Why the Statutory Declaration Matters
The partner visa application β whether Subclass 820/801 (onshore) or Subclass 309/100 (offshore) β requires you to demonstrate that your relationship is genuine and ongoing. Unlike some other visa types where you tick boxes and attach standard documents, the partner visa asks you to prove the nature of your relationship across multiple dimensions.
The primary way you do this is through a statutory declaration β a formal written statement sworn or affirmed before an authorised witness (such as a Justice of the Peace, solicitor, or police officer). Your statutory declaration is your opportunity to tell the story of your relationship in your own words, organised around the four relationship aspects that Home Affairs uses to assess partner visa applications.
A weak statutory declaration is one of the most common reasons partner visa applications are delayed, subjected to a request for further information, or refused. This guide walks through each of the four required aspects and explains what the decision-maker is actually looking for.
The Legal Framework: How Home Affairs Assesses Partner Relationships
The criteria for the partner visas are set out in Schedule 2 to the Migration Regulations 1994. Whether a couple is in a genuine de facto relationship or a genuine marriage for migration purposes is assessed against the definition in sections 5CB and 5F of the Migration Act 1958, as supplemented by the considerations in Ministerial Direction No. 80 (or the current equivalent direction in force at the time of assessment).
Ministerial Direction 80 requires Home Affairs decision-makers to assess the relationship across four main aspects:
- Financial aspects of the relationship
- Nature of the household
- Social aspects of the relationship
- Commitment to each other
Your statutory declaration should be structured around these four headings. Using the headings explicitly in your declaration makes it easier for the decision-maker to locate and assess the relevant information, which reflects positively on the application’s organisation.
Aspect 1: Financial Aspects of the Relationship
This aspect covers how you and your partner manage your financial affairs together. The decision-maker is looking for evidence that your finances are genuinely intertwined in the way a real couple’s finances are β not maintained as entirely separate and independent financial lives.
What to Include
- Joint accounts β describe any joint bank accounts, including when they were opened, what they are used for (regular expenses, savings, holidays), and who contributes to them and how often
- Shared expenses β explain how you divide or share rent/mortgage, utilities, groceries, and other household costs
- Joint purchases β property, vehicles, household items purchased together
- Insurance and superannuation β whether you are named on each other’s life insurance policies or as beneficiaries in superannuation
- Financial support β if one partner has financially supported the other during a period of unemployment, study, or illness
- Joint liabilities β shared debts, mortgages, or joint credit facilities
What to Avoid
Do not simply list documents. Your statutory declaration should explain the financial arrangement in narrative form. Instead of “We have a joint account,” write: “In [month, year], we opened a joint savings account at [bank] to pool our contributions toward a deposit for a home. We each contribute [amount] per fortnight. The account has been used for [purpose].” The more specific and verifiable the description, the more weight it carries.
Do not claim financial interdependence that is not supported by the documents in your application. Decision-makers will notice if your declaration describes extensive joint finances but your supporting documents show entirely separate financial lives.
Aspect 2: Nature of the Household
This aspect covers your domestic living arrangements β who lives where, how long you have lived together, and how household responsibilities are shared.
What to Include
- Living arrangements β describe your current and past shared addresses, including when you moved in together and why (if relevant)
- Division of household duties β who does the cooking, cleaning, grocery shopping, gardening, car maintenance, and other domestic tasks. Be specific: “We alternate cooking on weekdays; my partner typically cooks on weekends.” Generic statements like “we share household duties” are weak.
- Care of children or dependants β if you have children together or dependants in the household, describe your parenting or care arrangements
- Periods of separation β if you have lived apart for any significant period (for work, study, family reasons), explain the circumstances and how you maintained the relationship during that time
Addressing Long-Distance Relationships
For offshore applications (Subclass 309), the couple has not yet lived together in Australia. Your declaration should describe the living arrangements you have had in your home country, the contact you have maintained while apart (frequency of video calls, messages, visits), and your plans for cohabitation once the visa is granted. The decision-maker expects that offshore couples often have not lived together long-term β the absence of cohabitation history is not itself fatal, but you must demonstrate the relationship’s genuine nature through other aspects.
Aspect 3: Social Aspects of the Relationship
This aspect covers the social dimension of your relationship β how you present as a couple to friends, family, and the broader community.
What to Include
- How you met β a brief account of the circumstances of your first meeting, how the relationship developed from there
- How your families know about the relationship β describe when and how you introduced each other to your respective families, how family members have responded, whether families have met each other
- Shared social activities β activities you do together: dining out, travel, sporting activities, community events, cultural or religious celebrations
- How you are known as a couple β whether your relationship is known to your employer, whether you have attended work social events as a couple, whether friends and neighbours know you are together
- Travel together β trips you have taken as a couple (domestic and international), with reference to supporting evidence such as photos and booking records
- Social media and communications β whether you appear together on social media profiles, recognising each other publicly as partners
Third-Party Statutory Declarations
In addition to your own declaration, you should obtain statutory declarations from at least two people who know you both as a couple β typically friends, colleagues, or family members. These third-party declarations independently corroborate the social aspects of your relationship. They should describe how the declarant knows you, how long they have known you as a couple, and specific observations about your relationship. A third-party declaration that says only “I know [name] and [name] and they are a genuine couple” adds almost no evidentiary value β it needs specific, concrete detail.
Aspect 4: Commitment to Each Other
This aspect covers the mutual commitment that characterises a genuine long-term partnership β the sense that you have built a shared future and intend to continue that shared future.
What to Include
- Future plans β describe your plans as a couple: plans to purchase property, plans to have children (if applicable and voluntarily included), career plans that are made jointly, plans for where you want to live long-term
- Knowledge of each other β demonstrate that you have an intimate familiarity with each other as people: your partner’s career and professional history, their family background, their health history (where relevant), their personal interests and habits
- Duration of the relationship β describe the length of the relationship and significant milestones: when you first became a couple, when you moved in together, when you became engaged or married, when you first met each other’s families
- How you have navigated challenges together β if the relationship has faced difficulties (illness, employment loss, family situations, geographical distance), how you supported each other through those periods is strong evidence of genuine commitment
- Exclusivity β for de facto relationships, the commitment aspect includes the exclusive nature of the relationship β that you are each other’s committed partner and not in other concurrent relationships
How to Format and Structure the Declaration
A partner visa statutory declaration should be:
- Detailed β aim for 4 to 8 pages for the primary applicant’s declaration. A one-page declaration will not be sufficient for a complex partner visa application. At the same time, avoid padding with repetitive statements β quality and specificity matter more than length.
- Chronological within each aspect β present information in a logical time sequence, particularly for the early relationship history in the social and commitment sections
- Cross-referenced to supporting documents β where you mention joint bank accounts, photos, lease agreements, or other documents, reference the exhibit or attachment number so the decision-maker can find the relevant document
- Signed and witnessed β the declaration must be signed in the presence of an authorised witness (JP, solicitor, police officer). Each page should be initialled.
- In the first person β written as “I” not “the applicant” or “we” throughout
Frequently Asked Questions
Does my sponsor also need to write a statutory declaration?
Yes. Both the primary applicant and the Australian citizen or permanent resident sponsor should each submit their own statutory declaration. The two declarations are assessed together β if they are inconsistent on basic facts (different recollections of when you first met, or different descriptions of living arrangements), this raises credibility concerns. Prepare the declarations separately but review them together before lodging to ensure they are consistent on factual matters.
How many third-party statutory declarations do I need?
Home Affairs does not specify a minimum number, but two to four well-written third-party declarations from people who genuinely know you as a couple is the typical standard for a well-prepared application. Quantity does not substitute for quality β four identical template declarations are less valuable than two thoughtful, specific declarations from people who know your relationship well.
Can I use a template for the statutory declaration?
You can use a template as a structural guide, but the content must be personal and specific to your relationship. Decision-makers are familiar with template declarations and will note when a declaration contains generic language that does not describe any real couple in particular. A template can give you the headings and structure; the actual content must be written specifically about your relationship, your circumstances, and your plans.
What language should the declaration be in?
The declaration must be in English for Australian visa applications. If either partner is more comfortable writing in another language, they can write a draft in their own language and have it professionally translated by a NAATI-accredited translator. The translated version is submitted with the application. Submitting a declaration in a language other than English without an accompanying NAATI translation will result in the document being disregarded.
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Umar Ashraf
MARA Registered Migration Agent & Education Consultant | MARA #2619222 | Epping, Melbourne VIC
Umar Ashraf is a MARA-registered migration agent specialising in complex cases, visa cancellations, ART tribunal appeals, and employer sponsorship. He provides consultations in English, Urdu, Punjabi and Hindi.
