by A family who settled in Australia eight years ago say they are “upset and frustrated” after being told they must return to the UK – because they are too old.
Glenn and Sheena Tunnicliff swapped England for Perth in 2015.
Glenn, now 57, is a plasterer who has relatives in Western Australia, while 50-year-old Sheena’s job as a travel agent manager was in demand and meant she could get the family a visa.
They sold up in East Sussex, near London, and uprooted children, Tamzin, now 21, and Molly, 18, as well as the family Jack Russell Roxy.
They settled in Perth and got jobs, with Sheena going on to open her own travel agency and Glenn working as a plasterer.
They bought a house in Warwick in the city’s north.
Their children, who were at school when they moved over, are now also pursuing their own careers: Tamzin is a nurse and Molly is studying Auslan at TAFE.
But visa changes over the years mean the family have never managed to get permanent residency, known as PR, which would have allowed them to stay for good and eventually get Australian citizenship.
It has an age limit of 45, so neither now qualifies.
Now they’ve run out of options and must go home by August 4.
“We don’t want to go back to the UK – we’ve made a life here,” Mrs Tunnicliff said.
“Now we are over that magic figure of 45 there is no route to PR for us.
“Australia classes us as too old.
“We are the ones with the experience and training.
“Australia is turning around saying, ‘You’re too old but we’ll hang on to your kids.'”
Mrs Tunnicliff initially worked as a travel agency manager but now has her own business, a branch of Helloworld.
She employs three people.
Mr Tunnicliff works as a plasterer – an in-demand job on the nation’s list of needed skills – and the family is now on his work visa.
But the company which sponsored his visa is about to wind up and there’s no other way for the family to get a permanent visa.
Even if he finds a new employer, they’re too old to get permanent residency now.
“It’s absolutely pointless looking for a sponsor knowing it won’t lead to PR,” Mrs Tunnicliff said.
She said they have spent more than $80,000 on visas over the years, as well as on advice from visa agents they say has not always been correct.
Daughter Tamzin is able to stay on her own visa as she’s now a nurse but faces being separated from the rest of her family.
The family is calling for the rules to change to allow more people who have come to Australia to work to be allowed to stay for good, even if they are over 45.
“We are just a pure working family that have been caught up with all the visa changes over the years,” Mrs Tunnicliff said.
“For us to have to leave the country is very frustrating, there has to be something done.”
Mr Tunnicliff said much of his family, including his grandparents, moved over as “ten pound Poms” and said it’s “disappointing” they’re facing having to leave.
“I get why they want to be tough, but I don’t understand why someone’s not looking at us as a family,” he said.
“That’s the problem, the moving of the goalposts all the time, and if anything changes with your circumstances you start again.
“We never came here to go home.”
Molly, 18, also has to leave, as she won’t qualify for a student visa because of the course she is studying.
The family has also been told their dog, Roxy, at 14, might not make the flight due to his age.
Joanne Kinslor, principal solicitor at immigration law specialists Kinslor Prince Lawyers, said the rules are designed for the benefit of Australia – specifically the economy.
“The age limit in place for the vast majority of skilled migrants arises from a policy concern that the working lives and economic contributions of older skilled migrants are likely to be smaller than that of younger migrants,” Kinslor said.
“As well as benefiting from the skills and labour of skilled migrants, the Australian community also meets costs in supporting permanent residents of Australia, such as publicly funded healthcare and aged pensions.”
However, migration agent Mateja Rautner thinks the 45 age limit is “unreasonable” and said many skilled workers now only have the option of moving to regional areas if they want to stay in Australia.
“The Australian government is actively promoting Australia as the destination for skilled migrants and we are amid global competition for talent and yet we are limiting the options for skilled workers over 45,” Rautner told 9news.com.au.
“For this reason, Australia is no longer preferred the destination of choice for many of the world’s skilled migrants.”
A report in April found the nation’s immigration system was broken.
Despite the family’s plight, Western Australia, where the family lives, has pledged to cut red tape to get more workers into the state.
The Department of Home Affairs told 9news.com.au they don’t comment on individual cases.
