It is not a document test. It is a state of satisfaction a case officer has to reach, and the Migration Regulations 1994 tell them which matters to weigh in reaching it.
This page explains those matters, when they have to be satisfied, and how applications fall short. It sits under the 820 visa requirements and applies whether you apply as a married spouse or as a de facto partner.
Where the test comes from
Two provisions of the Migration Act 1958 set the conditions. Under section 5F, two people are in a married relationship if they are married to each other under a marriage that is valid for the purposes of the Act, they have a mutual commitment to a shared life as a married couple to the exclusion of all others, the relationship between them is genuine and continuing, and they live together or do not live separately and apart on a permanent basis. Under section 5CB, two people are in a de facto relationship if they are not in a married relationship with each other but they have a mutual commitment to a shared life to the exclusion of all others, the relationship is genuine and continuing, they live together or do not live separately and apart on a permanent basis, and they are not related by family.
Both sections allow the regulations to say how those conditions are determined. Regulation 1.15A does that for married couples and regulation 1.09A for de facto couples. For a partner visa each says the same thing: the Minister must consider all of the circumstances of the relationship, including the matters set out in subregulation (3).
Key facts
The four prescribed matters are the financial aspects of the relationship, the nature of the household, the social aspects of the relationship, and the nature of the persons' commitment to each other. The wording is identical for married and de facto applicants apart from one point — married couples are assessed on whether they represent themselves to other people as married, de facto couples on whether they represent themselves as being in a de facto relationship.
The four matters in the regulations
The regulations do not just name the four headings. They list what sits under each one, and those lists are the closest thing to an official checklist.
Financial aspects of the relationship
The regulations point to any joint ownership of real estate or other major assets; any joint liabilities; the extent of any pooling of financial resources, especially for major financial commitments; whether one person owes any legal obligation in respect of the other; and the basis of any sharing of day-to-day household expenses. The last item matters more than people expect: a couple with no property and no loans can still show a clear, consistent basis on which they divide rent, groceries and bills. See financial aspects evidence.
Nature of the household
The regulations point to any joint responsibility for the care and support of children; the living arrangements of the persons; and any sharing of the responsibility for housework. This heading carries addresses, leases, utility accounts and the ordinary mechanics of running a home together. See nature of the household evidence.
Social aspects of the relationship
The regulations point to whether the persons represent themselves to other people as married, or as being in a de facto relationship; the opinion of their friends and acquaintances about the nature of the relationship; and any basis on which they plan and undertake joint social activities. This is where third-party statements, joint invitations, travel and the couple's place in each other's families do their work. See social context evidence.
Nature of the persons' commitment to each other
The regulations point to the duration of the relationship; the length of time during which the persons have lived together; the degree of companionship and emotional support that the persons draw from each other; and whether the persons see the relationship as a long-term one. This is the heading the couple's own statements speak to most directly. See commitment evidence.
Exclusion of all others, and living together
Two conditions sit outside the four matters and are often overlooked.
The first is to the exclusion of all others. A concurrent marriage or a continuing relationship with someone else is not a question of evidence quality — it goes to whether the statutory condition is met at all. It is one reason the Department asks about previous relationships and their end dates.
The second is living together, or not living separately and apart on a permanent basis. The Act offers either limb, so living apart is not automatically fatal; a permanent separation is. Couples separated by work postings, study, caring for a parent overseas, health, or a visa condition can still meet the test, but they have to show that the separation is temporary, that contact continued through it, and that the shared life resumed or is intended to resume. If that describes your situation, read evidence when you live apart.
Genuine at decision, not only at lodgement
The Migration Regulations set criteria to be satisfied at the time of application and separate criteria to be satisfied at the time of decision. For the subclass 820, the time of decision criteria require the applicant to continue to meet the relationship and sponsorship requirements they met at the time of application. In practice the relationship must still be genuine and continuing on the day the case officer decides, which may be a long time after lodgement.
This is why the Department tells applicants that, because partner applications can have long processing times, they should update their documents and evidence of the relationship regularly through ImmiAccount. An application whose evidence stops on the lodgement date invites the obvious question: what has happened since?
The exceptions are narrow and are set out in the regulations themselves — the death of the sponsoring partner, family violence committed by that partner, and shared responsibility for a child.
How applications fall short
Applications that fail on this criterion tend to fail in recognisable ways.
- Evidence stacked under one heading. A thick bundle of photographs and flight itineraries proves the social heading three times over and says nothing about finances or the household. The regulations name four matters; a case officer reads for four.
- Volume instead of coverage. Hundreds of message screenshots carry less weight than a lease, a joint account statement and a short, specific statement from each partner. See how much evidence to provide.
- Statements that describe feelings, not facts. The relationship statement should set out dates, addresses, how the couple met, how they decided to live together, how money is handled and what the plans are. Two statements that contradict each other on a date do real damage.
- Nothing after lodgement, so the file cannot show the relationship is continuing.
- Unexplained gaps. Periods apart, separate addresses on official records, or a partner listed as single on a tax or superannuation record, with nothing to explain them.
- Third-party statements written to a template. Specific, first-hand detail is what the "opinion of the persons' friends and acquaintances" limb is asking for.
An application assembled by an immigration lawyer is more likely to succeed on this criterion, because the work is not collecting more documents — it is mapping what you already have against the four matters, finding the heading that is thin, and explaining the gaps before a case officer has to ask. No one can promise an outcome.
What to do next
Sort what you already hold into the four matters above. If one heading is nearly empty, that is where to work first, and the relationship evidence cluster goes through each heading document by document. If you are still deciding which path to apply on, compare married spouse requirements with de facto partner requirements, and see the legal definitions of spouse and de facto for the statutory wording.
Common questions
What does genuine and continuing mean for a partner visa?
It is one of the conditions in sections 5F and 5CB of the Migration Act 1958. Genuine means the relationship is real rather than formed for a visa or another purpose. Continuing means it is ongoing and expected to continue, not a relationship that has ended or is being kept alive on paper. The Department must be satisfied of it when the application is made and again when the decision is made.
What four things does Home Affairs look at?
The Migration Regulations 1994 require the Minister to consider all of the circumstances of the relationship, including four matters: the financial aspects of the relationship, the nature of the household, the social aspects of the relationship, and the nature of the two people's commitment to each other. Each of those has its own list of examples in the regulations.
Do we have to live together to get an 820 visa?
Not necessarily. The Migration Act requires that the couple live together or do not live separately and apart on a permanent basis. Periods apart for work, study, caring responsibilities or immigration reasons do not end a relationship, but the Department will expect an explanation and evidence that the separation is temporary and that the couple stayed in contact and continued to plan a shared life.
Can the Department refuse a visa even if we are legally married?
Yes. A valid marriage satisfies only one of the four conditions in section 5F. The Department must still be satisfied that there is a mutual commitment to a shared life to the exclusion of all others, that the relationship is genuine and continuing, and that the couple live together or do not live separately and apart on a permanent basis.
Does the relationship have to be genuine when we apply or when it is decided?
Both. The time of application criteria require the relationship to exist when the application is made, and the time of decision criteria require the applicant to continue to meet those requirements. Because partner applications can take a long time, evidence that stops at the lodgement date is a common weakness.
Sources
Keep reading
Spouse (Married Partner) Requirements for the 820
What married couples must show for the subclass 820 — the section 5F definition of spouse, a valid marriage, no 12-month rule, and why a certificate is never enough.
Read the guide →
De Facto Partner Visa 820: The 12-Month Rule
How the 12-month de facto rule works for the subclass 820, what counts towards the 12 months, and how time living apart is treated.
Read the guide →
Exemptions from the 12-Month De Facto Requirement
Ways around the 12-month de facto rule for the 820 — a registered relationship, compelling and compassionate circumstances, and subclass 300 holders.
Read the guide →