has recommended the Government overturn restrictions on some children with disabilities from getting permanent visas.
Existing laws mean some migrant children are blocked from getting a permanent visa, because of the healthcare costs associated with their disability.
Advocates have urged the Government to dump this practice for children with, saying it is “discriminating lawfully”.
“Significant cost”
The Home Affairs Department appoints a medical officer to conduct overall health checks on permanent visa applicants.
Based on an officer’s findings, Home Affairs has the power to reject a child with a disability’s visa if their ongoing healthcare requirements pass a limit called the “Significant Cost Threshold” (SCT).
The SCT is a figure the Government considers acceptable for the cost of providing services like Medicare access to permanent visa-holders. It currently tops out at $86,000 over ten years.
The Disability Discrimination Act protects people with disabilities from discrimination in areas like employment and education, but not migration.
Government data shows 61 children born to parents with temporary visas were refused permanent visas in 2022/23 due to the SCT test.
When a visa application is rejected, a person risks either being held in immigration detention or deportation.
TDA has been unable to confirm the status of the 61 children, including if any are being held in immigration detention or have been deported.
Review
Immigration Minister Andrews Giles launched a review of the SCT last year.
The review, led by the Department of Home Affairs, heard from advocates and people with experience using Australia’s visa system.
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The ‘, a not-for-profit advocacy body, put forward a submission urging the Government to scrap SCTs for migrant children with disabilities.
It said current laws “assume disability and health conditions are a cost burden to the wider community.”
Recommendations
The final report has recommended 11 changes to how the SCT is calculated and its usage in the visa application process.
It has also suggested migrant children born and living in Australia with a disability should have special protections against the SCT.
The Government has accepted five out of 11 proposals, including to make sure “average” health and service costs are regularly updated in the SCT calculation. Five of the other recommendations are under consideration, and one is subject to another review.
Minister remarks
In a statement to TDA, Minister Giles said the Government will consider the recommendations from the Home Affairs Department’s report.
“We have already implemented a number of the proposed actions, including increasing the Significant Cost Threshold,” Giles said.
He did not indicate whether he would push to change visa rules for children with disabilities.
Response
‘Welcoming Disability’ migration policy advisor Dr Jan Gothard told TDA the current system is “out of step” with community expectations.
“People with disabilities have human rights and they should be treated like everybody else and they should not have to justify their existence or their benefits,” Gothard said.
She wants to see a shakeup of visa laws, which she said currently give Home Affairs a “licence to discriminate” when assessing visas of people with disabilities.
