"Be prepared for whatever could happen. I was a permanent resident of Australia, so I was under the impression that the process for my family would be easy. It wasn't," saad ng Melburnian na si Albert Escramosa.
The path towards migration for the Escramosa family wasn't easy. It involved months of separation and a waiting period that had no surety of ending.
Dubai
Nag-umpisa ang kwento ng pamilya sa Dubai.
"After working for Macquarie Bank in Sydney in 2008, I got a better offer in Dubai so I moved there. That's where I met my wife, Anna Liza, through a common friend. At that time, she had been there for 12 years. I had been there for 5 years."
Kahit aminado si Albert na mas malaki ang kita niya sa Dubai kaysa sa Australya noon, ninais pa rin niyang bumalik sa Australya dahil walang paraan upang maging mamamayan ng Dubai ang mga banyaga.
The couple met and fell in love in Dubai. Source: Albert Escramosa
"The benefit of being a citizen where you live outweighs anything else. We were in Dubai when I activated my residency again. Even before we got married in Manila, I already had my RRV. When we went back to Dubai after the wedding, we decided to make moves to migrate to Australia. We didn't know she was two months pregnant then."
Ninais nilang manganak si Anna Liza sa Australya, ngunit hindi ito nangyari.
Albert and Anna Liza married in Manila. Source: Albert Escramosa
"We planned on going to Australia together once they got their visas. We filed on our own and the estimated processing time then was 10 months; but it kept on changing. It became 12 months, then 15, then 16. We sent three appeal letters to Home Affairs to help the process along; but nothing happened."
Dahil wala pa ring balita sa Home Affairs, pinagdesisyunan ng mag-asawa na mauna na lamang si Albert sa Australya.
The couple's baby was being taken cared of by Albert's parents in Manila, while Anna Liza worked in Dubai and Albert got settled in Australia. Source: Albert Escramosa
Paghihiwalay
"I stayed in Dubai for four more months after my wife gave birth. I left for Manila with Aadi because in Dubai, my wife was required to give two months' notice before she could quit. We were lucky we had a good support system - my parents took care of him. So, the three of us were in different countries - the baby was in Manila, my wife was in Dubai and I was in Australia."
Sa kabutihang-palad nahiwalay lamang ang mag-anak ng ilang buwan.
"One week after I brought Aadi to Manila, my family's visas came out. There was a time though before this that my wife and I would fight quite a bit. Even though we both decided I should head to Australia first, she felt like I wanted to abandon her."
Naayos naman ng mag-asawa ang di nila pagkakaintindihan.
Albert and Anna Liza pick up their baby in Manila. Source: Albert Escramosa
"When I arrived in Manila, my wife was already there with our son. When I picked them up, she cried because she couldn't believe that the three of us were together again."
Maswerte
Magkasama na ngayong naninirahan ang mag-anak sa Melbourne.
Aminado si Albert na mahirap ang proseso, ngunit mas mahirap pa ito para sa mga walang pasensya.
"It was challenging. The questions in the application were descriptive but also open to interpretation; so we would have back-and-forth emails with Home Affairs asking us for clarifications. And the visa was expensive - around 7,000 AUD. Luckily, we were able to file before she gave birth so the baby was added to her application - we didn't need to pay extra for his visa."
The Escramosa family now live in Australia. Source: Albert Escramosa
Saad ni Albert na kahit nahirapan sila, maswerte pa rin silang mag-anak.
"We were fortunate we were only separated for a few months. Some families get separated for much longer. We're still lucky."
BASAHIN / PAKINGGAN DIN
