Prospective Marriage visa (subclass 300): must the marriage happen in Australia? Conditions 8515, 8519, 8520 (2026)
If you are asking whether the ceremony itself has to be held on Australian soil, the short answer is that the law does not put it that way. Where these conditions are imposed on the visa, what Schedule 8 requires of a Prospective Marriage visa (subclass 300) holder is a sequence: you must not marry or enter into a de facto relationship before you enter Australia (condition 8515), and you must enter into the marriage the visa was granted for within the visa period of that visa (condition 8519, with condition 8520 stating the same requirement for the person who holds a Subclass 300 visa on the basis of having satisfied the primary criteria). This article follows the Schedule 8 text of the Migration Regulations 1994 as published by the Federal Register of Legislation, as at September 2026.
What does condition 8515 stop you from doing before you travel?
Condition 8515 states that the holder of the visa must not marry or enter into a de facto relationship before entering Australia. Two details deserve attention. The first is that it reaches beyond a wedding: entering into a de facto relationship before you enter Australia is caught by exactly the same words. The second is that the prohibition is anchored to entry, not to the location of the ceremony or to the date the visa was granted.
For planning purposes this means that a subclass 300 holder who marries their partner overseas before flying is acting against the condition, even where the marriage is the very marriage the visa was granted for. Take a hypothetical applicant who decides to register the marriage at home first in order to save time later: on the wording of condition 8515, that step puts the visa at risk rather than simplifying anything.
When does the wedding have to take place?
Conditions 8519 and 8520 both tie the marriage to a deadline. Condition 8519 says the holder must enter into the marriage in relation to which the visa was granted within the visa period of the visa. Condition 8520 says the same thing, but frames it around the relevant person who holds a Subclass 300 visa on the basis of having satisfied the primary criteria.
Two phrases do the work here. "The marriage in relation to which the visa was granted" points to the specific marriage you were assessed for, not a different one entered into later. "Within the visa period" points to the life of the visa itself.
Schedule 8 does not set out how long that period is; the dates that govern an individual case are the ones attaching to the visa as granted. The practical reading is therefore straightforward: the wedding has to be solemnised while the visa is still in force.
Why do two conditions say almost the same thing?
The overlap is deliberate in the sense that the provisions operate at different levels of generality. Condition 8519 is drafted for a visa holder generally, while condition 8520 is written specifically for the subclass 300 holder who qualified on the primary criteria. Where both are imposed, they point to the same obligation from two directions.
It is also worth reading the note attached to each of these conditions. It records that whether a visa of a particular class may be made subject to the condition depends on the relevant provision in Schedule 2 of the Migration Regulations 1994, and that cancellation for breaches of conditions is dealt with under the Migration Act 1958 at sections 41 and 116 to 119. In other words, Schedule 8 tells you what a condition means; Schedule 2 tells you whether it can be attached to a class in the first place.
So does the marriage have to happen in Australia?
Read together, the conditions do not impose a venue requirement in so many words — they impose a sequencing requirement. Condition 8515 closes the door on marrying before you enter Australia, and conditions 8519 and 8520 require the marriage to take place within the visa period. For a subclass 300 holder those two rules leave one workable window: after entry, while the visa remains in effect.
That is why the safest planning assumption is a wedding in Australia following arrival. Where the wording matters most is if your plan involves entering Australia and then travelling offshore again to marry: the conditions are written around entry and the visa period rather than around geography, so that is a point where the exact text should be weighed carefully against your own circumstances.
What happens if the marriage does not happen in time?
The condition text itself does not spell out a consequence. The note under each condition refers instead to the Migration Act 1958, sections 41 and 116 to 119, for cancellation following a breach of a visa condition. So the answer to "what happens next" lives in the cancellation provisions of the Act rather than in Schedule 8.
What follows from the wording is narrower but still useful: a marriage that falls outside the visa period is not a late version of what the condition requires — it is a marriage that does not satisfy the condition at all.
Are these conditions attached to every subclass 300 visa?
Schedule 8 does not answer that on its own. As the note explains, whether a visa of a particular class may be made subject to one of these conditions depends on the relevant provision in Schedule 2 of the Migration Regulations 1994. Attachment is therefore determined by the Schedule 2 provision for that class, and the conditions that govern a particular holder are the ones imposed on the visa as granted.
This is general information about how the conditions are written and should not be taken as advice on an individual case; where your plans sit close to the edges of these rules, the current official text and a qualified professional's assessment are what you should rely on, and it is worth re-checking the wording in force closer to your travel date.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a subclass 300 visa require the wedding to be held in Australia?
The conditions do not state a location requirement; they require that the marriage not take place before you enter Australia and that it take place within the visa period. Those two rules together leave the window after entry, while the visa is still in force. The practical planning assumption is therefore a wedding in Australia following arrival.
What exactly does condition 8515 prohibit?
Condition 8515 provides that the holder of the visa must not marry or enter into a de facto relationship before entering Australia. It covers entering into a de facto relationship as well as marrying, and it is anchored to the point of entry rather than to the date the visa was granted.
What is the difference between condition 8519 and condition 8520?
Both require the marriage in relation to which the visa was granted to be entered into within the visa period. Condition 8519 is drafted for a visa holder generally, while condition 8520 is specifically framed around the relevant person who holds a Subclass 300 visa on the basis of having satisfied the primary criteria.
Can I marry my partner before travelling to Australia?
On the wording of condition 8515, no — the holder must not marry or enter into a de facto relationship before entering Australia. This applies even where the marriage is the one the visa was granted for. Marrying first overseas is therefore not a shortcut; it is a potential breach.
What if we cannot marry within the visa period?
The condition requires the marriage to be entered into within the visa period, so a marriage after that point does not meet the condition. The consequence of a breach is addressed through the cancellation provisions of the Migration Act 1958 at sections 41 and 116 to 119, rather than in the text of the condition itself.
Do conditions 8515, 8519 and 8520 apply automatically to subclass 300?
No condition applies automatically by virtue of Schedule 8 alone. The note to each condition states that whether a visa of a particular class may be made subject to it depends on the relevant provision in Schedule 2 of the Migration Regulations 1994.
Where can I read the exact wording of these conditions?
The conditions are set out in Schedule 8 of the Migration Regulations 1994, published by the Federal Register of Legislation. Reading the current text is worthwhile before finalising wedding dates, since the wording in force at the time is what governs your visa.