JaseandAnne Posted February 5, 2011 Report Share Posted February 5, 2011 Hi Everyone, I wonder if someone can help, Im a divorcee with 2 children from that marriage. I now have a partner and we have a little girl and have just been granted State sponsorship on a 176 skilled visa and now have to apply to DIAC I get on very well with my ex-wife and she has said that she wants the girls (twins aged 9) to have the option to go if they want to, bearing in mind the process could take a few years the girls will be older. My question is if my girls are named on the visa but dont come with us does that invalidate the visa for the rest of us? Also, once granted and activated will the visa last for 5 years? Jase Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest stevieb Posted February 6, 2011 Report Share Posted February 6, 2011 Hi Jase - Permanent visas granted offshore normally have a 'first entry date'. ALL family members must enter Australia by this date. - The main applicant must enter Australia first (or at the same time as the rest of the family). The others must enter Australia after the main applicant and before the 'first entry date'. This is known as 'validating' the visa. - The 'first entry date' is normally around 12 months from the earliest date of police checks and medicals. Some people get less than that if medicals have a lesser validity - 6 months is not unknown. - 'First entry date' cannot be changed after your visa is granted. If there is a problem meeting this date after visa has been granted, you must seek urgent professional advice to liaise with DIMIA so they do not cancel your visas. Only in exceptional circumstances will you be able to keep your visa if you do not respect the 'first entry date'. - If the main applicant validates visa, and the family members do not, the family visas will generally be cancelled but the visa of the main applicant will not be. Main applicant may then sponsor family members for spouse and/or child visas, subject to the requirements at the time. Changes in circumstances - Any changes in circumstances before you validate your visa must be advised to DIAC. - This particularly refers to health and character issues. - Also refers to changes in family composition, eg marriage (including de-facto relationships) or birth of a child. - DIAC do have the right to cancel a visa if a change in circumstance before validation is sufficient to mean that the visa would not have been granted in the first place. How long to make the 'proper' move? - The visa is valid for 5 years from the date of grant (NOT the date the visa is stamped or validated) - You are expected to be in Australia for a total of 2 years (730 days) in this 5 year period. - This is so that you easily qualify for a Resident Return Visa (RRV) after the 5 years is up. You will need an RRV to re-enter Australia as a PR if you are not an Australian citizen. - If you do not meet this requirement but are inside Australia on the expiry date of the visa (5 years hence) the visa does not expire until the moment you set foot outside Australia for any reason. - Hence if you are living in Australia at the end of the 5 year period you will probably not lose your PR but you will face hassle in getting an RRV. - In order to keep life simple, make sure you move to Australia no later than 3 years from visa grant. This ensures you will have the 2 years in Australia required to get an RRV 'no questions asked' at the end of the 5 year period. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JaseandAnne Posted February 6, 2011 Author Report Share Posted February 6, 2011 Thanks Stevie, thats put my mind at rest, I expect with children from a previous marriage the visa application process will be a fairly long one! This gives the kids a bit more time to mature enough to make their own decision. Jase Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Give me a break! Posted February 6, 2011 Report Share Posted February 6, 2011 Just a little word of warning here. It can be a bit of a risk assuming that your ex wife will agree to the children emigrating with you. You have a good relationship with her and that is very good but with something as serious as this its good to get things sorted properly. My Ex Husband already lived in Australia, and I assumed he would agree to allowing our daughter to come to Australia and didnt do anything about it as I thought he would sign the relevent agreement and all would be fine nearer the time. Well his new wife changed things quite a bit and to cut a long story short just at the time of grant when they needed the letter of agreement he refused!! Our grant was then delayed by nearly a year while I had to go to court for an order. It may be worth asking your ex to sign the letter of agreement now so that you can have it ready just in case things dont go to plan. Good luck:smiloe: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JaseandAnne Posted February 7, 2011 Author Report Share Posted February 7, 2011 Hi, Thanks for advice. My plan is to get them a visa with her consent. She believes that it would be a better life for them however i'm not going to force them or her. If they then decide to stay and lose there visa then i'll cross that bridge when i get to it. I have another little girl who i can give abetter life for and if the others come i'll be over the moon. Its gonna be tough if they dont come but i feel i have to give them that option. The other issue is that we have the children half and half which is an agreement between ourselves no courts were involved. If I was to go to court to try and force the issue no court in the UK would endorse taking a child away from their mother, unless she was a bad one!! I would lose and thats extra cost I could do with out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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