Health Issues?
Recently we have seen media attention on the topic of the Department’s Public Interest Criteria on health and health waivers.
Take the two examples below:
The first story concerns a 92 year old visa applicant who suffers from physical disability and dementia.
The second story concerns a 16 year old autistic applicant.
Under the Migration Regulations, the applicant will fail the health criteria if the provision of health care or community services in relation to the applicant’s disease or condition, would result in significant cost to the Australian community.
However health waiver is available for the applicants in certain visa subclasses, if they can demonstrate to the decision maker that the grant of visa is unlikely to result in undue cost to the Australian community or undue prejudice to the access to health care or community services of an Australian citizen or permanent resident.
When assessing health waivers, the decision maker considers a wide scope of factors such as the skills, qualifications and experience of the applicants, including their occupational skills and qualifications and work history, whether the applicant’s nominated application is one that is in demand, and whether the applicant’s family has an ability to mitigate the costs through private arrangements should all be taken into account.
Having serious health issue does not necessarily mean a visa refusal. However it is important to discuss individual circumstances.
We can assess whether a health waiver would be available in your circumstance and the likelihood of success.
Contact one of our Registered Migration Agents today for assistance.
