According to the Department of Home Affairs website the current processing times are as follows:
What can I do to reduce the processing time of my application?
At Hansen Migration we have seen many partner and prospective marriage visas granted in under 12 months, so what’s the secret? Submitting a complete application. Every applicant requires evidence of identity, evidence of character and evidence of relationship (financial aspects, nature of household, social aspects and nature of commitment). Whilst it’s not a requirement to submit all documents at the time of application it’s certainly best practice to do so, this includes police clearances and health assessments. Just be mindful that police clearances and health assessments are only valid for 12 months, so if your application happens to take longer than 12 months to be processed you may need to submit them again. This can be a costly exercise given that a health assessment is approximately $350 and police clearances can be anywhere from $20 to $100 (depending on the country). The Department will give you the opportunity to provide any missing documents, so we suggest submitting everything except for the health assessment and then waiting for the Department to request it. Unless of course you’re willing to risk $350 on potentially doing another health assessment.
If I have health or character issues will my application take longer?
Definitely, we find that applications with health or character issues can take an extra 9 to 12 months to be processed when compared to similar applications without such issues.
Onshore vs Offshore?
Offshore partner visa applications tend to be processed quicker than onshore partner visa applications. However, onshore applicants have the added benefit of being able to remain in Australia on a bridging visa whilst awaiting the outcome of their application. Onshore applicants are also eligible for Medicare once their partner visa application has been lodged, and also have work rights once their bridging visa comes into effect.
