Ang Kalatas November 2015 Issue | Page 15

THE MESSAGE. BRINGING INTO FOCUS FILIPINO PRESENCE IN AUSTRALIA www.kalatas.com.au | Volume 6 Number 2 | NOVEMBER 2015 IMMIGRATION Frank and honest disclosure W ith increasing checks by the Department of Immigration and Border Protection on immigration application, applicants and sponsors are reminded to be frank and honest as submission of incorrect info or fake documents will result in the refusal of the application. CASE OF A SECRET PARTNER: This is a case where an applicant formed a partner relationship with a permanent resident in Australia. He was granted temporary partner visa and on filing of permanent visa, the Immigration Officer visited his parents overseas and interviewed his parents and brother. The mother denied that her son has a partner in Australia and the brother separately interviewed confirmed that his brother was married in Australia to a Caucasian woman when in fact the partner was of Chinese decent. The application was denied as the case officer concluded that the relationship was not genuine and the marriage was contrived to obtain permanent residence. ORPHAN VISA APPLICATION: Australian citizen or permanent resident in Australia is allowed to sponsor a relative who is an orphan whose parents are dead, permanently incapacitated or whereabouts unknown. But take note of this actual case: the mother of the child was dead and the relative in Australia instructed the solicitor handling the case that the whereabouts of the father was unknown. On actual home visit by the Immigration Officer from the Australian Embassy at the residence of the child, the neighbour and barangay official confirmed that the husband was living in the vicinity. The application was refused. STUDENT FUNDS: Funds provided by the student applicant, spouse, siblings, parents are subjected to scrutiny as to their source. It is important that the funds are legitimately acquired and genuine as the Embassy will check the deposit from the bank. Further, the money must be in the 11 Deal or no deal? IMMIGRATION ATTY. JESSIE ICAO [email protected] bank at least three months before filing the application unless the funds are proceeds of loan or re-draw facility. Funds from friends and distant relatives are not acceptable. MARRIAGE IN PHILIPPINES VALID IN AUSTRALIA: What if you arrived in Australia on tourist visa and found a prospective partner on arrival? However, you were married overseas but you are of the view that since you were separated more than seven years, you can marry another partner in Australia. In another case the applicant was of the view that he is free to marry as his marriage was overseas. This is wrong as marriage celebrated in Philippines is valid anywhere. With the memorandum of agreement between the NSO and the Australian Embassy in Makati, checks can now be made on line. In fact, if partner visa is lodged in the Philippines, an on-line application is a requirement for the visa application t