The Migration Regulations relating to Partner visas (provisional subclass 309 and permanent subclass 100) for dependents who are members of the Family Unit and are over 23 years old have recently been amended to allow this cohort of secondary applicants to continue to meet the dependency criteria irrespective of their age.

Previously, visa applications, for the offshore subclass 309 or subclass 100 visas, sponsored by permanent visa holders who arrived in Australia as Unauthorised Maritime Arrivals (UMA), were given the lowest processing priority. For some it looked like a punishment with harsh results, prolonging the processing time for such applications, consequently separating displaced families for long period of time.

Additionally, some applicants aged over 23 were not able meeting the criteria that required them to be members of the Family Unit of the main applicant at the time of the visa decision.

The amendments to the relief of many vulnerable people changes the situation by allowing these applicants to fulfill the secondary criteria for the provisional partner subclass 309 visa. They must however still demonstrate that they were part of the family unit of the main applicant at the time of visa application and are financially dependent on the main applicant at the time of visa decision, irrespective of their age.

Additionally, changes have been made to the related requirement for the permanent subclass 100 Partner visa to ensure that those granted a provisional subclass 309 visa continue to satisfy the criteria of being a member of the family at the permanent residency stage.

Interestingly in the corresponding onshore provisional partner vis the subclass 820. Children who of any age can be included in the application.