How Long Before Partner Visa 801 Is Decided in 2026? The Two-Year Rule
If you are holding a Subclass 820 (Partner (Temporary)) visa and waiting on the Subclass 801 (Partner (Residence)) visa, the two years are counted from the date your partner application was lodged, not from the day your temporary visa was granted. That requirement sits in subclause 801.221(2)(d) of the Migration Regulations 1994, as published on the Federal Register of Legislation: at least two years must have passed "since the application was made" before the permanent visa can be granted, unless an exemption applies. Because the 820 and the 801 are normally lodged together as one combined application, that waiting period usually overlaps with the time the Department spends on the temporary stage, and the permanent stage itself has no fixed statutory deadline. The two-year structure is unchanged in the Regulations as they currently stand, with no new clauses or amendments identified since May 2025; the Department of Home Affairs' procedural guidance should still be monitored for updates.
This article explains how the rule works in general terms. It is not advice about your own circumstances, and it does not predict how your case will be decided; the current text of the Regulations and the Department's published policy are what govern any individual decision.
When does the two-year period start — from your 820 grant, or from your application?
It starts from the application. The clause is written by reference to time passing "since the application was made", and in the usual combined 820/801 application both stages carry the same lodgement date. So an applicant whose 820 was granted nine months after lodgement has already burned through nine months of the two years before the temporary visa even begins.
There are two important qualifications to that starting point:
- Ministerial intervention cases. If the 820 was granted after the Minister intervened under section 351, section 501J or the repealed section 417 of the Migration Act 1958, subclause 801.221(2A) starts the two years from the date of the Minister's decision rather than from the lodgement date.
- 820 grants based on a child relationship or family violence. Under subclauses 801.221(3)–(4), where the 820 was granted on the basis of 820.221(2) or (3) — the child-relationship and family-violence grounds — the two-year waiting period does not apply.
The 820 stage has no fixed statutory deadline of its own, and the temporary grant is what keeps you lawfully in Australia while the permanent criteria are assessed: the 820 remains in effect until the 801 is decided or withdrawn (clause 820.511).
The two-year mark is necessary but not sufficient. At the time of decision you must still hold the 820, still be sponsored by the sponsoring partner or by the partner who sponsored the 820, and still be that person's spouse or de facto partner (clause 801.221(2)).
What happens around the 22-month mark?
You do not need to lodge a separate 801 form in the ordinary combined case. According to the Department's procedural guidance, roughly 22 months after the application the system sends a reminder asking you to upload updated material, and that request is the point at which most applicants actively re-engage with the file. Treat it as the practical signal that the permanent stage is being assessed, and use it to supply:
- Fresh relationship evidence — joint finances, household arrangements, social recognition and ongoing commitment, covering the period since the 820 was decided.
- Updated police certificates — for any country in which an applicant has lived for 12 months or more since holding the 820; these are generally treated as valid for 12 months.
- Health evidence only if needed — where a valid health examination or waiver was completed at the 820 stage, it normally does not need to be repeated, unless there is new information, a suspected non-disclosure, a suspicion of fraud, or the 820 has been cancelled for more than 12 months.
Keep your contact details current and use your ImmiAccount to respond. The guidance is explicit that if the Department cannot reach you it must make reasonable efforts, including a written request, but it can then decide on the material it already holds; there is discretion to delay a decision for up to three months, for example where an applicant is temporarily overseas.
Who can skip the two-year wait?
Several clauses allow the permanent visa to be granted earlier. The most commonly relevant one is the long-term partner relationship exemption, but it is not the only route.
If you were already in a long-term partner relationship when you applied
Subclause 801.221(6A) disapplies the two-year paragraphs for an applicant "who at the time of making the application was in a long-term partner relationship with the sponsoring partner". Two points follow from that wording.
First, the definition is in the Regulations: as summarised in the Department's guidance, regulation 1.03 refers to a relationship that has existed for at least three years, or at least two years where there is a child of the relationship. Read the definition in the current text on the Federal Register of Legislation rather than relying on a paraphrase.
Second, the test is applied at the date the application was made, not at the date of decision. Assume an applicant who had lived with their partner for two years and six months and had no child at the moment of lodgement: on that definition they were not in a long-term partner relationship when the application was made, even though they would cross the three-year line a few months later. The exemption does not switch on mid-stream under this clause.
If the relationship ended through family violence, a child is involved, or the sponsor has died
Clause 801.221(6) covers applicants whose relationship has ended but where the applicant or a dependent child has experienced family violence committed by the sponsoring partner, or where the applicant has custody, access or a maintenance obligation in relation to a child of the sponsoring partner. Clause 801.221(5) covers the death of the sponsoring partner. Subclauses 801.221(6AA)–(6AB) cover cases where the 820 was granted under 820.211(7), (8) or (9).
These pathways are evidence-heavy:
- Family violence must be established under Division 1.5 of the Regulations, generally through independent evidence such as court orders, police reports or documentation from a professional body, rather than a statement alone. The violence does not have to be shown to have caused the breakdown.
- Child arrangements need a court order or a formal maintenance obligation under the Family Law Act 1975; informal arrangements are not enough.
- Sponsor's death requires the decision-maker to be satisfied that the relationship would have continued had the sponsor not died, and the applicant's close business, cultural or personal ties are assessed as part of that picture.
What gets re-checked before the permanent visa is granted?
The relationship is assessed again from scratch. The decision-maker does not simply carry forward the 820 outcome but re-tests whether the applicant is still a spouse or de facto partner under sections 5F and 5CB of the Migration Act 1958, using the factors in regulations 1.15A and 1.09A: financial aspects, the nature of the household, the social context, and the nature of the commitment.
Every applicant must also satisfy the public interest criteria at clause 801.223 — character (4001, 4002), health (4007) and related criteria, plus 4019 for applicants who were 18 or over at the time of application — along with 4020 (false or misleading information) and 4021 (passport/biometrics). Breaching 4020 is serious: it can lead to refusal and to a bar on further applications for the period set out in the Regulations.
Family members included in the application must also clear their own criteria, and the "one fails, all fails" rule at clause 801.224 means the permanent visa cannot be granted until every applicant does. If granted, the 801 carries a five-year travel facility (clause 801.511), and the grant condition (clause 801.411) allows the visa to be granted whether the applicant is in or outside Australia, provided they are not in immigration clearance.
The compiled practice guidance puts the 801 assessment commonly in the range of six to eighteen months, but there is no statutory deadline, and cases involving family violence, a deceased sponsor or further character and health checks do not follow a predictable schedule.
How long does the 801 stage take, and what if it is refused?
There is no fixed statutory timeframe for the permanent stage; in practice it depends on how quickly updated documents come in and whether further checks are triggered. Where the 801 is refused, the refusal notice is issued under section 66 of the Migration Act 1958, and the 820 visa normally ceases with it.
Review is available through the Administrative Review Tribunal. The application must be made within 21 days of receiving the refusal, and the applicant must be in Australia to make it — an applicant who is overseas when the decision is made cannot apply for review on that basis. The Tribunal can remit the matter to the Department or substitute its own decision, and where a remitted 820 decision results in the applicant again holding that visa, or the Tribunal decides that all criteria other than holding the 820 are met, clause 801.221(8) allows the permanent visa to be granted without a fresh 820. Ministerial intervention under section 351 or section 501J remains available in principle but is rare and confined to exceptional cases.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does everyone wait two years from the day the 820 visa is granted?
No. The two years run from the date the application was made, and because the 820 and 801 are usually lodged together, part of that period is normally spent during the temporary stage itself. Applicants who were already in a long-term partner relationship at the time of lodgement may not have to wait at all.
Do I need to lodge a separate 801 application and pay another fee?
In the ordinary combined case, no separate 801 form is required — the Department's guidance treats the 820 and 801 as a single application. The exception is where the 820 was granted through ministerial intervention, which does require a formal 801 application and the applicable charge.
How do I know whether I qualify for the long-term partner relationship exemption?
The Regulations define a long-term partner relationship by reference to the relationship having existed for at least three years, or at least two years where there is a child of the relationship. Crucially, clause 801.221(6A) tests this as at the date the application was made, so evidence of continuous cohabitation and commitment must reach back to the lodgement date.
Will the Department remind me when it is time to update my documents?
Yes, in the ordinary case. The guidance describes a system-generated reminder roughly 22 months after lodgement asking for updated material, which is why keeping contact details and ImmiAccount access current matters. If the Department cannot reach you after reasonable efforts, it may decide on the evidence it already holds.
What if my relationship ends before the two years are up?
The permanent visa can still be granted in limited circumstances: where the applicant or a dependent child has experienced family violence committed by the sponsoring partner, or the applicant has custody, access or a maintenance obligation for a child of that partner, or where the sponsoring partner has died. Each requires specific documentary proof, and the two-year period does not by itself decide the outcome.
Do I need new police checks and a new health examination?
Police certificates are expected for any country where an applicant has lived for 12 months or more since holding the 820, and they are generally treated as valid for 12 months. Health examinations completed at the 820 stage usually do not need repeating, unless there is new health information, a suspected non-disclosure, a suspicion of fraud, or the 820 has been cancelled for more than 12 months.
How long will the 801 decision take?
There is no fixed statutory deadline for the permanent stage. Practice guidance commonly refers to around six to eighteen months, but the timing depends on how quickly updated documents are provided and whether character, health or integrity checks need to be run.