A European immigrant couple and their two-year-old son face deportation after being denied permanent residency due to the child’s chronic illness.
British-born Laura Currie and her Italian partner Dante Vendittelli moved separately to Australia but met in Brisbane in 2019 and have built a family life together in Perth.
Ms Currie, a teacher from Scotland, became the de facto beneficiary of Mr Vendittelli’s work visa, which he obtained through his job in the construction industry.
The couple filed a joint application for permanent residence and during the process their son Luca was born in November 2021.
However, just six weeks after welcoming their baby, the couple were told that Luca had cystic fibrosis, a genetic disease that affects the body’s proteins and damages the lungs and digestive system.
The family was dealt another blow in February after receiving an email from the government explaining that Luca’s visa had been refused because the potential cost of his treatment would be too much for Australian taxpayers.
The treatment is a drug called Trikafta, which is described as a “life-saving treatment” for cystic fibrosis in patients aged six years and older, according to the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA).
British-born Laura Currie and her Italian partner Dante Vendittelli built a life together in Perth after meeting in Brisbane in 2019.
The couple is facing deportation after their son Luca, who was born midway through their permanent visa application, was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis.
Trikafta is on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Plan, which discounts the treatment to $42.50 per prescription.
However, the unsubsidized amount is around $250,000 for a year’s supply.
Luca is not yet taking Trikafta and the family does not even know if the little boy is compatible with the medication.
However, Luca’s total future treatment is estimated to cost around $1.8 million, a price the government is unwilling to pay even though the boy was born in Australia.
IThe allowable limit – or Significant Cost Threshold – that the government is willing to absorb for someone applying for residency or citizenship is only $86,000 over 10 years.
Ms Currie is appealing the decision, arguing that the family has made Australia their home and that she and her husband are filling jobs the country needs.
If they lose the appeal, the family will have 28 days to leave the country.
Luca’s treatment is estimated to cost around $1.8 million, a price well above the permitted limit and one that the government is not willing to pay even though the little boy was born in Australia.
Ms Currie called the rejection “heartbreaking” and fears her family will be devastated if the appeal fails.
“If we are deported, we will be sent to two different countries, so our family will be split up,” Currie told news.com.au.
“Dante can’t go to Scotland and Luca and I can’t go to Italy. So they’re literally separating us. It’s very sad to think about.”
Ms Currie said the family was “living in limbo” after spending their savings on an immigration lawyer and waiting for a response to their appeal.
“We’ve contributed to the economy, we’ve paid our taxes and we just feel like we’re not wanted here, which is a horrible feeling for anyone,” he said.
“We’re in a tight spot, so we’ve gone public, but it hasn’t been easy. Luca is known locally as the ‘sick boy of Perth’ and that breaks my heart.”
Daily Mail Australia has contacted the Department of Home Affairs for comment.
