The Department of Home Affairs will look through your public records and social media profiles.
If your application says you are in an exclusive relationship with X and your Facebook profile shows you are dating Y, these are very well the grounds for some questions from the Department as to who is Y and what you are doing with X? Bottom line is to be aware of what is out there that people can draw assumptions from. Cleaning up your public profiles or addressing with the Department any inconsistencies up front can save you money on legal fees and precious time!
We had a case of a couple who applied for a Partner visa. They claimed that they were in a committed relationship for 3 years however one of them had photos from two years ago, on their Facebook profile, posing with another person and people jokingly left comments, suggesting the people in the photo were in a relationship. This caused some questions from the Department and consequently significant delays in this couple’s visa processing.
Another case involved a gay couple where both applicants posted on Instagram photos and comments suggesting they were not gay however they did that as they were afraid to be talking openly about homosexuality due to their concerns about homophobia. This inconsistency raised a red flag and hence further questions from the Department. Had that inconsistency been addressed upfront, unpleasant questions could have been avoided.
There was a case of a Muslim couple who were married however their very active Facebook profiles listed their status as ‘single’. When the Department searched their profiles and saw that, they requested to know why it was so.
As it turned out, the boy and the girl, being young, got married without their parents’ approval and listed themselves as ‘single’ for the world of Facebook, making sure the parents won’t find out.
To wrap it up, if you are an active user of social media, don’t ask yourself the question ‘Will Immigration check my Facebook or Instagram?’ twice because if the answer is yes, the chances of that happening are very high. Do not take your chances! Address the possible inconsistencies upfront and save your time and potential legal fees! Good luck! And remember, Heenan and Browne Visa and Migration Services are just an email or phone call away to assist you with any of your inquiries related to the Australian Partner Visa Program!
