Prospective Marriage visa (subclass 300) — the engagement pathway to Australia, explained properly

You and your partner — one in Vietnam, one in Australia — want to hold the wedding in Australia and start your life together there. But the 309 visa requires you to already be married or have 12 months of de facto history, and the 820 requires you to be in Australia. So which door is open to a couple who haven’t married and haven’t lived together long enough?

The short answer: the Prospective Marriage visa (subclass 300) — the fiancé(e) visa. It lets you enter Australia within a 15-month validity window to marry your sponsor, then lodge an 820 onshore at a heavily reduced fee. It is the third door of the partner pathway — and the one most couples either don’t know about or misunderstand.

What the 300 is, and who it’s for

The 300 is a temporary visa lodged from outside Australia, for someone engaged to an Australian citizen, permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen. Its natural audience:

• You are not yet married and want to hold the wedding — usually in Australia, near the sponsor’s family.
• You don’t yet have 12 months of de facto history, so the de facto 309 route isn’t open yet.
• You want the visa applicant to be in Australia before the wedding, rather than marrying in Vietnam and waiting out a 309 apart.

One thing to get right from the start: the 300 is not a tourist visa to “go over, get married, then figure it out”. It is step one of a three-step pathway (300 → 820 → 801), and Home Affairs assesses it as seriously as any partner application.

The core requirements

• Both of you are 18 or older and legally free to marry (single, or with any divorce finalised).
• You have met in person since both turning 18 and know each other personally. A purely online relationship with no real-world meeting does not qualify. This is a hard requirement.
• A genuine intention to marry and to live together as spouses. The strongest evidence is a NOIM (Notice of Intended Marriage) lodged with a registered Australian marriage celebrant, or a letter from the celebrant confirming your wedding plans. The celebrant will guide you on the NOIM lodgement deadline under Australian marriage law.
• A genuine relationship: even before the wedding, the file is assessed using the same four-pillar logic as any partner visa — financial, household, social, commitment. Read more: the 4 pillars of relationship evidence.
• An eligible sponsor: the lifetime limit of 2 partner sponsorships, 5 years apart, applies to the 300 as well.

The 15-month validity — and the wedding deadline

The 300 is valid for 15 months from grant. Within that period you enter Australia and must marry within the timeframe specified on your visa — the timeframe is stated in your grant letter and has been adjusted over the years, so check the official page and your own grant letter rather than relying on someone else’s old experience.

Practical points:

• The wedding does not have to take place in Australia — as long as the marriage is recognised under Australian law. Most couples marry in Australia, since that is the whole point of this visa.
• The 300 allows multiple entries during its validity — you can return to Vietnam for family matters and come back.
• Work rights on the 300: check the conditions on your own grant letter — don’t assume from hearsay.

After the wedding: the reduced-fee 820

This is the sweetest part of the pathway. After marrying, you lodge an 820/801 onshore — and because you hold a 300, the 820 fee drops substantially (check the 2026–27 rate on the Department’s page) instead of the from-AUD-11,710 fee of a standard partner application.

Once the 820 is lodged, when your 300 expires you move onto a bridging visa and keep living and working in Australia while you wait — the same mechanics as a standard onshore application, which we covered in our 820 vs 309 comparison.

Important: the 820 stage still requires proof of a genuine relationship. Don’t stop building evidence after the wedding — a joint account, a lease in both names, photos with both families all keep earning their place in the file.

Visa 300 vs going straight to a 309

There is no absolute “better” answer. The 300 suits couples for whom a wedding in Australia matters, and who want the longest waiting stage to happen while they’re together in Australia. The 309 is leaner on steps and total fees if you’re happy to marry in Vietnam first.

The full cost of the pathway

Government fees on the 300 route: from AUD 11,710 for the 300 (2026–27 rates, up about 25% from the 1 July 2026 indexation), plus the substantially reduced 820 fee after the wedding (check the 2026–27 rate on the Department’s page). Fees adjust each 1 July. That’s before health examinations, police checks, certified translations and the wedding itself. Processing times for the 300 change monthly — check the Department’s Global processing times tool when you lodge.

Common mistakes with the 300

1. Never having met in person — lodging on a purely online relationship fails at the entry requirement.
2. No concrete wedding plan — no NOIM or celebrant letter, just “we’ll sort it out over there”, puts the intention to marry in doubt.
3. Letting the wedding slip past the specified timeframe — a late wedding is not a “they’ll understand” matter on a time-conditioned visa.
4. Marrying but forgetting to lodge the 820 before the 300 expires — letting the visa lapse first puts you in far more complicated legal territory.
5. Stopping evidence collection after the grant — the 820 stage still has to prove the relationship.
6. An ineligible sponsor — two prior sponsorships, or less than 5 years since the last one.

The bottom line

The 300 is the legitimate pathway for unmarried couples starting their Australian life together: enter within 15 months, marry within the specified window, lodge an 820 at the substantially reduced fee, and continue to permanent residence. It isn’t faster or cheaper than a 309 — it’s different: the wedding happens in Australia, and the longest wait happens while you’re side by side. Not sure which route fits your situation? Book a free assessment with VisaAffairs before committing to any plan.

References

• Department of Home Affairs — Prospective Marriage visa (subclass 300) — official requirements.
• Department of Home Affairs — Partner visa (onshore) 820/801 — the next step after the wedding.
• Global visa processing times — processing times updated monthly.

This article is general information current at publication. Australian migration rules change regularly — check the date and contact VisaAffairs before relying on it for your own case. Book a consultation for advice on your specific circumstances.