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Health

Perth family facing deportation as son's Down syndrome diagnosis deemed taxpayer burden

Aneesh and Krishna with daughter Aaryasree, 8, and son Aaryan, 10. (Supplied)

Like many children his age, Aaryan loves riding his bike, playing with friends and going to school. 

Along with his eight-year-old sister Aaryasree, the 10-year-old is happy, healthy and well settled in his home in Perth's southern suburbs.

Parents Aneesh Kollikkara and Krishna Aneesh immigrated to Australia from India with their children seven years ago.

Despite Perth being the only home the children have known and Mr Kollikara and Ms Aneesh working in critical industries, the family are facing deportation due to Aaryan's disability.

Aaryan was born with Down syndrome, and the Immigration Department has denied the family permanent residency visas due to potential costs his disability may have on the health system.

Krishnadevi Aneesh and Mr Aneesh Kollikkara are fighting to stay in Australia.  (ABC News: Ashleigh Davis)

The family have exhausted the appeals process and have just two weeks until they are deported. That is, unless the Immigration Minister, Andrew Giles, intervenes. 

Perth has become home

Aaryan's mother is a cybersecurity expert analyst at a large mining company, while his father works in the critical telecommunications field.

Ms Aneesh told ABC Radio Perth the visa process had taken a large emotional toll on their family, and her children did not want to leave their home in Perth.

Perth couple who work in critical industries face deportation due to child's disability

"They are integrated into the community and if we had to move back to India, it would be a new environment for them," she said.

"The culture, society, everything here is very different from India and also it will be very hard for Aaryan to survive there because of this [disability].

"Even though he has Down Syndrome, he is really healthy ... he has the same physical capabilities like any other child."

While the Perth community is welcoming of his disability, Aaryan is known to the immigration department as a "burden" to taxpayers.

No equal opportunity for disability

Munashe Rusamo, an associate at Estrin Saul Lawyers in Perth, said the government had placed a caveat in the Disability Discrimination Act, which allowed it to knock back visas for immigrants if they had health issues or a disability.

Lawyer Munashe Rusamo says the law effectively allows the government to discriminate against immigrants with a disability.  (ABC News: Ashleigh Davis)

"The justification is they are saving the public some sort of money, or they're saving public health infrastructure from being overloaded," he said.

"They've said ... you forfeited your right to equal opportunity purely because you live with disability."

Mr Rusamo said despite numerous campaigns to change, it remained a hidden issue and one he felt needed to change immediately.

Branded a burden to society

"Often, what happens is a child living with a disability is almost branded as a burden to the Australian community," he said.

"It's quite hard for these families to have to fight through this process that is blatantly discriminatory."

Mr Rusamo explained the government has health tests to determine the 'cost' an individual may have on the government.

A Perth lawyer said the process was allowed through a caveat in the Disability Discrimination Act. (ABC News: Ashleigh Davis)

"If your family has care costs over $51,000, they say that's a significant cost," he said.

"And for a family living with disability, it's near impossible to satisfy the health requirement, especially if you're applying for permanent residency."

Aaryan's mother said despite never having accessed any services to assist Aaryan, the government had estimated potential costs of $664,000 over a 10-year period.

"We are eligible for NDIS and Medicare but we haven't accessed anything for Aaryan via NDIS," she said.

"They have clearly stated that it is a financial burden to the community and all the taxpayers here in Australia if we are given a permanent residency.

"We can say that we are paying more than that in our own tax and we are contributing to society."

A spokesperson for Mr Giles said he was unable to comment on individual cases due to privacy reasons. 

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