Highlights
- The Jestingor family’s permanent residency application was refused due to Patricia’s medical condition
- Ministerial intervention is now required to decide the fate of the family in Australia
- An online signature campaign was launched to raise awareness and support for the family’s appeal to Home Affairs Minister Karen Andrews
Safety and security were the two main reasons why Joey Jestingor and his wife Rezy decided to move to Australia from the Philippines in 2014.
The couple tells SBS Filipino they wished for their children Ysabella, Phoenix, and Patricia, to grow in a "safe environment where they can achieve their dreams and be successful in their chosen careers".
However, their status in Australia is uncertain as they appeal to the Home Affairs Minister Karen Andrews to stay permanently.
It comes after the family’s permanent residency application through the employer sponsorship stream was refused in 2016 because Patricia has autism and is blind.
Road to Australia
In January 2014, Mr Jestingor travelled to Sydney to appear in person at the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) to be assessed as a qualified registered nurse.
“When I landed [in Sydney] and saw the place, it was beautiful. I instantly told myself that this is where I want my family to live," he recalls.
After becoming registered, he moved to Queanbeyan, a city in south-eastern New South Wales, to look for a job sponsor in order to be granted a Temporary Work (Skilled) 457 visa.
The Jestingor family applied for permanent residency in 2015 but was refused due to Patricia’s medical condition. Source: Joey Jestingor
He said the search wasn’t easy, as he reached out to a number of nursing homes within the city and nearby Canberra for two months, only to be rejected.
Fortunately, one of his friends, who goes to the same church and works at Canberra Hospital, told him about a job opening in the orthopaedic department.
Mr Jestingor decided to drop into the nurse manager’s office about the job, and the "leap of faith" paid off as he was picked to fill the vacancy.
Before Mr Jestingor commenced work at the hospital, he travelled back to the Philippines and waited for the 457 visa to arrive.
The Jestingor family in the Philippines. Source: Ysabella Jestingor
With "excitement and high hopes" of building a life in their newfound home, his family followed him to Australia in November 2014.
He said the family settled comfortably in Australia where they met new friends and built a strong support network in the church they are affiliated with.
“In the few months that we were here [in Queanbeyan], we would join gatherings with our fellow kababayans who are also part of the church.
The Jestingor family with the Christian Church Queanbeyan congregation Source: Yssabella Jestingor
"That’s how it was during our transition period. We were blessed to be in a community with really nice people.”
Mr Jestingor said his children have also become comfortable in their studies, where they have excelled.
Ysabella, his eldest daughter, received an academic award in Wollongong and is currently in her second year at university studying biomedical science, while Phoenix is currently taking up a diploma in science.
“From day one since we moved here, we knew that this is where we wanted to live. We didn’t sell all our assets back in the Philippines to have a mini-vacation in Australia.
Jestingor siblings: Ysabella, Phoenix and Patricia. Source: Ysabella Jestingor
"I believe that we are now part of the community here in Queanbeyan. This is home now.”
Although the transition was smooth, the family’s dream of staying permanently took a drastic turn in 2016 and remains in limbo.
In that year, the family’s permanent residency application through the employer sponsorship stream was refused due to Patricia's medical condition.
The Jestingor family in Queanbeyan. Source: Ysabella Jestingor
Patricia has autism and is blind. Health grounds are among a number of reasons why visa applications are rejected in Australia, and often, applications may be denied due to the potential treatment costs incurred on the medical system.
The family said this factor became the "wall" separating them from becoming permanent residents.
“When our permanent residency application was denied, I consulted a migration firm in Sydney to help us figure out the next steps," Mr Jestingor said.
"Fortunately, Canberra Hospital was willing to grant me another 457 temporary visa which allowed my family to stay in Australia for four more years.”
In 2017, they heard back from the Department of Home Affairs about their 457 visa application. Mr Jestingor said the case officer was sympathetic to the family’s situation and granted them the 457 visa extension, but left out Patricia.
After discussing the outcome with their migration agent, he decided to file an appeal with the Administrative Appeals Tribunal regarding Patricia’s case.
It was also in that year that a change was introduced to the Temporary Skilled Worker visa program.
From the abolished subclass 457 visa, the Home Affairs department introduced the 482 visa, which allows skilled workers to stay temporarily in Australia without a pathway to permanent residency.
During this time, Mr Jestingor was scrambling to look for an employer who would sponsor him so that the family could extend their stay.
After months of searching, the director of nursing at Canberra Hospital offered him a further four years of sponsorship, however, due to the visa pathway changes, he said it was made clear that it would be the last temporary work visa the hospital would issue him.
In March 2021, the tribunal replied to the family, stating that since Patricia was refused when they applied for a 457 visa and the appeal was based on that, the conditions of 457 visa will carry over in regards to Patricia’s case.
The Jestingor family in Australia. Source: Ysabella Jestingor
The ATT said only ministerial intervention can overturn the decision.
A spokesperson from the Department of Home Affairs told SBS Filipino: "The Australian government administers the migration health requirement to protect the community from public health and safety risks, contain public expenditure on health care and community services, and safeguard the access of Australian citizens and permanent residents to health care and community services."
"Most visas require applicants to meet the migration health requirement set out in Australian migration law. The health requirement is not condition-specific and the assessment is undertaken individually for each applicant based on their condition and level of severity," the spokesperson adds.
"The current migration health framework is pragmatic and balances compassion and cost containment by imposing a standard health requirement for visa applicants while making health waivers available for some visa subclasses.
"For those not eligible for a health waiver, they may appeal through the Administrative Appeal Tribunal (AAT)."
Following the ATT reply, Mr Jestingor wrote letters to a number of ministers and MPs, nationally and in the ACT, seeking support but he said "nothing positive" has come out of these efforts thus far.
The family's appeal has been escalated to the Home Affairs office.
“My solicitor said only 17 per cent of all the appeals that have been brought to the Home Affairs minister's office will be entertained," he said.
With the help of their pastor at church, the family launched an online petition to gather support from the community and to raise awareness of their case, hoping that Minister Andrews will take notice.
Mr Jestingor understands that the family may be "out of options", but he is still hoping that the minister will intervene.
The Home Affairs spokesperson said: "Ministerial Intervention is not an extension of the visa process and the minister cannot be compelled to exercise their powers. Nor are they required to explain their decisions on any case."
"The minister only intervenes in a relatively small number of cases which present unique and exceptional circumstances and where they consider that it is in the public interest to do so. What is or is not in the public interest is entirely a matter for the Minister considering each case on its own merits.
"Individuals may remain in Australia while their case is being considered."
What the future holds
Due to the long and winding visa application process, the family’s finances have been affected.
Mr Jestingor's said as his children grew up in Australia, they no longer have a network of friends in the Philippines.
“Our end goal is to be finally given an opportunity to be granted permanent residency in Australia," he said.
Mr Jestingor leading a church service. Source: Ysabella Jestingor
"We’re out of options because of my daughter’s medical condition and I’ve already exceeded the age requirement to apply for permanent residency.”
He hopes that people in high positions can help them overcome their visa challenges. As a father, he said he only wants the best future for his family.
“We are good people. We contribute to our community and pay our taxes.
"We are doing what Australians are doing. The only difference is that we are not official permanent residents. This is where we belong now. Australia is our home."
As of this writing, the online campaign now has close to 18,000 signatures.
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