Proving a De Facto Relationship: What Counts as Evidence for a Partner Visa
Home Affairs’ subclass 820 visa page treats evidence of the relationship and statements from witnesses as related but distinct requirements. The subclass 309 Partner (Provisional) visa page confirms the same evidence framework for offshore applications, while the subclass 300 Prospective Marriage visa page confirms the witness and Form 888 framework at the prospective-marriage stage.
What the 12-month rule means
The subclass 820 visa page states:
“To be a de facto partner, you must be in a de facto relationship.”
The cited section does not provide a longer definition or add a separate living-arrangement test. It also states:
“Usually you must be in a de facto relationship for at least 12 months immediately before you apply for this visa.”
The subclass 309 Partner (Provisional) visa page confirms the same usual 12-month wording for that visa. This should not be extended automatically to every Partner visa stage: the cited subclass 300 material confirms the witness framework, but does not state the subclass 820 duration rule.
There is an express qualification on the subclass 820 page:
“The 12-month requirement will not apply if you can show us compelling and compassionate circumstances exist for you to be granted the temporary Partner visa.”
The quoted passage does not define those circumstances, so no narrower test can be supplied from the cited material.
The four official evidence pillars
For a subclass 820 application, the operative checklist is the “Documents” section of the subclass 820 visa page. A separate Home Affairs relationship evidence page sits under the family-violence provisions. It is useful because it sets out the official four-part evidence taxonomy, but it is not the standard evidence checklist for a first Partner visa application. The subclass 309 page confirms the same four-pillar structure.
Financial matters
The subclass 820 page gives these financial examples:
- joint mortgage or lease documents
- joint loan documents for major assets like homes, cars or major appliances
- joint bank account statements
- household bills in both names
These are concrete forms of joint financial and household documentation. The page does not state that all four items are compulsory or assign one item more weight than another.
Household
Under “Your household”, the subclass 820 page gives these examples:
- a statement about how you share housework
- household bills in both names
- mail or emails addressed to you both
- documents that show joint responsibility for children
- documents that prove your living arrangements
The financial list also includes household bills in both names. That overlap appears in the official lists and may help organise records under more than one heading.
Social matters
The subclass 820 page describes this category as evidence that others know about the relationship. Its examples are:
- joint invitations or evidence you go out together
- proof you have friends in common
- proof you have told government, public or commercial bodies about your relationship
- proof you do joint sporting, cultural or social activities together
- proof you travel together
These examples address different aspects of the relationship known to other people. The page does not prescribe a particular number of social records.
Commitment to each other
The Home Affairs relationship evidence page gives the following examples under “Your commitment to each other”:
- Proof you have knowledge of each other’s background, family situation or other personal details
- Proof you did combine your personal matters
- The terms of your wills
- Proof you stayed in touch when apart
- Proof of day-to-day communication
Because this list comes from the family-violence provisions page, it should be read as the source of the fourth official pillar rather than represented as a separate subclass 820 checklist.
Why Form 888 and statutory declarations are different
The subclass 820 page sets out separate requirements for supporting statements and statutory declarations. They have different stated functions and are not interchangeable.
Form 888 supporting statements
The subclass 820 visa page says:
“You must provide statements from 2 witnesses who: - are 18 years old or older - know you and your spouse or de facto partner - know about your relationship.”
The page says these statements can be completed using:
“Form 888 – Supporting statement in relation to a Partner or Prospective Marriage visa application.”
If a witness is an Australian citizen or permanent resident, the page says to provide evidence of that status, such as a passport or birth certificate.
Statutory declarations
Separately from the Form 888 statements, the subclass 820 page requires:
“Include a minimum of two statutory declarations, each made within the last six weeks by an Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen confirming that you and your sponsor are in a married or de facto relationship.”
The page says the Commonwealth Statutory Declaration form is available from the Attorney-General’s Department. It also requires evidence that each declarant is an Australian citizen or permanent resident, or an eligible New Zealand citizen, giving a passport or birth certificate as examples.
The official warning is explicit:
“Form 888 ‘Supporting statement in relation to a Partner or Prospective Marriage visa application’ is not a statutory declaration. The current and any previous versions of the Form 888 are not acceptable as they do not satisfy this requirement.”
This creates two separate obligations. Form 888 supports the witness-statement requirement, but it cannot satisfy the statutory-declaration requirement. The statutory declarations separately confirm the applicant and sponsor are married or in a de facto relationship and must meet the stated timing and status requirements.
The subclass 309 Partner (Provisional) visa page repeats the same wording about the 2 witnesses, Form 888 and statutory declarations. The subclass 300 Prospective Marriage visa page also confirms the requirement for statements from 2 witnesses who are 18 years old or older and know about the relationship.
The consequence of missing declaration information
The subclass 820 page gives a direct warning about the statutory declaration information:
“If this information is not included when you lodge your application, it may be deemed invalid.”
The official wording is “may”, so the consequence should not be rewritten as an automatic invalidity in every case. It is nevertheless a stated risk: a Form 888 does not replace the missing statutory declaration, and a driver’s licence or Medicare card is not sufficient evidence of a declarant’s required status.
What the official evidence does not rank
The cited Home Affairs material does not provide a points score, percentage system, weighting, order of priority or statement that one category decides an application. It also does not describe any listed document as carrying strong but little weight. Any comparison between the relative weight of joint records, witness statements, declarations or commitment evidence would go beyond the cited official pages.
The subclass 820 page separately states that the applicant must be in a genuine relationship with their spouse or de facto partner and that the spouse or de facto partner must sponsor the applicant. Those eligibility requirements are stated separately from the examples of supporting evidence.
A source-grounded check before lodgement
The published requirements can be checked in this order:
- Check the relationship period: For a subclass 820 or subclass 309 de facto claim, check the applicable visa page for the usual requirement of at least 12 months immediately before the application. The cited subclass 820 passage also contains the compelling and compassionate circumstances qualification.
- Organise relationship records: Use the official financial, household, social and commitment examples to identify relevant records without assuming that every listed item is compulsory.
- Obtain witness statements: The subclass 820 and subclass 309 pages require statements from 2 witnesses who meet the stated age and knowledge conditions. Those statements can be completed on Form 888.
- Include declarations separately: Include a minimum of two statutory declarations, each made within the last six weeks by a person within the stated status categories, confirming the married or de facto relationship.
- Include declarant-status evidence: A passport or birth certificate is given as an example. A driver’s licence or Medicare card is not sufficient.
- Check the lodgement package: Do not treat the Form 888 statements as satisfying the separate statutory-declaration requirement, because the official page warns that missing information may result in the application being deemed invalid.
Common questions
Does time spent dating or in an online relationship count?
The subclass 820 visa page says, “Time spent dating or in an online relationship might not count as being in a de facto relationship.” It uses “might not count”, rather than stating that every online relationship is automatically excluded.
Can the same people complete Form 888 and make the statutory declarations?
The cited pages do not state that Form 888 witnesses and statutory declarants must be different people, or that the same people may perform both roles. They do state that the statements and declarations are separate requirements, and Form 888 does not satisfy the statutory declaration requirement.
What evidence proves a statutory declarant’s status?
The subclass 820 page gives a passport or birth certificate as examples of evidence that the declarant is an Australian citizen or permanent resident, or an eligible New Zealand citizen. A driver’s licence or Medicare card is explicitly not sufficient evidence.
Must every example under the four evidence headings be provided?
The official wording includes “Evidence can include” and “Types of evidence you could give us”. The cited pages do not state that every listed example is compulsory or set a required document count for a category.
Does a complete set of relationship evidence guarantee a Partner visa grant?
No. The cited Home Affairs pages do not promise a grant or say that any listed item alone is sufficient. Evidence supports the application, but the published material does not guarantee an outcome.