Spouse Visa to Oz - how long did yours take? I think I've left it too late !!!

[Jackaroo]

Didn't realise I had to allow up to 12 weeks, am still waiting for my medical, and supporting statements from friends... and we're leaving 12 weeks today also, I've been in such a fog of denial (see depression thread lol!)... and other issues....

Is it all going to go horriby horribly wrong?

J

Are you able to lodge it in person at Australia House??

An acquaintance of mine lodged his at AUstralia House and it seemed to come through very quickly.

Apparently ( hearsay evidence) is that if you lodge it personally - once they close the counter - those ones lodged personally are then dealt with by the person who took them at the counter iyswim. Also may be quicker if you can pick it up too.

I think SuzyW's came through quite quickly from memory.

JAckaroo - didnt realise it was you over on the British Expats thread as well! You didnt PM me! Seriously I dont think you have anything to worry about.

Have you had your medical yet? If not, haev you booked it? And have you been into your police station to get your police check form sent off as that takes up to 40 days to come back?

Are you RachelH then???? Ha! No we were busy working on DH's CV and covering letter for potential great job last night... dead by 10.30!

I've printed of the police form, but I think it's the wrong one (data protection, not convictions list...).. yes, easy to get to Australia House, that's what I was planning. DH works up the road from it...

Medicals are Saturday week. So I've got a lot sorted in my head at least in the 24 hours lol!!

Dying to sleep whilst DS has his nap today, but might just plough through the paperwork. Determined to be as finished as poss. by Sunday night...

Thanks guys, good just having someone to listen...

yes indeed I am!

I think if you go into your local police station they will be able to give you the right form and you dont have to fill too much detail in.

I also found the waiting for people to get bits and pieces back to me the hardest part, kept having to hassle them. It was only 2 stat decs though so at least its only two people to have to hassle!

Have you got all your docs certified? Birth cert, marriage cert, proof of income (I did DH's P60 from last year), DH's passport, my passport etc. Think I sent you a list of docs I had certified before? If not I can send again.

I am on bloody tenterhooks having sent mine off......it was only two days ago and am already wondering when it will come back or if they will ask me for more info....

get the police thing in ASAP
that's what took the longest when DH did his NZ application

Is your DH an Australian citizen or just on a residency visa? My husband's came through very quickly (about five or six weeks, I think), but I am a citizen so I don't know if that made it quicker.

Get the medical done quick smart and hassle your friends for their statements. The consulate also told us that the sheer quantity of supporting information we supplied was helpful - I am a packrat and could give them boarding passes and hotel bills from holidays we took together six or seven years ago. And the other thing they particularly liked was wedding photos - not of bride & groom, but of the reception room set up for 100 people, lion dance (these are quite expensive), all the guests. I suppose people don't spend a lot of money on a fake passport marriage.

You should be fine, as long as you make sure you make sure you submit absolutely everything they need. If they have to come back to you for xxx or yyy it will waste time.

Ooh, thanks for that - I was thinking of including emails from when we met and the first year when DH lived in New York, just one or two, so they could see what our minds were doing even back then...

also, didn't think of candid wedding photos - yep they'll see how much we blew on it..

Thought I might include several excerpts from my 6 days of delivery/labour notes that show that DH was there pretty much every single minute...???

I'm getting there, just one more day at work with a bit of peace to get through those emails

That all sounds like good stuff to include. One of the other things that helped was photos of my husband with me at my great-aunt's 90th birthday - anything that proves you're a legitimate family. I have no doubt a child counts on that score!