After the 801 or 100 is granted, a break up does not take the visa away: a permanent visa cannot be cancelled under s 116(1) of the Migration Act while you are in Australia and were immigration cleared on your last entry (s 117(2)).
While the application is still undecided, report the change through the Notification of Relationship Cessation form in ImmiAccount (Migration Act s 104).
The exceptions have specific tests under the Migration Regulations 1994, including clauses 801.221(5)–(6) and the corresponding 100 provisions. Separation does not itself establish that you qualify.
Relationship ended before the permanent decision? An Australian migration lawyer can check which exception your evidence may support. The shared enquiry form sends private questions to Australian Migration Lawyers.
Your visa stage: consequence and next step
The following stage card summarises the Migration Regulations 1994, Migration Act 1958 and Home Affairs’ partner visa guidance.
| When the relationship ends | What happens to the visa | What can keep a permanent visa possible | What to do now |
|---|---|---|---|
| Before the 820 or 309 is decided | A first-stage grant requires an applicable relationship-ended exception under clauses 820.221 or 309.221 | Family violence, the child provision or the sponsor’s death, subject to the stage-specific tests | Notify under s 104; check any response deadline |
| 820 or 309 granted, 801 or 100 undecided | The permanent visa cannot be granted on the continuing relationship; under clause 820.511, the 820 stays until the 801 decision is notified or the application is withdrawn | The same three exceptions; an early grant or refusal is possible under clauses 801.221(7) and 100.221(7) | Notify and gather evidence for the exception |
| 801 or 100 already granted | Separation does not itself end the permanent visa; s 117(2) protects against s 116(1) cancellation in the circumstances above | No relationship-ended exception needed | Nothing to notify for a decided application; incorrect information or an earlier failure to notify can still raise s 109 issues |
| Current Prospective Marriage (300) holder | Since 1 July 2024, family violence and child pathways allow an 820/801 application without marriage | Family violence or the child provision; sponsor’s death for current holders only | Check the pathway and apply for the 820/801; the standard base charge for a current 300 holder is $1,955 from 1 July 2026 |
Under Schedule 1 of the Migration Regulations 1994, eligible Pacific-region passport holders have a lower charge; additional applicants also affect the total. Under regulation 2.15, the usual written response period for an onshore application where the applicant is in Australia and not detained is 28 days; an offshore application’s invitation specifies a reasonable period.
What happens if you break up on a partner visa?
Before the first-stage decision, yes, a grant can remain possible, but only through an applicable exception under clauses 820.221 or 309.221 of the Migration Regulations 1994.
Between the 820/309 grant and the 801/100 decision, the continuing-relationship basis no longer applies—clause 801.221(2)(c) requires you still to be the sponsoring partner’s spouse or de facto partner—but clause 820.511 keeps the 820 in effect until the 801 decision is notified or the application is withdrawn.
After the permanent grant, no, separation does not itself take the visa away, and s 117(2) of the Migration Act 1958 prevents s 116(1) cancellation while you are in Australia and were immigration cleared on your last entry.
Relationship ended before the 801 or 100 decision
The ordinary onshore pathway requires you to remain the sponsor’s partner, remain sponsored and hold the 820 after at least two years from the combined application, under clause 801.221(2) of the Migration Regulations 1994. It is a further decision, not an automatic transition.
| Your position | Consequence | Possible remedy | Deadline or immediate action |
|---|---|---|---|
| First-stage 820/309 applicant | Continuing-relationship criteria cannot support the grant | Establish an applicable relationship-ended exception under clauses 820.221 or 309.221 | Report the change under Migration Act s 104; check the invitation’s response period |
| 820 holder awaiting 801 | The 801 faces refusal unless an exception applies; an 801 refusal ends the 820 under clause 820.511 | Evidence the family violence, child or death provision; if refused, check ART review rights | Usually 28 days for a written onshore response while in Australia and not detained; review within 28 days of notification, or 14 if detained |
| 309 holder awaiting 100 | The 100 faces refusal unless an exception applies | Evidence the relevant provision; family violence requires entry to Australia after applying; clause 309.222(4) removes continued sponsorship at the 309 decision where a relationship-ended provision applies | Notify while undecided; use the response period in the letter; check whether a refusal is reviewable |
| Current 300 holder | The ended engagement requires assessment of a separate 820/801 pathway | Family violence or child pathway without marriage since 1 July 2024; death pathway for current holders | Check the 300 expiry and 820/801 application requirements before lodgement |
Home Affairs’ Partner visa FAQs confirm that after permanent Partner visa refusal, you no longer hold the temporary Partner visa. Nevertheless, clauses 801.221(8) and 100.221(4A) of the Migration Regulations 1994 preserve a route to permanent grant following an ART remittal or determination.
The ART’s Immigration and citizenship page says it cannot extend the review deadline. Under Migration Act s 347, a reviewable migration refusal must be challenged within 28 days after notification, or 14 days if the applicant was in immigration detention on that day; do not assume every 100 refusal has review rights—have the notice and location requirements checked.
Relationship breakdown after the 801 is granted
No: a later break up does not itself end your 801. The same applies to the 100, with the protection in s 117(2) of the Migration Act 1958 subject to being in Australia and having been immigration cleared on your last entry.
That protection is not immunity from every cancellation power. Migration Act s 109 can apply to incorrect information, bogus documents or failure to notify a relevant change while the application was pending; character cancellation under s 501 also remains available.
Granted straight after the first stage: the long-term relationship exception
A long-term partner relationship means, under regulation 1.03 of the Migration Regulations 1994, a relationship lasting at least 3 years at application, or 2 years with a dependent child of both partners, excluding a step-child. Clauses 801.221(6A) and 100.221(5) remove the two-year wait, allowing permanent grant straight after the 820/309.
A break up after that permanent grant is therefore a break up after the 801/100—not a temporary-stage separation merely because fewer than two years have passed.
Notifying the Department that the relationship has ended
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Use the current partner-visa route. Home Affairs’ Subclass 820 guidance directs applicants to the Notification of Relationship Cessation form in ImmiAccount, or the Partner Processing Enquiry Form if ImmiAccount cannot be used.
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Report the changed circumstances while the application is pending. Migration Act s 104 requires notification of relevant changes affecting application answers; Home Affairs’ Form 1022 remains the general change-of-circumstances form.
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Read and answer the Department’s invitation. Migration Act s 57 requires relevant adverse information from another source, such as sponsor withdrawal information, to be put to the applicant with an invitation to comment before decision.
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Distinguish notification from sponsor withdrawal. Home Affairs’ Subclass 820 sponsor guidance requires withdrawal in writing; removing an application from ImmiAccount is not withdrawal. If you are the sponsor, see how to withdraw sponsorship for partner visa applications in writing.
Keep a copy of what you submit and any acknowledgement. If there is a letter, give the lawyer the whole letter and its notification details, not just a screenshot of the deadline.
Staying eligible after the relationship ends
The Migration Regulations 1994 provide three possible pathways—family violence, the child provision and death of the sponsor—and clause 801.221(7) allows an early permanent grant under them, as well as an early refusal.
Family violence by the sponsor?
Yes, potentially: clause 801.221(6)(c)(i) of the Migration Regulations 1994 permits grant after the relationship ceases where the applicant, or a dependent child of the sponsor, applicant or both, experienced family violence committed by the sponsoring partner. Home Affairs’ Family violence provisions for partner visa applicants guidance says it first assesses whether the relationship was genuine and continuing before it ended, then the violence claim; see the family violence provisions for the evidence requirements.
A child of the relationship?
Yes, potentially—but having a child together is not the whole test. Under clauses 801.221(6)(c)(ii), 820.221(3)(b)(ii) and 100.221(4AA) of the Migration Regulations 1994:
- The applicant must have custody, joint custody or access, or a residence or contact order, for at least one qualifying child.
- The sponsor must have joint custody or access, a residence or contact order, or a child maintenance order or other formal maintenance obligation for that child.
The clause’s terminology matters. How modern parenting orders map onto its older custody/access wording is not settled by the government guidance available here; ask a migration lawyer to check the actual arrangements and orders rather than assuming they satisfy the test.
If the sponsor dies
Yes, a permanent grant may remain possible. Clause 801.221(5) of the Migration Regulations 1994 requires that you would have continued as the spouse or de facto partner had the sponsor not died; corresponding provisions exist at the 820, 309 and 100 stages and for current 300 holders.
The Migration Amendment (Family Violence Provisions for Partner Visa Applicants) Regulations 2024 do not extend the death pathway to former 300 holders. Current and former holder status must therefore be checked separately.
Divorce and separation: what changes for the visa
For visa purposes, separation and divorce are not interchangeable. Migration Act s 5F requires a valid marriage, mutual commitment to a shared life, a genuine and continuing relationship, and living together or not permanently apart; s 5CB sets corresponding de facto tests without marriage and excludes family relationships.
Permanent separation can therefore end spouse status for the visa before a divorce order is made. A temporary period living apart is not, by itself, the same thing as permanent separation under those Migration Act definitions.
Divorce procedure, property settlement and parenting disputes are family-law matters for a family lawyer. The immigration questions are whether an exception applies, what evidence supports it and what to tell Home Affairs.
For a subclass 100 visa divorce, or a spouse visa after divorce in Australia, an already-granted 100 or 801 does not end merely because of divorce, subject to the cancellation distinctions in Migration Act ss 109, 117(2) and 501.
A new relationship and a new sponsorship
A new partner cannot take over the existing sponsorship. Home Affairs’ Subclass 820 page states: “You cannot change your sponsor.” A new partner means considering a new application, not substituting a name in the existing one.
Home Affairs’ Subclass 820 guidance also warns that being granted any other visa ends 801 eligibility. This includes a subclass 444 grant at the border: a New Zealand citizen pursuing the 801 must decline that grant.
A new sponsor’s approval is subject to regulation 1.20J of the Migration Regulations 1994: ordinarily, no more than one earlier sponsored partner may have been granted a relevant permission, at least 5 years must have passed since that person’s application, and 5 years since the sponsor’s own sponsored-partner application, if applicable. The regulation permits approval despite those limits for compelling circumstances affecting the sponsor; see sponsorship limitation.
Common mistakes after a partner visa break up
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Not reporting the break up while the 801/100 is pending. Migration Act s 104 requires notification; failure can later engage s 109.
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Assuming the 820 ended on separation day. Clause 820.511 of the Migration Regulations 1994 ties its duration to notification of the 801 decision or withdrawal, not the separation date.
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Withdrawing the application in a hurry. Home Affairs’ Withdraw a visa application guidance says partner withdrawal covers both stages; a relevant BVA ends 35 days after withdrawal notice, and Migration Act s 49(4) makes fees non-refundable unless the Regulations provide otherwise.
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Accepting another visa without checking the effect. Home Affairs’ Subclass 820 guidance says another visa grant ends 801 eligibility.
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Relying only on an informal care arrangement. Clause 801.221(6)(c)(ii) requires the specified custody, access, orders or maintenance conditions on both sides—not simply an appeal to a child’s best interests.
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Expecting a new partner to become the sponsor. Home Affairs’ Subclass 820 guidance expressly prohibits changing the sponsor.
A ceased relationship is not a prescribed partner-visa cancellation ground in regulation 2.43 of the Migration Regulations 1994. However, Migration Act s 116(1)(a) contains a general changed-circumstances ground; the available Home Affairs guidance does not establish whether it uses that power against 820/309 holders after separation, so “the Department can never cancel” is too broad.
Can my ex-partner cancel my permanent residency?
No. Your partner cannot cancel your visa; cancellation is a government decision. Migration Act s 117(2) protects an 801/100 from s 116(1) cancellation in Australia after immigration clearance on the last entry, but ss 109 and 501 remain relevant.
Do I have to leave Australia after a separation?
Not merely because you separate. Clause 820.511 keeps the 820 in effect until the 801 decision is notified or withdrawn; a valid BVA supporting an undecided 820 application is not ended by separation itself under clause 010.511. If the 801 is refused, check lawful status immediately and the Migration Act s 347 review deadline—normally 28 days.
Does a de facto break up work the same way?
Yes. Clauses 801.221 and 100.221 of the Migration Regulations 1994 cover spouses and de facto partners, including the relationship-ended exceptions.
Can the 801 be granted before 2 years after a break up?
Yes, where a relevant exception applies. Clause 801.221(7) of the Migration Regulations 1994 permits early grant under the family violence, child or death provision—and also permits early refusal.
A lawyer’s help when the relationship ends
There is no reliable published relationship-ended legal-fee figure in the material available for this guide. Ask for a written quote covering eligibility assessment, evidence preparation, the Department response and any separately priced review work.
A partner visa with Australian Migration Lawyers usually costs $14,000 plus GST, separate from the Home Affairs visa application charge.
A migration lawyer can check your visa stage, separation chronology, exception criteria, missing documents and response deadline. That review is a concrete preparation step, not a prediction of grant or review success.
PartnerVisaLawyer.com.au is a guide to legal help with Australian partner visas, not a law firm. The shared enquiry form sends private questions to Australian Migration Lawyers.
After a relationship ends, ask an Australian migration lawyer to identify whether the child, family-violence or death-of-sponsor provision applies and prepare evidence for the Department’s response period.