I spent two decades worrying about my visa status

Lisa from Perth is in her 50s and was born in New Zealand, however she has lived a very transient lifestyle, spending long periods in both the US and Australia.

Although Lisa lived in Australia and has spent more time here than her birth country, she wasn’t a resident. Her aim was to achieve permanent residency status in Australia, but her background was far from straightforward.

Lisa’s Nomadic Lifestyle

In her 20s and 30s, Lisa spent time between Australia and New Zealand as many people do, until she finally ended up as a yacht broker in Fort Lauderdale in Florida. However, she often travelled back to New Zealand for extended periods.

Whilst in the US, Lisa meet Glen and they had a daughter together. Lisa then moved with her family from Florida to Connecticut. However, coming back to New Zealand for six weeks so her father could meet his granddaughter for the first time, she started to reconsider whether she really wanted to be so far from home.

“What sets Home of Visas apart is that they made time for me. It was a very professional service, but you were treated so well, you felt part of the family. It’s really not worth trying to secure a visa on your own, you need the experts.”

The Pull of Home

Lisa decided she didn’t want to live out the rest of her life in the US and wanted to be closer to her ageing father, so she made the brave decision to move to Australia.

“It just felt natural for me to make my base in Australia. I’ve lived here for so many years and I have a Tax File Number. Glen comes over every year for three months. He has flexibility with his job to do that.”

Jasmin, Lisa’s daughter, has New Zealand and American citizenship but Lisa wanted permanent residency for her too. Her dream was to have all three of the family living together in Australia, but as she didn’t have permanent residency in Australia, it was unclear how that could be achieved.

Australian permanent residency

When we met with Lisa for the first time and discussed her background, we knew if there was a way we could get her permanent residency status, it would then present a viable pathway for her partner Glen and Jasmin to also become Australian permanent residents. This would then, in time, open up citizenship opportunities for the family unit.

“Zahirah and Fizah Ismail realised that I had spent time in Australia in my younger years. Fizah advised that I may eligible for a Resident Return visa, because I’d visited here prior to 1984. The process to secure that visa was straightforward, and I always felt reassured in everything they did.”

“I didn’t have the time or desire to experience the highs and lows of doing it myself. I expect to be using Home of Visas for all our needs in the future.”

Exceptional Service

Lisa had reached out to other migration agencies before but never felt confident in their offer.

“The next piece of the journey is to secure a visa for Glen so we can be a family unit. I want him here all year round, not just three months of the year. I am now a resident, and will hopefully progress to citizenship, which opens up opportunities for Glen to join us.”

Lisa is in no doubt she will be using Home of Visas again.

“I didn’t have the time or desire to experience the highs and lows of doing it myself. I expect to be using Home of Visas for all our needs in the future.’

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EMAIL: visas@homeofvisas.com.au
PHONE: +61 (0)8 6117 4004

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