Jaj

    > Ian has a child who will not be coming with us (yet anyway).
    > On the main application it says that we 'need to provide certified
    > copies of documents to verify custody and access arrangements for
    > children under 18 years of age'
    > We have no documents, Ian believes it was just agreed between him and
    > his ex wife that they have joint custody and we only have access every
    > 3 weekends (because thats all we're allowed).
    > Do we need to go to a solicitor and get something drawn up or can we
    > just do a stat dec???
    > Anyone else been in this situation? Would be grateful for any advice.
    > Tracey

Proving custody is less important when a child is not migrating to
Australia with you.

The child willl usually need to do a medical - will this be a problem?

Something to know for the future, is that as long as the child is under
18, you'll be able to sponsor for a Dependent Child visa later on
(unless it gets married/engaged/de-facto relationship before then).
There is no need to be supporting the child if it's under 18, although
rules could of course change later on.

Something maybe to consider when the child gets to 16 or 17 and is old
enough to have his or her own views about things.

Jeremy