Move to relax disability restrictions on immigrants

Disability advocacy groups have broadly welcomed an announcement that the federal government will make it easier for people with disabilities or health problems to migrate to Australia.

(Transcript from World News Australia Radio)

Immigration Minister Chris Bowen says people who want to migrate to Australia will be assessed on the potential social and economic benefits they bring, rather than just the burden they could place on the healthcare system.

Up until now, the migration process has assumed in most cases that potential migrants with a disability will be a burden to taxpayers.

That meant they were routinely rejected for permanent residency, with appeals to the Migration Review Tribunal always upholding the original decision.

Their only recourse has been to appeal directly to the Immigration Minister.

This was the course taken by blind social worker Simran Kaur, and one that was ultimately successful after she proved she was making a contribution to the country through her work.

Ms Kaur's colleague at Vision Australia, international relations manager Maryanne Diamond, says it shows why the system should be changed to assess people on what they can do rather than their disability.

"I'd like to congratulate Chris Bowen and the government on, finally, making the right decision. And it is totally in line with the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Article 18, and Australia has ratified that convention that says people have the right to live anywhere that they choose and disability should not be a barrier."

The Settlement Council of Australia, a national peak body for refugee support, has been campaigning for the changes for several years.

Executive Officer Sky De Jersey says it will make a difference to many families.

"One of the key factors for me is the human rights issues, particularly in terms of the protection space, around allowing people whatever situation has happened to them access to protection, whatever health issues they've got. And it really looks at how refugees and migrant families can contribute to the care and protection for their family members. And that refugees and migrants make a huge contribution to Australia. We've seen countless instances of families and individuals doing spectacular things when they get here, so facilitating that process is really welcome."

Disability advocates have joined the applause about the focus on a person's potential contribution.

Chief executive of the National Ethnic Disabilities Alliance, Dwayne Cranfield, says the sector has been lobbying hard for the Government to re-think how disabled migrants are viewed.

"Any change in the law or the legislation which makes the process easier for people with disabilities to come to the country is a good thing. The skills sets that people have which they come here with really should be taken into consideration, which I think this is pointing to, and that people are more than the disability they present with. People come to the table and they have a disability or they may have a health issue, but at the end of the day they're far greater than that one thing. And often the richness and the diversity that they bring to our society, we're better off for it."

The Ethnic Communities Council of Victoria has also welcomed announcement as a less discriminatory approach towards migration.

Director Ross Barnett says it moves the onus away from disabled people to demonstrate that they're not going to be a burden on society.

But Mr Barnett says he's less happy about the assumption that people with a disability are going to make claims on health care costs.

"The government is assessing people's potential claim on health care costs as 35-thousand dollars, and it doesn't say whether that's an annual level or a total level, so I'm a little bit uncertain about that. But where we move into a situation of trying to remove discriminatory practices, it would seem to me that there's some discrimination in determining that someone is going to be a burden without really being in a position to make that judgement."

The Department of Immigration officials who ultimately decide who gets a visa will now consider the social and economic benefits an applicant and their family bring to Australia compared to the cost of their health care.

But it's too soon to know just how the Government will define social or economic benefit, and how a prospective migrant will highlight his or her contribution.

Vision Australia's Maryanne Diamond says she's concerned the definition may be very narrow.

"You can contribute in lots of ways, work being, of course, one of the major ones, but it is also as a contributing member of the community. So I don't think that's so hard to do. I think some bureaucrats may actually see it as a bit of a tick one box or tick another, you know job or no job, and that's probably something that we'll have to test in time. But, you know, people who have not got a disability don't have to do any of this stuff."

The National Ethnic Disabilities Alliance has been lobbying on behalf of an African refugee with a vision impairment who's been seeking permanent residency.

Dwayne Cranfield says the man, who doesn't want to be named in case it jeopardises his claim, has a PhD and is currently working in the disability sector.

"The services and the skills sets that he brings to our society are greatly needed. He's highly employable but he can't get permanency because of his disability. And he's got family that have been living back home in Africa that can't come out because of the processes that have happened. So for him, at the moment he is actually working and because he's not able to access any of the services like taxis and healthcare and other bits and pieces, but his wage doesn't cover the cost of his taxi service to and from his employer because he's blind and can't drive. And the situation for him now is he's basically working to pay for his travel expenses."

Mr Cranfield says he's confident that the refugee will now have his appeal successfully heard by the Immigration Minister.