Bizbeth

Thank you.

It would mean we were stuck living in Australia for longer, potentailly until the child is 18. We had to (/chose to) move to Australia after the mother disappeard from the UK 5 years ago with our 6 month old child and Interpol found her in Australia. There was a 12 month international court case to return the child to the UK, but that fell through. So if I wanted my daughter to have a chance at having a father in her life, my only choice was to move to Australia and request the family court issue orders for contact and ideally shared care. 5 years on and we are still in and out of courts for child arrangelemts, domestic violence incidents etc. If the mother doesn't receive citizenship she is not going to be able to afford to study here (which is her current plan) and that will increase the odds of her wanting to move back to the UK where both sides of our family live. Returning home would be a happy resolution for me to this awful few years. If Australia deem her to be of "good character" that would be anoher nail in the coffin for me, maybe it's none of my business whether they grant her citizenship or not, but I will definitely hurt.

Hi, I was looking for advice. About 18 months ago my ex partner assaulted me and consequently received a crimial conviction for assault (a fine) and the court put in place a 5 year domestic violence protection order. I still have to see her on a weekly basis, as we have a child together, but it causes me constant stress and anxiety and I feel like I'm sitting duck waiting for her next move where she physically or psychologically attacks / denegrates me in front of our daughter. She's told me she is applying for citizenship, but I'm not sure if she would pass the good character requirement. If she does it's very much like the Australian government are condoning her behaviour towards me, our daughter and her other victims (there is another 5 year DVO in place protecting her previous partner and his kids from her). Is there a way I can submit a victim impact statement or similar to alert immigration that this behaviour is still ongoing and the negative impact it'll have on my mental wellbeing if they consider her of good character despite her actions? Thanks.

Hi all. How would you recommend finding a good migration agent? I have looked through the list of registered agents on the MARA website and phoned a few of them up. Those that I have spoken to have all seemed to give similar advice (which is a promising start!), but I am struggling to find reviews that aren't straight off their own website, so I am struggling to come to terms with parting with a large sum of cash when I have little certainty of their service once they have my money. They can promise the earth, but will they deliver?!

I'd suggest chatting to a registered migration agent. You can search for ones based in the United Kingdom here: https://www.mara.gov.au/search-the-register-of-migration-agents/ Some agents offer a free 30 minute consultation over the phone, and they should be able to tell you what your realistic options are. Another path you may/may not have considered.... could your partner adopt your daughter so that you don't have to go through this difficult court process again? It might involve going back to court in the sort term, but I think it would mean it was permanently sorted out. Good luck with it all!