Trips
Wedding
The plan so far, and who we would love to have there. Everything here is editable: tap a guest to change their status or how many people they count for.
Isaac's poems
Partner visa
Everything for Alice's onshore partner visa (subclass 820, leading to 801) in one place. Alice is a British diplomat posted to the High Commission in Canberra; Isaac is the sponsor. Every document below says exactly how to get it. Tap a row to upload the file, mark it done, or note when it expires.
Read this first, before spending any money
A permanent partner visa and an accredited diplomatic posting cannot coexist. DFAT's own Protocol Guidelines say it twice, in different places:
The Australian Government does not accept Australian citizens or permanent residents as diplomatic or consular representatives of another country, except as Honorary Consuls.DFAT Protocol Guidelines 4.3.2
No one is permitted to have more than one Australian visa, even if they have multiple passports. If foreign officials or their family members obtain other visas during their posting to Australia, these will cancel the original visas and affect their accreditation.DFAT Protocol Guidelines 4.2
So the permanent 801 ends Alice's ability to serve as an accredited diplomat in Australia, and even the temporary 820 grant appears to cancel the 995 and disturb her accreditation. This is a decision about her career, not only about immigration status.
The good news, and it is real. A subclass 995 is a substantive visa: one that is not a bridging, criminal justice or enforcement visa. The clause that drags onshore partner applicants into Schedule 3 opens with "in the case of an applicant who is not the holder of a substantive visa", so it never applies to her. No compelling reasons argument, no discretion, no risk. That advantage lasts exactly as long as the 995 does, so keep a dated copy of the grant notice and a VEVO check from before you lodge.
Every legal point in this tab was read from the primary source, not from a summary. See "Where this came from" at the bottom. Not legal advice, and the questions it deliberately leaves open are in the checklist under "Ask the migration agent".
Where this came from, and what it does not cover
Checked on 23 September 2026 by reading the regulations directly rather than a summary of them. If you take one thing to the migration agent, take this list, so they can see the reasoning rather than re-derive it.
- Schedule 3 does not apply while she holds a substantive visa: Migration Regulations 1994, Schedule 2, clause 820.211(2)(d).
- The application is valid onshore and nothing bars a 995 holder: Schedule 1, item 1214C.
- She may be in or outside Australia at grant, just not in immigration clearance: clause 820.411. Only the application requires her to be here.
- Health is PIC 4007, not 4005, so a health waiver exists: clause 820.223(1)(a). Character, security, foreign policy and debts are PICs 4001 to 4004 and 4009, the values statement is 4019, and honesty is 4020 and 4021 under clause 820.226.
- The four pillars the officer must consider: regulation 1.15A(3) if married, regulation 1.09A(3) if de facto. The wording is identical.
- The 12 month de facto rule and the registered relationship exception: regulation 2.03A(3) and 2.03A(5).
- Sponsorship limits, two in a lifetime and five years apart: regulation 1.20J. Sponsorship must be approved before grant: clause 820.221A.
- The accreditation consequences: DFAT Protocol Guidelines chapters 4 and 5.
- Processing priority: Ministerial Direction 117, in force 25 July 2026. Onshore before offshore, partner before parent.
Schedule 2 Schedule 1 Reg 1.15A Reg 2.03A Reg 1.20J DFAT ch 4 Home Affairs 820/801 ACRO
What this is not. It is not legal advice, and it is not a substitute for a registered migration agent. Three things are deliberately left open rather than guessed at: how a bridging visa interacts with DFAT's one visa rule, whether the FCDO must notify Protocol Branch before lodging or only on grant, and exactly what Alice's vetting and Isaac's Defence reporting obligations require. Those are in the checklist. Migration law changes, fees are indexed, and your facts are your own.
Plans
Shopping list
Reminders
Workout
Isaac's training block. Tick things off as you go, weights save themselves. Rehab happens every day, including rest days.
Today's session
1. Pick which day you are doing 2. Gym or no gym 3. Tick things off and jot the weights
This week is a strength block. Upper body sits early in the week, lower body in the back half, carries in the middle. Leave 1 or 2 reps in the tank on the heavy sets.
Read me first: knee and elbow rules important
Right knee:
- Squat to a box at parallel or just above. No deep loaded knee bends, no pistols, no jumping lunges.
- Trap bar deadlifts over back squats as the main leg builder. Sled pushes and drags are your best friend: big leg stimulus, almost no knee stress.
- End the set on any sharp joint line pain, catching or locking. Muscle burn is fine, joint pain is not.
Right elbow:
- Neutral grip everything: hammer curls, neutral grip chin ups, neutral grip DB presses.
- No straight bar curls and no heavy barbell rows with a palms down grip.
- Straps on heavy deadlifts and carries so grip work is planned, not accidental.
Day 1 · Upper strength, heavy upper
- Neutral grip DB bench or floor press: 5 x 5
- Weighted neutral grip chin up, or ring rows if the elbow complains: 4 x 5 to 8
- Half kneeling single arm DB press: 3 x 8 each side
- Chest supported DB row, neutral grip: 4 x 10
- Face pulls: 3 x 15
Finish with both rehab blocks while the legs are fresh.
Day 2 · Upper volume and carries upper
- Weighted push ups or DB incline press: 4 x 8
- Neutral grip pull ups, bodyweight, quality reps: 5 sets shy of failure
- Landmine press: 3 x 10 each side
- Single arm DB row: 4 x 10 each side
- Farmer's carry, heavy: 6 x 40 m, straps if needed
- Suitcase carry: 3 x 30 m each side
- Hammer curls, light and strict: 3 x 12
Elbow rehab block after.
Day 3 · Easy engine day easy
- 30 to 40 min easy walk with a 15 to 20 kg pack on flat ground, or a 30 min swim
- Full knee rehab block, done fresh and strict
- Elbow rehab block
Day 4 · Lower strength, heavy lower
- Trap bar deadlift: 5 sets of 3 to 5, heavy but 1 or 2 reps in the tank
- Box squat to a parallel box or just above: 4 x 5
- Rear foot elevated split squat, shallow range: 3 x 8 each side
- Standing calf raise: 4 x 12
- Heavy sled push: 6 x 20 m
Knee rehab block as the cooldown.
Day 5 · Carries and core core
- Sandbag or DB front carry: 4 x 40 m
- Sandbag ground to shoulder: 5 x 3 each side
- Backwards sled drag: 5 x 20 m, this one actively helps the knee, do not skip it
- Hanging knee raises or dead bugs: 4 sets
Elbow rehab block after.
Day 6 · Lower volume lower
- Box squat: 5 x 5 at a weight you could do for 8
- Romanian deadlift: 4 x 8, straps on
- Step ups to a mid shin box, controlled on the way down: 3 x 8 each side
- Hip thrust or glute bridge: 3 x 10
Knee rehab block as the cooldown.
Day 7 · Rest rest
- Full rest, or a long easy walk with a light pack, 10 kg max
- Both rehab blocks still happen today
Every single day, including rest days. About 18 minutes all up. Slow and strict: these look easy, and that is the point. They build the muscle that protects the joints.
Knee block · about 12 minutes daily
- Quad sets: sit with the leg straight, squeeze the quad hard so the kneecap pulls up, hold 5 seconds. 3 x 15 on the right, 1 x 15 on the left.
- Straight leg raises: lying down, leg locked straight, lift to 45 degrees, lower slow. 3 x 12 each leg. Add a light ankle weight once 3 x 12 feels easy.
- Clamshells: side lying, band above the knees, feet together, open the top knee without rolling the hips back. 3 x 15 each side, slow, squeeze at the top.
- Terminal knee extensions: band behind the knee, straighten the leg against it. 3 x 15.
- Spanish squat hold: thick band behind the knees, sit back into the hold. 3 x 45 seconds.
Elbow block · about 6 minutes daily
- Eccentric wrist extensions: light DB, palm down, lower slow over 4 seconds, help it back up with the other hand. 3 x 15. Tyler twists with a FlexBar if you have one.
- Forearm stretches: flexors and extensors, 30 seconds each way.
- Grip squeezes on a soft ball, light: 2 x 20.
The two rules important
- Sharp joint line pain, catching or locking in the knee: end the set, swap to sled work or swimming, reassess tomorrow.
- If the knee or elbow flares beyond a mild next day ache, drop the offending movement for a few days. Muscle burn is fine. Joint pain is information.
Get a physio across this plan too. Arriving healthy beats training hardest.
Two or three sessions a week. It sits naturally on days 2 and 5 of the strength week, or tack 15 minutes onto the end of any session.
Loaded carries, the main event core
- Farmer's carry, heavy: 6 x 40 m, straps if the elbow is cranky
- Front carry, sandbag or DB hugged at the chest: 4 x 40 m
- Suitcase carry: 3 x 30 m each side, fight the lean, walk tall
Carries are the best core work there is, and they are kind to the knee.
Trunk circuit, 3 rounds core
- Dead bugs, slow and controlled: 10 each side
- Side plank: 30 to 45 seconds each side
- Hanging knee raises, or lying leg lowers: 8 to 12
- Pallof press with a band: 10 each side
Form rules important
- Brace before every carry and keep the ribs down. No back rounding to pick things up.
- Hanging work uses a neutral or overhand grip. If the elbow niggles, switch to lying leg lowers.
While the strength block is the focus, running stays short and easy. It keeps the engine ticking without hammering the knee.
This week easy
- Run 1: 20 to 30 min easy, conversational pace, flat and soft ground if possible
- Run 2: 20 to 30 min easy, then 4 x 20 second relaxed strides on grass if the knee is quiet
- Either run can swap for a 30 to 40 min incline treadmill walk
Knee rules for running important
- 5 minute brisk walk before every run to warm the knee up
- Flat routes, soft surfaces where you can, and no downhill running for now
- Walk run intervals are completely fine: 4 minutes running, 1 minute walking
- Sharp pain, catching, or a knee that is puffy the next morning: stop running and swap to swimming or the bike for a few days
Building up later later
- Add about 10 percent to weekly time only when the knee has been quiet for a full week
- One tempo run comes in before any second quality session
- Hills come last, and downhills last of all
Zero joint load and a big engine builder. One or two swims a week, and the perfect swap whenever the knee needs a quiet day.
Session 1 · Steady, about 30 min swim
- Warm up: 200 m easy freestyle
- Main set: 8 x 50 m freestyle, smooth, 20 seconds rest
- Then: 4 x 100 m steady, 30 seconds rest
- Cool down: 100 m easy
Session 2 · Technique and pull swim
- Warm up: 200 m easy
- Drills: 6 x 25 m, catch up drill and single arm freestyle
- Pull: 6 x 50 m with a pull buoy, arms only, legs get the day off
- Steady: 4 x 100 m, 30 seconds rest
- Cool down: 100 m easy
Pool rules important
- Freestyle and backstroke only for now. The breaststroke kick twists the knee, skip it.
- Pull buoy sessions are the go when the knee is grumpy.
- If the elbow niggles, keep sessions shorter and leave the hand paddles alone.
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