An Indonesian couple are at breaking point as they try to bring their Australian-born son to the country after he was denied entry because of his disability.
Lily Lumintang, 43, and her partner have been fighting to bring Jonathan Down Under for four years.
Jonathan, who is now 14, was born with cerebral palsy and was denied residency because his condition was considered to be too costly for taxpayers.
Their son has been in the care of Ms Lumintang’s father and mother-in-law while the couple try to appeal the decision.
Ms Lumintang, 43, is unable to visit her son because she is on a bridging visa – with one of the conditions prohibiting applicants from re-entering Australia if they leave.
She was recently dealt another devastating blow after her father died, and was forced to make an impossible choice – stay here and fight for her son or return to Indonesia for the funeral and risk never returning to Australia.
‘I can’t leave the country because of one family member, otherwise the future of the whole family would be destroyed,’ she told Daily Mail Australia.
‘It would break my heart to leave Australia. We have community ties here: church, friends and employers.
Jonathan, 14, (pictured right) has been looked after by his grandparents recently in Indonesia – but the family (left) were dealt a devastating blow when his grandad died
‘We’re both working full-time and all our support system is here.’
Ms Lumintang came to Australia from Indonesia on a student visa in mid-2009 to study a Masters of Accounting.
She gave birth to Jonathan in 2010 and he lived in Australia for a couple of years before he was sent back to Indonesia in 2012 so Ms Lumintang could focus on her studies and set up a home.
After graduating and gaining full-time employment, the construction company she worked for offered her sponsorship for a permanent residency pathway in 2016.
As part of the ENS visa, Ms Lumintang could then apply for permanent residency for her and her family after a certain amount of time.
Ms Lumintang and her partner provided the necessary documentation to the Australian Government in 2019, but the Covid pandemic slowed the process and their application was ultimately rejected in November, 2021.
Jonathan was able to come to Australia for just three weeks during this period on a holiday visa.
‘My son didn’t pass (the visa application process) because of significant costs,’ Ms Lumintang said.
Jonathan (pictured as a young boy), didn’t pass the Australian government’s health requirement because of his cerebral palsy. If one family member is rejected on a permanent residency application, they all are. The Lumintang’s are facing an uncertain future
‘They said he would cost $1.2million over 10 years due to things like the NDIS and special education.’
‘On a family visa, if one person is denied, everyone is denied.’
Ms Lumintang lodged an immediate appeal to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal but wasn’t contacted until this year.
However, the family’s application was refused again in June, with authorities advising them Jonathan would now cost cost taxpayers $2.3million.
The family were given 35 days to leave Australia unless they lodged a ministerial intervention application – which Ms Lumingtang has done.
‘We’ve been told it will take between six to 12 months to process,’ she said.
‘It’s devastating. We have to stay while Jonathan can’t come here.
‘We don’t know how long it will be, but the bridging visa is our only option.’
The couple also applied for Jonathan’s citizenship in May 2021, but this was rejected three months later.
Ms Lumintang said if the family’s income will be drastically reduced if they are forced to return to Indonesia.
Despite being born in Australia, Jonathan’s citizenship application was denied because he had spent too much time overseas – but some of this was due to Covid and not being able to get back to Australia (pictured Jonathan at a younger age)
‘It’s challenging to find a job over there. There is an age restriction and it would require local experience in the field, which I don’t have,’ she said.
Ms Lumintang said she feels like she is ‘under the pump’ and that the family was at ‘breaking point’.
‘It’s hard. Last year Jonathan ended up waiting for us outside the house because he thought we would be coming straight back for him,’ she said.
‘He was sad.’
