What the Subclass 300 visa actually does
The Prospective Marriage visa (Subclass 300) allows people who are engaged, not yet married, and living outside Australia to enter Australia.
The visa does one thing: it lets an engaged partner travel to Australia, marry their Australian sponsor, and then apply onshore for a Partner visa (Subclass 820/801) without leaving the country. It is a temporary visa. It is not, on its own, a residence outcome.
Two features distinguish it from every other partner pathway.
First, it is the only partner-category visa available to a couple who are neither married nor in a de facto relationship.
Second, it comes with a hard deadline attached — the marriage must happen inside the visa period, and there is no extension.
Who can apply
To apply for a subclass 300 the visa applicant must satisfy as follows:
Be outside Australia when you lodge, and outside Australia when the visa is decided.
You are both at least 18. Marriageable age under the Marriage Act 1961 (Cth) is 18.
Both parties must also be free to marry — no subsisting marriage, and not within a prohibited relationship (an ancestor, descendant, or sibling, including by adoption).
You have met in person and are personally known to each other as adults. Online-only relationships do not satisfy this criterion, however long or genuine they are. The meeting must have occurred in person, after both parties turned 18.
Genuinely intend to marry your sponsor during the visa period, and you genuinely intend to live together as spouses afterwards.
You are sponsored by an Australian citizen, permanent resident, or eligible New Zealand citizen who is at least 18 and whose sponsorship is approved.
You meet health and character requirements.
A bogus document or a false statement engages 4020 and carries a bar on further applications, three years in most cases, ten where identity is involved.
Sponsorship limits catch more sponsors than people expect
A sponsor may not sponsor more than two partner or prospective marriage applicants in a lifetime and ;
five years must have passed since a previous sponsorship was lodged or since the sponsor themselves was sponsored as a partner.
The Minister can waive the limit in compelling circumstances, but the waiver in limited cirucumstances such as:
Dependent Children: The sponsor and the new visa applicant share a biological or adopted dependent child who relies on both parents.
Death of the Previous Partner: The previous relationship ended because the formerly sponsored partner passed away.
Abandonment Involving Children: The previous spouse abandoned the sponsor, leaving dependent children who require the support and daily care of the new applicant.
Longstanding Relationship: The current relationship has been stable and documented over a significant, long period.
Extreme Health/Dependency Issues: The sponsor suffers from a severe, long-term medical condition or psychological vulnerability and relies extensively on the applicant for daily survival and care.
Separately, reg 1.20KB requires the sponsor to provide police clearances and demonstrate that he/she does not have a significant criminal record for a relevant offence.
What it costs from 1 July 2026
The visa application charges rose sharply this financial year under the Home Affairs Legislation Amendment (2026 Measures No. 1) Regulations 2026. The Subclass 300 sits in the same fee bracket as the Subclass 820/801 and 309/100 partner visas:
| Charge | Amount |
| Primary applicant | AUD $11,710 |
| Additional applicant aged 18 or over | AUD $5,860 |
| Additional applicant under 18 | AUD $2,935 |
| Card surcharge on payment | 1.4% |
Budget for the second stage as well. A Subclass 300 holder who marries and then lodges the onshore 820/801 pays a reduced charge — in the order of $1,955, against $11,710 for a first-time 820 applicant. Add medicals, police checks from every country lived in for 12 months or more over the past 10 years, translations, and professional fees.
How long it takes
The Department’s global processing times published in August 2026 show Subclass 300 applications finalised at 50% within 14 months and 90% within 29 months.
Those figures are backward-looking percentiles drawn from cases already decided. They are a planning reference, not an entitlement. What genuinely moves a file toward the faster end is a decision-ready lodgement: complete evidence across all four relationship pillars, health and character done, and no request for information required. Every request for further information adds weeks and sends the file back into a queue.
The conditions attached to the visa
Two conditions define how the visa operates.
Condition 8515 — the holder must not marry, or enter a de facto relationship, before entering Australia. Couples who marry overseas after grant but before first entry breach the condition and destroy the pathway.
Condition 8519 — the holder must marry the person specified in the application while the visa is in effect.
The visa also carries a first-entry date. It is a multiple-entry visa: the holder can come and go throughout the visa period. Holders have unrestricted work rights and may study, without access to Commonwealth support.
Need help with your Prospective Spouse visa? Book a consultation
The clock
The visa period runs from the date of grant, not the date of arrival. It is generally granted for nine to fifteen months. There is no extension mechanism.
The Notice of Intended Marriage must be given to an authorised celebrant with the visa application.
Is it the right visa?
It is for couples who cannot marry offshore or due to safety of an LGBTQ+ applicant in their home country.
That comparison deserves its own analysis before either application is lodged.
FAQs
How much does the Subclass 300 visa cost in 2026.
The application charge is AUD $11,710 for the primary applicant.
How long does a prospective marriage visa take?
The processing time can vary but can be around 14th months for 50 percent of case and 26 months for 90 per cent of cases.
Can I apply for a Subclass 300 visa from inside Australia?
The applicant must be outside Australia when you lodge the application and outside Australia when the visa is decided.
Do we have to have met in person?
Both visa applicant and sponsor must have met in person and be personally known to each other, and the meeting must have occurred after you both turned 18.
How long is the Subclass 300 visa valid?
It is generally granted for 9 to 15 months, running from the date of grant rather than the date of arrival. It cannot be extended. You must marry your sponsor and lodge the Subclass 820/801 application before it ceases.
Can I work on a prospective marriage visa?
Yes. Subclass 300 holders have unrestricted work rights and may also study, without access to Commonwealth support.
Disclaimer: Not legal advice. General information.
Need help with your Prospective Spouse visa? Book a consultation
