach reaches the partner file.
You are the reason the visit is genuine, so your letter of invitation, your address and your support during the stay go with the visitor application. While your partner is here, the relationship evidence you collect together is dated and kept: the shared home, the family events, the photographs with names. When your partner leaves, update your own statement on the 309 with the visit. Sponsors in the sponsored family stream should know that stream carries condition 8503 automatically, which is harmless for a 309 but blocks any change of plan to an onshore 820.
The visit calendar
- Lodge the 309Complete, with the four pillars evidenced for a couple living apart. The two year clock on the permanent 100 starts today.
- Visitor visa applicationFrom offshore, declaring the pending 309. Tourist stream at $250, or sponsored family stream if the Department asks for a sponsor bond, which carries 8503.
- The visitUp to the stay period on the grant, commonly three months per entry. No work. Evidence collected and dated. Arrival notified on the 309 file.
- DepartureBefore the visitor visa expires, and earlier if the Department indicates a decision. Departure date notified.
- Grant of the 309Made while the applicant is offshore. Entry on the 309 follows, with work rights and Medicare from the first day.
The 309 is taking longer than we hoped. Can she stay on repeated visitor visas?
Sometimes, but each application is decided on genuine temporary intent, and a pattern of back to back visits can lead the Department to refuse a further visitor visa or to impose 8503 and a shorter stay. Space the visits, keep each one inside the grant conditions, and let the 309 be the visa that brings her here to stay.
What a visit costs, and what it does not change
Government charges only. Health checks and our fixed professional fee for the 309 are separate, and the visits change nothing about the $11,710 partner visa charge already paid.
Three mistakes that cost the grant
First, not declaring the 309 on the visitor application. The Department sees both files, and an undeclared pending application reads as misleading information under PIC 4020. Second, being in Australia at the wrong moment. A grant that has to wait for departure is a delay you caused. Third, treating the visit as a way to switch to the onshore 820. Unless the visitor visa was granted without 8503 and the couple then decides to abandon the 309, that switch is rarely sensible: the $11,710 already paid is not refunded, and the 100 clock resets. The 309/100 page compares the routes. If a visitor visa has been refused already, the refusals page explains what a refusal does to the next application.
Before she books the flight
If the visitor application needs a sponsor bond, or a previous visit ran close to the limit, tell us before applying. The evidence page covers what to collect while she is here.
Government charges verified against Home Affairs visa pricing as at 1 July 2026. The offshore grant requirement is clause 309.411 of Schedule 2 to the Migration Regulations 1994.
Frequently asked questions
Can my partner visit Australia while the 309 is being processed?
Yes, usually on a subclass 600 visitor visa at $250, declaring the pending 309. The visit must fit the visitor visa conditions and your partner must be outside Australia when the 309 is granted.
Do we have to tell the Department about the visit?
Yes. Declare the 309 on the visitor application, and update the 309 file with arrival and departure dates. The Department needs to know where the applicant is so the grant can be timed.
What happens if the 309 is ready to be granted while she is in Australia?
The delegate cannot grant an offshore visa to someone onshore. The Department will usually ask her to leave so the grant can be made. Plan visits around the expected decision and leave promptly when asked.
Can she work during the visit?
No. Visitor visas carry condition 8101, no work. A breach can be raised on the partner file. Work rights begin on entry on the granted 309.
Does condition 8503 on the visitor visa affect the 309?
No. Condition 8503 stops onshore applications for other visas. The 309 is an offshore application and is unaffected. It only matters if the couple wanted to switch to an onshore 820, which is rarely sensible once the 309 is paid.
General information as at 17 September 2026. Not legal advice. Visit timing depends on your own file and the Department’s processing, so obtain advice before booking travel close to an expected decision.