Ms Fiona Finn:

It is difficult. To be fair, the Department is taking a fairly positive view when it comes to extended family members seeking refugee family unification. Again, it very much depends on income and dependency. An applicant must prove that a family member is dependent. Some of the decisions coming back are puzzling and there seems to be no consistency in the decision-making.

In the case of non-refugee family reunification or people who are applying for visas, the refusal rate is high. The relevant policy document basically states that the position of the Department is that an applicant will be refused unless she can prove otherwise. It is a particularly high barrier to overcome. The need for favourable decisions is even more critical now given the coming into force of the International Protection Act. The Act will mean that many refugees are going to have to move from the refugee family reunification process to the immigration framework. Under that framework, of every ten applications we submit, eight will be refused.