Child Visa – Subclass 802
What do you do when you have a child overseas? What if the child is over 18?
You may be able to apply for a Child Visa based on individual circumstances even if the child is over 18 years old. Read the case below to understand how we assisted one particular child in obtaining this visa. This case was referred to us by a lawyer who knows we have some of the best immigration agents in Sydney and take care of situations that require strategic handling of sensitive matters.
A case about the wellbeing of your children:
Not too long ago we started handling a case for a Child Visa (let’s call her Emily). Emily’s parents got divorced when she was still quite young and the custody was given to her mother. Although the father was consistently involved in her life, he moved to Australia and the mother got remarried.
This is when Emily started to experience emotional and sexual abuse from her step-father and her mother was unable to protect her due to being abused and reliant on Emily’s step-father herself. Emily’s father always kept in touch and was able to financially support her to live away from home to avoid the abuse. Somehow the step-father found out where Emily lived and started to stalk her, at which point the police got involved. Because he was her step-father and Emily was in custody of his wife (the mother), he had parental rights and so would not necessarily be considered stalking.
At this point the father called Emily to Australia on a Working Holiday Visa so she could spend time with him, his new wife (step-mother) and her half siblings. Emily started to recover and at this point the lawyer reached out to us and explained the matter. Although a difficult case as Emily is now over 18 years old (considered an adult), we had to find grounds to safely and legally keep her in Australia.
At this point we prepared for a Child visa and showed that the relationship between Emily and her father was biological, continuing and most of all genuine. There was a constant dependence from Emily for the emotional and financial support from her father. Not only this, she also had a great relation with her step-mother and half siblings in addition to having a biological parent in Australia.
After multiple enquiries from the case office and requesting evidence they granted the visa based on the circumstances. Although not straight forward as Emily was over 18, had come to Australia on a Working Holiday Visa (which shows independence) and not having legal custody, we were able to assist her in obtaining a Child visa through significant legal research and evidence to assist the case officer in making their decision.
When dealing with cases it is easy to get emotionally invested, especially for matters as sensitive as this. We were glad to have achieved a positive outcome and thank the Department of Home Affairs for their human touch in such cases. Let our visa agents in Sydney help you too. If you are facing a visa refusal or visa cancellation call us now. You can make an appointment with our Registered Migration Agents by calling 02 46261002 or email info@migrationcentreofaustralia.com.au
