Tessa de Speville has lived in Australia for almost 10 years, has two university degrees from Melbourne and Wollongong, is married to an Aussie, and works as an emergency department doctor in a regional town. or signup to continue reading Despite this, her efforts to become a permanent resident of Australia have so far proved futile. When she moved to Australia from Mauritius as an 18-year-old on a student visa in 2015, she was told becoming a permanent resident was simple.
"They told me, 'look, it's very easy,'" she said. "'You spend seven years in the country and then you should be fine and you should have your permanent residency and your citizenship.'" Dr de Speville then did a three-year undergraduate degree at the University of Melbourne followed by a four-year postgraduate degree at the University of Wollongong.
"By that time I became a doctor and moved to Albury, but the (immigration department) told me, 'look, you've spent seven years here, but you are on a provisional registration as a first-year doctor,'" Dr de Speville said. "'You can't become a permanent resident on a provisional registration. You have to have a general registration.
' "I finished my internship and I became a general registered doctor. And then they told me, 'no, you have to do three years of work as a general registered doctor to apply'. "It feels like the immigration department is changing the rules as they go.
" Dr de Speville said it was easier for to become a permanent resident. "I'm a locally.
