Dean and I met in early 2013. Whether you want to call it fate or coincidence, that’s up to you. The fact remains that from the moment we crossed paths, both of us knew that we wanted to make a life together. Unfortunately, it wasn’t as easy as that.

Love on an international scale might sound romantic as hell, but it’s mostly just stress, paperwork, and waiting. With no real idea of the process, Dean and I threw ourselves into the 820/801 Australian Parter Visa, so that we could make a life in my home country. That was March of 2015. We applied without the help of a migration agent (mostly because we couldn’t afford it), and we definitely weren’t experts. However, we knew that a lot of people are out there in the same boat as us, and we wanted to help, so I started writing about our experience with the visa.

We waited for a long time for that visa. We moved houses, jobs and even cities during the wait. It felt sometimes as though life was on pause, like we were holding our breath waiting for a decision. I discovered then that, though it might feel like your life is all about the wait, the real world doesn’t wait for anybody. It just keeps ticking along, and we have to run to catch up to it.

Throughout the years, we’ve been keeping track of our journey towards the 820/801 Australian partner visa. Now, after three long years, that journey is one that ends in success. In March of 2018 we received communication from the Australian government notifying us that Dean’s permanent residency had been approved. All our waiting, all our wishing, had finally come to the right kind of ending. I’m not exactly sure of what we’ll do next, but for now we hope that (while far from official or professional) this advice helps others going through the same journey.