Form 888 Question 3: how you know the couple and how often you are in contact
Form 888 Question 3 asks the supporter to 'State how you know the applicant and the applicant's partner or fiancé(e), and indicate how often you have been in contact with them', in 14 ruled lines on the current form (design date 08/26).
The supporter answers in English and in their own words, can attach additional details if the lines run out, and gives when and where they met each partner and how often they are in contact.
As at October 2026: Question 3 as worded on Form 888, design date 08/26 (the wording is unchanged since the statutory-declaration editions).
Published by Form 888 Australia — publisher and review details.
Illustration, not wording to copy: fictional people and dates (years written 20X0–20X9).
Lena Example is the visa applicant, Tom Sample is her partner, and Lena’s brother Josef is the supporter.
| Part of Question 3 | Weak | Strong | What the strong one adds |
|---|---|---|---|
| How you know the applicant | “She's my sister.” | “I am Lena's older brother and have known her all her life.” | The relationship, stated plainly |
| How you know the partner or fiancé(e) | “I know Tom too.” | “I first met Tom in June 20X5, when Lena brought him to our father's 60th birthday lunch.” | When, where and how they met |
| How often you are in contact | “I see them a lot.” | “I have seen them together about twice a month since then.” | A frequency the supporter can stand behind |
| How the contact happens | (nothing) | “Usually Sunday dinner at their flat or at our parents' house; between visits, a family group chat most days.” | The kind of contact, in person and otherwise |
How do you answer Form 888 Question 3?
You answer Form 888 Question 3 in 3 steps, because the question on Form 888 (08/26) has two halves—how you know each person, and how often you are in contact—and covers both partners.
- Say how you know the applicant: the relationship and since when.
- Say how you know the partner or fiancé(e), separately: when, where and through whom you met.
- Say how often you have been in contact, and how: give a frequency and the way you keep in touch, only as far as you can stand behind it.
Questions 1 and 2 on Form 888 already ask “How long have you known this person?” for each partner, so the dates in Question 3 should match them.
If the 14 lines run out, Form 888 says “If insufficient space, please attach additional details”.
Form 888 Question 3 sample answers: weak vs strong
The Form 888 Question 3 sample answers below are two invented pairs, each a weak and a strong version of a whole answer, from a sibling and from a friend of both partners.
Illustration, not wording to copy: fictional people and dates (years written 20X0–20X9).
| Supporter | Weak | Strong | Why the strong one works |
|---|---|---|---|
| Josef (Lena's brother) | “I am Lena's brother so I know her very well. I know Tom too. I see them a lot.” | “I am Lena's older brother and have known her all her life. I first met Tom in June 20X5, when Lena brought him to our father's 60th birthday lunch. Since then I have seen them together about twice a month, usually for Sunday dinner at their flat or at our parents' house, and Tom and I have played in the same Thursday-night futsal team since 20X6. Between visits I message them both in a family group chat most days.” | It covers both people, says how and when Josef met Tom, and answers “how often” with a frequency and the kind of contact; every line is something Josef saw himself. |
| Priya (friend of both) | “I have been friends with both of them for years and we catch up regularly.” | “I have known Lena since February 20X0, when we started university together, and Tom since mid-20X3, when he joined my five-a-side football team; I introduced them at my birthday dinner in March 20X4. I see them together about once a month at friends' dinners, and Lena and I talk on the phone most weeks.” | Two separate starting points that match Questions 1 and 2, the supporter's own part in how they met, and a frequency for each kind of contact. |
The two strong answers mention different events in different words because each is one person’s own account: the facts agree, the sentences do not.
This guide recommends avoiding copied or shared wording, which makes several statements read as one voice; Form 888 says the Department may contact any supporter about what they wrote.
What if you are not often in contact with the couple?
If you are not often in contact with the couple, say so plainly and say how the contact happens: Form 888 Question 3 asks you to “indicate how often you have been in contact with them”, not to show a minimum.
This guide recommends an honest, checkable frequency rather than an inflated one.
In Question 6 of Form 888, the supporter declares that the statements are “true in every particular”.
Illustration, not wording to copy: fictional people and dates (years written 20X0–20X9).
Ravi, Tom’s university friend living interstate:
- Weak: “We keep in touch.”
- Strong: “I live interstate, so I have seen Tom and Lena together three times since 20X5, most recently at their wedding in October 20X7; Tom and I talk on the phone about once a fortnight and Lena joins most calls.”
What if you know one partner better than the other?
If you know one partner better than the other, say so and give each relationship its own start date and detail; Form 888 asks for a person who “knows the visa applicant and their partner or fiancé(e) and the history of their relationship”.
Knowing one partner for longer is normal for a sibling or school friend; knowing only one partner does not meet Form 888’s first condition.
Illustration, not wording to copy: fictional people and dates (years written 20X0–20X9).
Grace, Lena’s former flatmate:
- Weak: “I know Lena well and Tom a bit.”
- Strong: “I shared a flat with Lena from 20X1 to 20X4. I met Tom in 20X5 at their housewarming and have seen him with Lena at about six dinners a year since.”
Under Form 888’s conditions, every Form 888 supporter must be 18 or over and know both partners and their relationship history; the supporters page explains who qualifies.
Why a migration lawyer compares every supporter's Question 3
A migration lawyer compares every supporter’s Question 3 with the couple’s own account and the other statements to flag differences in dates or places of first meeting before lodgement.
Form 888 explains that the Department uses statements to assess the social aspects of the relationship.
False or misleading information in a material particular risks refusal under public interest criterion 4020 of the Migration Regulations 1994.
To ask how a migration lawyer compares Form 888 evidence, send a question through the enquiry form, which goes to an Australian migration lawyer.
Question 4 and the rest of the form
Question 4 and the rest of the form ask different things: on Form 888, Question 4 asks whether the supporter believes the relationship is genuine and continuing, and why, and the unnumbered box takes “any other matters”.
For weak vs strong pairs covering Questions 1, 2 and 4, the other-matters box and Question 5, see the Form 888 example answers.
For what the form is and why Home Affairs asks for it, read the guide to the Form 888 partner visa supporting statement.
General information only, not legal advice. Form 888 Australia is not a law firm or migration practice.