Kristen Lear, Illegal Alien

That’s right: I am currently living unlawfully in Australia. This debacle began on Tuesday when I arrived back in Naracoorte and received a letter from the Australian immigration department stating that my application for a new visa was deemed “invalid” and was therefore not processed. I had sent in an application for a renewal of my current 406 Government Agreement visa (that Fulbright Scholars get) a few days before heading off to Hungary. My (then) current visa had an expiration date of September 30, which was two days after my return from Hungary. I stupidly assumed that everything would be taken care of by the time I got home and that I’d have a new visa waiting for me. I was wrong. Apparently the immigration people thought I was not in Australia when I lodged the application and therefore determined that I did not meet some clause in the Migration Regulations 1994. I was DEFINITELY in Australia when I lodged the application. They had to have known that because in the letter it stated, “As this letter was mailed to an Australian address from within Australia, you are taken to have received it seven (7) working days from the date of this letter”. Why on Earth would I have an Australian address unless I was living here?! Because of their screw up, my previous visa expired and I no longer have a valid one.

I contacted the department to sort this out, and the lady told me to mail my application (the exact same one but with an updated signature and date) back in and they would issue me a Bridging Visa C to cover me until the 406 visa can be issued. The C bridging visa is for people who are here unlawfully and are waiting on the outcome of an application: a.k.a. me. The lady said that because I am now here unlawfully, I need to “restrict my movements” (her exact words) until a valid visa is issued. I feel like a criminal, and I have done nothing wrong! I followed the application instructions to the letter, and even wrote a cover letter explaining why I was applying for a 406 visa extension. Despite my best efforts to do everything right, I still got screwed over. By the time they issue me a proper visa I’ll be home! The lady did suggest I apply for a tourist visa instead, since the application is much easier, but there is a fee associated with that. Starting this year Fulbright Scholars don’t have to pay the 406 visa renewal fee, so why would I apply for a visa with a fee when I can get one without a fee?

Despite being extremely frustrated by all this, I do think the situation is pretty funny (in a frustrating way). At this point what would they do to me? I’m going home to the U.S. in 27 days. I’m sure everything will get worked out, but in the meantime I remain Kristen Lear, Illegal Alien.