Partner visa allows spouses or de facto partners (including same-sex partners) of Australian citizens, permanent residents or eligible New Zealand citizens to stay in Australia.
To be eligible for this visa you must be married or able to prove a de-facto relationship for at least 12 months immediately prior to the visa application. In certain circumstances the period for de-facto relationships can be shorter, for example when the relationship is registered in Australia (not available in all states).

 

Generally it is a two stage application process and it takes at least 2 years to get Permanent Residency visa as a spouse or de-facto partner.
During the first stage partners need to demonstrate this is a genuine and continuing relationship by:

• describing history of the relationship such as how they met, how the relationship developed, and when they decided to get married or start a de-facto relationship.
• providing financial evidence of their relationship such as joint accounts or property.
• demonstrating joint nature of household living such as joint rental or utility bills, correspondence to the same address.
• presenting social context of the relationship such as joint travel, photos, invitations, statutory declarations from family and friends.