Australians who live abroad denied permission to return overseas despite promises

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Australians who live abroad are already being denied permission to leave the country after a sudden rule change last week, contradicting a promise made by Home Affairs Minister Karen Andrews.

The Herald and The Age have so far seen four refusals for travel exemptions for Australians who usually live overseas that were issued over the weekend.

Australian citizens who spend most of their time living abroad now face having to complete travel exemption forms to return overseas. Credit:Edwina Pickles

While citizens and permanent residents have been forced to apply for a travel exemption to leave Australia since March last year, to date this has not applied to those who are “ordinarily resident overseas”. They are automatically exempt based on records showing they have spent more time outside Australia than in it over a certain period.

However, on August 1 the federal government changed the rules to close what it regards as a “loophole” to force Australians who ordinarily reside overseas to also apply for an exemption. The change takes effect Wednesday.

Ms Andrews said the change was necessary because there are 38,000 Australians registered as wanting to return home and Australians do not need an inward exemption.

“Outbound exemptions for Australian citizens are necessary as every Australian leaving, and planning to return, creates a queue of people wanting to come back,” she said.

This masthead reported on Saturday that Ms Andrews had promised the government would approve exemptions for people who were ordinarily a resident overseas.

When news of the change emerged, it caught expats in Australia for a visit off guard. Many people have scrambled to get COVID-19 tests and rebook flights to beat the deadline, while others rushed to submit exemption applications – a process that includes the challenge of obtaining translations and getting statutory declarations notarised during lockdowns.

Despite the minister’s assurances, there have been rejections as well as approvals.

Australian Border Force has declined an exemption request for Heléna Blackberry, 17, who is attending an elite ballet school in Switzerland to return for her second year of study.

Elite ballerina Heléna Blackberry at her Brisbane home. Credit:Paul Harris

Heléna was away for 11 of the last 12 months, before returning home to Brisbane for a break. After spending most of her visit in hotel quarantine and lockdown, she is due to return on Friday.

Her mother Gina Blackberry submitted the exemption request on Friday, using the category for people who intend to be outside Australia for more than three months, since at the time there was not an “ordinarily resident abroad” category on the form.

Ms Blackberry said Heléna was “stoic” and confident she would eventually secure an exemption.

Ms Blackberry criticised the “backhanded” way the government made the change but did not announce it, leaving people to find out on Facebook, and the “hypocrisy” given the allowances made for athletes to attend the Tokyo Olympics.

“My daughter’s just as elite as they are – she’s not representing the country, but this is her lifelong dream and she’s managed to get into an international ballet school, and the same affordances aren’t being made for her even though she won’t return for 12 months,” Ms Blackberry said.

Omar Taheri said he has lived in Singapore for 10 years and came back to Sydney in June for two months to visit family.

Omar Taheri is eager to return home to Singapore after visiting family in Sydney. Credit:Kate Geraghty

He was due to fly back this Saturday as his pregnant wife and his employees are waiting for him. However, he too had his travel exemption request denied on Sunday. He made his first request under compassionate grounds and plans to try again under a different category.

“I have been doing the right thing and following the government’s COVID rules but this rejection has really not made me feel proud to be Australian,” Mr Taheri said. “The compassion and sense is lacking in this difficult period.”

David Kennedy in Hong Kong is trying to organise an exemption for his two sons, aged 11 and 17, who are in Australia to visit their sister.

The boys, one who lives in Hong Kong and the other who is at boarding school in Britain, need to go back to school. They are in Australia with their mother, a British citizen who needs to leave because her tourist visa is set to expire.

Mr Kennedy submitted the application with evidence the boys are ordinarily residents overseas on Friday, after hearing about the rule change on social media. On Sunday, his wife received a call from Border Force, saying they needed to resubmit and tick the box that says you are ordinarily a resident overseas. However, although the cover page on the website had been updated, the form itself at the time hadn’t and stated people who ordinarily live overseas don’t need to apply.

“They’re rejecting it on the basis that we haven’t ticked a box that doesn’t exist, which to me just seems bureaucratic madness,” he said.

“I called Border Force this morning and the gentleman I spoke to hadn’t even heard of the change. It’s been rushed through and it seems to lack basic fairness and logic.”

On Monday afternoon, a week after the rule changed, Border Force updated the online application form to include a box for those who ordinarily live overseas.

Mr Kennedy said he didn’t agree with the change but it should at least be grandfathered for people already in Australia or done with proper notice.

In theory, Australians overseas will in future be able to apply for an exemption before they come to Australia. However, under present rules people can only apply for an outbound exemption less than three months before they plan to leave Australia which would create complications for people coming for longer trips.

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