Ok. Heres one for you. I'm British but have residence in Oz. My girlfriend is Thai. We are gonna get married next year in October in Thailand Then the following March going to Sydney to stay for a few years.What visa should she apply for?

Spouse visa? I heard that this can take maybe 9 months, so not enough time before March. Is this true?

Tourist visa? Not the best choice as she would have to leave after 3 or 6 months.

Can she apply for a fiance visa before we get married and then change it later?

Its a year away but as you can imagine we want to get things rolling as soon as we need to. What about agents? How much would they charge on top off visa charges? Wouldn't mind paying a few extra grand if it saves me the hassle dealing with unhelpful people at the embassy. Also, they say they can 100% guarantee getting her visa. Is this true? Any info you can give me would be much appreciated

All family applicants must be sponsored by an Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident or an eligible New Zealand citizen. The sponsor must be 18 years or over.

For official Oz government info on sponsoring fiancee go to:

http://www.immi.gov.au/sponsor/partner_permanent.htm

I don't know if Brits are given any special consideration when applying for residencey in a commonwealth country like Australia, but you would have to become a resident of Australia under their migration laws and then you could sponsor your wife as a resident.

I'm already a resident in Oz. But the question is what visa should my girlfriend apply for and when. Read the original post for more info.l

I'm already a resident in Oz. But the question is what visa should my girlfriend apply for and when. Read the original post for more info.l

Go to the URL provided above repeated below and then decide on visa req'd. You will need a legally registered Thai marriage, not "just" a temple wedding. Strongly recommend you visit BKK visa section to confirm you and your girlfriend can supply all relevant paperwork prior to getting married. If all is okay should take no more than 3/6 months to get the spouse permanent resident visa. But as always don't make decisions based on replies received via a public forum. Do your own research with Oz goverment.

http://www.immi.gov.au/sponsor/partner_permanent.htm

Hi Jockstar,

I am bit confused, in the header you are saying .."oz resident but no passport"..

are you saying that your are a UK citizen, but don't have a re-entry stamp for Australia, or you have lost your passport, or does the .. but no passport.. refer to your fiance? If you are a UK citizen, you can have dual nationality, AUS and UK, maybe that would be the way to go. Also, if you have problems proving your right to reside in Australia, maybe it would be easier if you returned to the UK after you get married, then apply for the correct visa for your wife. If's that's not what you want, maybe you should talk to the AUS embassy in Bangkok. Cheers, Sybille

Sorry Sybille if you were confused. Basically i have a uk passport with an Oz residence visa and is valid till april 2008. So worries on that score. Mas just unsure of what visa to apply for the missus. Should apply for the fiance visa before we get married in October next year or wait till we are married and get a spouse visa. But how long will that take. we are planning on going to Oz in March 2006. Do you see where i'm coming from?

Your application for spouse or fiancee visa will get a more favourable response if you are an Australian citizen. Why not obtain? It's a very simple process and only takes a few months. You will retain your British citizenship. If you're getting married get a spouse visa.