15
JANUARY 2016 the philippine times www.philtimes.com.au
Migration
Mentor
The Philippine Times
FELIX CARAO
Longest-serving Filipino newspaper
in Australia
De facto partner visa
For our kababayans who
are lucky enough to have
found another life partner
after a failed marriage and
who are not yet divorced or
whose marriage has not been
annulled yet for some reason
can apply for a De Facto Partner Visa, if they have been in
a relationship for one year.
Migration law provides
equal recognition to spouse
relationships and to de facto
partner relationships. De facto
partner applies equally to
opposite and the same sex
couples. It requires mutual
commitment to the exclusion
of all others as in spousal relationship. De facto partners are
considered to be members of a
person’s family and relatives.
It also allows a legallymarried person but permanently living apart from the
estranged partner to be considered in a de facto relationship with another for as long
as it can be shown that the
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