Applying for a Subclass 300 Prospective Marriage Visa requires you to demonstrate that you and your prospective spouse meet the relevant relationship requirements.
The evidence required for a Subclass 300 is different from the relationship evidence typically prepared for a Partner Visa. You are not required to demonstrate the same established financial, household and social aspects of a relationship that may be relevant to a Subclass 820/801 or 309/100 application.
Instead, the Subclass 300 focuses on whether you and your prospective spouse have met in person, know each other personally, genuinely intend to marry and genuinely intend to live together as spouses.
What relationship requirements apply to a Subclass 300?
To meet the relationship requirements, you and your prospective spouse must:
Have met in person as adults since turning 18.
Be known to each other personally.
Genuinely intend to marry each other.
Genuinely intend to live together as spouses after marriage.
The Department may consider the circumstances and development of your relationship when assessing these requirements.
Evidence that you have met in person
One of the key requirements for a Subclass 300 is that you and your prospective spouse have met face-to-face as adults since each of you turned 18. Communication through messages, phone calls or video calls does not replace the requirement to have met in person.
Evidence should include:
Photographs together;
Flight tickets and boarding passes;
Passport stamps;
Travel bookings;
Hotel or accommodation records;
Evidence of trips taken together;
Visa records;
Correspondence or bookings showing visits to each other's country.
It is useful for your evidence to establish a clear timeline showing when and where you met and the occasions on which you have spent time together.
Evidence that you know each other personally
The requirement is not simply that you have physically met. You must also be known to each other personally. There is no prescribed length of time that a couple must have known each other or a particular amount of contact that is required. The circumstances of each relationship will be different.
Evidence may include:
Messages, call records, emails or any other evidence of regular communication when apart
Photographs together
Evidence of meeting each other's family and friends
Information about significant events in each other's lives
Travel undertaken together
Statements from people who know you and your relationship
The purpose of this evidence is to help demonstrate the development and nature of your relationship and that you have a genuine personal understanding of each other.
Marrying in Australia & the Notice of Intended Marriage (NOIM)
Although the Subclass 300 visa holder must enter Australia within the visa period & before you marry, you may leave again to marry your prospective spouse overseas. However, if you intend to marry in Australia, an important document you may encounter during the Subclass 300 process is the Notice of Intended Marriage (NOIM).
Under Australian marriage law, couples who intend to marry in Australia must provide a completed NOIM to the authorised marriage celebrant who will conduct their ceremony. The NOIM must generally be lodged at least one month before the intended date of the marriage, although it can be provided to the celebrant up to 18 months before the proposed ceremony.
For a Subclass 300 applicant, evidence that a NOIM has been lodged can also help demonstrate that the couple has taken practical steps towards their intended marriage. However, the timing of the marriage is important. The Subclass 300 requires the marriage to take place within the visa period. Therefore, couples should consider their proposed wedding date and the expected visa period when making their wedding arrangements. A NOIM can remain valid for up to 18 months, but this does not mean that a Subclass 300 visa will necessarily be approved or remain valid for that entire period. If processing times surpass the intended marriage date, you will need to arrange a new letter from the celebrant.
Who signs and witnesses the NOIM?
Both people intending to marry must sign the NOIM in the presence of an eligible witness. They do not need to sign the document at the same time or in the same location. This can be particularly relevant for Subclass 300 applicants because the prospective spouse may be in Australia while the visa applicant is still overseas.
Where the NOIM is signed outside Australia, eligible witnesses can include an Australian diplomatic or consular officer, a notary public, and certain authorised Commonwealth or Austrade officers.
When the NOIM is signed in Australia, it can be witnessed by certain authorised persons, including:
An authorised marriage celebrant
A Justice of the Peace
A solicitor or barrister
A medical practitioner
A Commissioner for Declarations
A member of the Australian Federal Police or a State or Territory police force
The requirements for witnessing a NOIM can be specific, so couples should confirm that their chosen witness is authorised before signing.
What evidence of the NOIM should you provide for a Subclass 300?
A copy of the NOIM itself is not necessarily required as evidence for the visa application. In most circumstances, a letter from the authorised celebrant confirming that the NOIM has been lodged and confirming the intended date of the marriage can provide appropriate evidence of the couple's wedding arrangements. The appropriate evidence will depend on the couple's circumstances and how far they have progressed with their wedding plans.
Does the NOIM prove that you genuinely intend to marry?
A NOIM can be useful evidence of a couple's intention to marry because it demonstrates that they have taken a formal step towards arranging their marriage.
However, the NOIM is only one piece of evidence. It does not, by itself, establish that all Subclass 300 requirements have been met. The Department may consider the NOIM alongside other evidence when assessing whether the couple genuinely intends to marry within the required period. It is also important to understand that a NOIM does not prove that there is no legal impediment to the marriage. Whether there is any impediment to the proposed marriage is a separate requirement considered as part of the Subclass 300 visa assessment.
What happens to the NOIM after the wedding?
The marriage celebrant generally keeps the NOIM until the marriage takes place. Following the ceremony, the celebrant is responsible for lodging the required marriage documentation with the relevant State or Territory Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages within the required timeframe. For couples applying for a Subclass 300, this means the NOIM forms part of the broader process of progressing from the prospective marriage stage to the actual marriage.
Evidence of the development of your relationship
Your application should tell a clear and consistent story of how your relationship developed.
Personal statements from you and your prospective spouse can be particularly useful for explaining the history of your relationship.
Your statements can address matters such as:
How and when you first met
Where you first met
How you stayed in contact
How the relationship developed
When you became engaged
Important milestones in your relationship
Significant events you have experienced together
Time spent living together or visiting each other
How you have supported each other
Your interactions with each other's family and friends
Your plans for your future together
The Department specifically asks for written statements covering matters such as how, when and where the couple first met, how the relationship developed, when they became engaged, significant events and their future plans as spouses.
Evidence that you genuinely intend to marry
The Subclass 300 is a Prospective Marriage Visa, meaning the applicant must intend to marry their prospective spouse before the visa period ends.
Evidence supporting your intention to marry may include:
Wedding venue bookings
Wedding planner correspondence
Celebrant correspondence
Wedding invitations
Deposits or receipts for wedding-related services
Discussions or arrangements with family members
Evidence of plans for the ceremony
Evidence of engagement
Statements explaining your intended wedding plans
The evidence does not necessarily need to show that every aspect of the wedding has already been organised. Your circumstances will determine what evidence is available and appropriate.
Evidence that you intend to live together as spouses
You must also demonstrate that you genuinely intend to live together as spouses after your marriage.
Evidence may include:
Statements about your plans after marriage - Your statements should provide a realistic explanation of your plans rather than simply stating that you intend to live together.
Evidence of arrangements for moving to Australia – ie, correspondence with landlord/real estate discussing additional tenant, shipping confirmation of applicant’s belongings, etc.
Correspondence discussing your future together
Evidence of plans to establish your household in Australia
Statements from people who know your relationship
The Department requires statements from two witnesses who are at least 18 years old and who know both you and your prospective spouse and know about your relationship.
A witness might be:
A family member
A close friend
Someone who has spent time with you as a couple
Someone who has witnessed the development of your relationship
The statements should provide genuine observations about your relationship rather than simply confirming that you are engaged.
If the witness is an Australian citizen or permanent resident, evidence of their citizenship or permanent residence is also required.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Does a Subclass 300 require the same relationship evidence as a Partner Visa?
No. A Subclass 300 application is focused on demonstrating that you know each other personally, have met in person, genuinely intend to marry and genuinely intend to live together as spouses.
This is different from the evidence commonly prepared for a Subclass 820/801 or 309/100 Partner Visa, where evidence may cover the financial aspects, household arrangements, social aspects and mutual commitment of an established relationship. This does not mean that a Subclass 300 application requires little relationship evidence. Rather, the evidence needs to address the requirements that apply to the Prospective Marriage Visa.
What if you have not spent much time together?
Every relationship is different, particularly where couples live in different countries. If you have had limited opportunities to spend time together in person, your application should clearly explain the circumstances and provide the evidence that is available.
For example, you may have evidence of:
Multiple visits
Regular communication
Time spent with each other's families
Joint travel
Significant events attended together
Your engagement
Future wedding plans
Future plans to establish a life together in Australia
The overall evidence should provide a coherent picture of the relationship and address the relevant visa requirements.
Start building your evidence early
You do not need to wait until you are ready to lodge your Subclass 300 application to start organising your relationship evidence. Create a folder and save relevant evidence as your relationship develops. Keep copies of important travel records, photographs, correspondence, wedding planning documents and other evidence that may help demonstrate the history of your relationship.
It can also be helpful to maintain a simple relationship timeline, particularly where you and your prospective spouse have spent periods living in different countries.
What happens after the Subclass 300?
The Subclass 300 is a temporary visa that allows the visa holder to come to Australia to marry their prospective spouse. After the marriage, the visa holder may be able to apply for a Subclass 820/801 Partner Visa while in Australia, provided they meet the relevant requirements.
If you are intending to apply for the 820/801 visa, it is crucial you do this while holding the 300 visa. As a subclass 300 visa holder, you are eligible to pay a lower visa application charge for the Partner visa (subclasses 820 and 801) application. If you are granted any other visa, the new visa will replace your subclass 300 visa. This means you may need to pay a higher visa application charge when you apply for the Partner visa (subclasses 820 and 801).
Once you are applying for the 820/801, you will generally need to demonstrate the nature of your established relationship across areas such as financial matters, household arrangements, social aspects and mutual commitment.
This means couples using the Subclass 300 as a pathway to an onshore Partner Visa should continue to keep appropriate relationship evidence after arriving in Australia and getting married.
What if the relationship breaks down?
In certain circumstances, the permanent visa may be granted even where the relationship has ended or other circumstances have changed. Learn more about the circumstances where the permanent Partner Visa may still be granted.
Need help with your Subclass 300 application?
Every relationship is different, and the evidence that is appropriate will depend on your circumstances.
Explore Migration can help you understand the evidence relevant to your Subclass 300 Prospective Marriage Visa and how to present your relationship history clearly and consistently.
Book a free initial evaluation call to discuss your circumstances and potential visa options.
This article provides general information only and does not constitute migration advice. Visa requirements and application processes can change, and eligibility depends on individual circumstances.