Partner Visa Refusal Review in 2026: ART, Fees and Waiting Rules

How ART review of a partner visa refusal works in 2026: where the fees are published, and what to check about your visa status while you wait.

Published: 10 October 2026

If your partner visa was refused, the document that decides your next step is the refusal notification letter, because that letter tells you whether you have the right to seek review by the Administrative Review Tribunal (ART). Two Department of Home Affairs pages — the Partner Visa Frequently Asked Questions page and the Review of decisions page, both current as at October 2026 — set out the rest of the frame: the ART has jurisdiction to review certain visa decisions made under the Migration Act 1958, and the fees and charges that apply to a review are set out on the ART's own website. This article explains those published rules for readers planning a permanent residence pathway; it is general information rather than advice on an individual case, and fee amounts, time limits and your own visa status should be confirmed against the official pages or with a qualified practitioner.

Does the ART review every partner visa refusal?

No. The ART's jurisdiction covers certain visa decisions made under the Migration Act 1958, not every decision the Department makes. In a partner visa matter, the refusal notification letter is the document that tells you whether your particular decision carries a right to seek review with the ART.

That distinction matters for planning. A refusal with review rights and a refusal without them lead to completely different next steps, and the difference is stated in your letter rather than inferred from the visa subclass alone. A review is a re-examination of the decision on the material before the tribunal; it does not convert a refused application back into a pending one.

Where are the review fees published in 2026?

The Department's Review of decisions page states that relevant fees and charges are set out on the ART's website. The Department pages cited here do not publish a review fee figure, so the amount payable has to be read from the ART website at the time you lodge, and re-checked before you pay.

This is also the practical reason to separate two sums in your planning: the review fee payable to the ART, and the visa application charge already paid for the refused application. The Department's Partner Visa FAQ notes that a visa application charge refund is available only in certain circumstances, that each request is assessed under the relevant legal authority or administrative rules, and that there is no standard timeframe for processing refund requests.

Question	Where it is set out
Whether you can seek review	Your refusal notification letter
The ART's jurisdiction	Migration Act 1958, per the Department's Review of decisions page
Review fees and charges	The ART's website
Your current visa and conditions	Visa Entitlement Verification Online (VEVO)

What happens to your visa while the review is waiting?

Treat your status as something you have to verify, not assume. The Department's Review of decisions page says that if you have a visa decision under review you should continue checking your current visa details and conditions using VEVO.

The position is sharper where the permanent visa is the one refused. The Partner Visa FAQ states that if a permanent Partner visa (subclass 801 or 100) has been refused, you no longer hold a temporary Partner visa, and you need to be aware of your visa status and check your visa details and conditions through VEVO.

Two waiting rules follow from that. First, re-check VEVO before anything that depends on your status, because a refusal of the permanent subclass removes the temporary visa that sat behind it. Second, travel is governed by whatever visa you hold at the time: the Department's FAQ says you can travel outside Australia and return if your current visa allows it, and that bridging visa holders are subject to separate travel rules.

How does a refusal affect the permanent residence pathway?

The ordinary partner pathway runs in two stages. The Department's FAQ states that if you hold a temporary Partner visa (subclass 309 or 820), two years must have passed since you applied for that visa before you are eligible for assessment of the permanent visa; the assessment is then submitted through ImmiAccount under "Stage 2 – Permanent Partner Visa Assessment (100, 801)" using your application ID.

Processing order is set by Ministerial Direction 117. Under that direction, applications are generally assessed in the order received, with highest priority given to onshore Partner visa (subclass 820 and 801) applications, and lower priority given to offshore Prospective Marriage visa (subclass 300) and Partner visa (subclass 309 and 100) applications. Lower-priority applications are likely to experience longer processing times.

For a reader whose permanent visa has been refused, the two threads to keep separate are the review itself and lawful status in the meantime. The two-year eligibility rule describes when a permanent assessment can be made; it does not by itself hold a visa in place after a refusal.

What should you check before you lodge, and while you wait?

Read the refusal notification letter and confirm whether it gives you a right to seek review.
Go to the ART's immigration and citizenship review page and read its lodgement requirements.
Check the current review fee on the ART website.
Run a VEVO check and keep a record of your visa details and conditions.
Update your contact and passport details in ImmiAccount if anything has changed.
Check whether your health examination results are still inside their 12-month validity, or 6 months if you signed a health undertaking.
Re-run the VEVO check before any travel and before any decision that depends on your visa status.

Health results are the item most often missed during a long wait. The Department's FAQ says the results of a health assessment are valid for 12 months from the time you complete your examinations, that a health undertaking is valid for 6 months, and that you may be asked to provide them again if they expire before the visa is decided.

What if your relationship changes during the review?

Tell the Department. The Partner Visa FAQ says that if your relationship with your sponsor has ended or changed, you may need to complete the Notification of Relationship Cessation form in the "Update Details" tab in ImmiAccount; if you do not have ImmiAccount access, you can notify the Department using the Partner processing enquiry form and attach a signed, completed Form 1022 (Notification of changes in circumstances, section 104 of the Migration Act 1958). The same notification applies if your sponsor has died.

If the relationship later recommences, the FAQ says you can tell the Department through the Partner processing enquiry form, attaching statutory declarations from you and from your sponsor setting out the circumstances, plus identity evidence for both of you. Where domestic and family violence is involved, the FAQ notes you may still be eligible for the grant of the permanent visa under the family violence provisions.

One structural point is worth keeping in mind: partner applications are lodged as a pair, and if you withdraw, the FAQ requires both subclasses to be withdrawn together for a subclass 309/100 or 820/801 application, with signed statements from applicants aged 18 or over.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does every partner visa refusal come with a right to ART review?

No. The ART has jurisdiction to review certain visa decisions made under the Migration Act 1958, and your refusal notification letter tells you whether your decision is one of them. If the letter does not give you review rights, the ART pathway is not available for that decision.

Where do I find the current ART review fee?

The Department's Review of decisions page says the relevant fees and charges are set out on the ART's website. Check that website at the time you lodge, because the Department pages cited here do not publish a fee amount.

Do I still hold a partner visa while the review is pending?

Where the permanent Partner visa (subclass 801 or 100) was refused, the Department's FAQ says you no longer hold a temporary Partner visa. Your actual status has to be confirmed through VEVO, and the Department advises continuing to check your visa details and conditions while a decision is under review.

Can I get the visa application charge back after a refusal?

Only in certain circumstances. The Department's Partner Visa FAQ states that each refund request is assessed under the relevant legal authority or administrative rules, and that there is no standard timeframe for processing refund requests.

Will my health examination results still count during the review?

Health assessment results are valid for 12 months from the time you complete your examinations, and a health undertaking is valid for 6 months. The Department may ask you to provide them again if they expire before a decision is made.

What happens if my relationship ends while the review is waiting?

You need to notify the Department, using the Notification of Relationship Cessation form in ImmiAccount or, without ImmiAccount access, the Partner processing enquiry form with a completed Form 1022 attached. A relationship change goes to the substance of a partner visa decision, so it is relevant to the review as well as to your status.

Does a refusal block the two-year path to permanent residence?

The two-year rule is an eligibility rule for the permanent assessment: two years must have passed since you applied for the temporary subclass 309 or 820 visa. A refusal of the permanent visa separately means the temporary visa is no longer held, so eligibility timing and current lawful status are two different questions.