Immigration and Down syndrome

Families who apply to migrate to Australia and have a family member with Down syndrome face a much harder application process than would otherwise be the case. The process is lengthy and costly, and until recently a successful outcome was rare.

Recent media coverage of a number of cases has brought this issue into the public spotlight and resulted in some movement towards making changes in the legislation. As a result, there is cause for cautious optimism that families may receive better treatment in the future. 

The documents attached here outline the application process and offer some advice about how to go about making an application. We hope these will be of assistance to families who decide to apply for migration to Australia.

Please note that Down Syndrome Victoria is not able to offer legal advice relating to migration.

Ford, Sharon and Jan Gothard (2004) Discrimination and immigration: an Australian (bad) example Paper presented at World Down Syndrome Congress, Singapore, April 2004
Conference paper which details the application process for permanent residence, as it is applied to families including a family member with Down syndrome. Includes one family’s (successful) story.