Spouses of Australian citizens
Are spouses of Australian citizens eligible for Australian citizenship?
Spouses of Australian citizens do not have an automatic right to permanent residence or Australian citizenship.
To be eligible for Australian citizenship, the spouse of an Australian citizen must be a permanent resident of Australia and must satisfy the requirements applicable to other adult applicants, including the residence requirement.
There is a discretion in relation to the residence requirement for citizenship. This means that periods spent overseas as a permanent resident of Australia can be counted as periods of permanent residence in Australia for spouses of Australian citizens who can demonstrate a close connection to Australia.
This discretion also applies to de facto spouses, widows and widowers of Australian citizens and to interdependent partners of Australian citizens.
Spouses and partners of Australian citizens will be eligible to apply for Australian citizenship if they:
- are permanent residents of Australia
- live or have lived overseas with their Australian citizen spouse
- would have been eligible for citizenship if they had been living in Australia.
Spouses and partners of Australian citizens who become permanent residents before 1 July 2007, should have resided in Australia as a permanent resident for a total of at least two years in the last five years including a total of at least 12 months in the last two years.
Spouses and partners of Australian citizens who become permanent residents on or after 1 July 2007 should have four years lawful residence in Australia. This includes up to three years temporary residence and the last 12 months as a permanent resident.
Spouses and partners of Australian citizens who meet the requirements for Australian citizenship can apply in Australia or overseas.
See: Form 1299i How to apply for Australian citizenship by conferral (88KB PDF file)
Information regarding visa options for spouses is available.
See: Partner Visa Options