Visa Granted - The first step to citizenship!

ANZAC day commemorates all those Australians and New Zealanders who have served and died in conflicts and wars. On the 25th April 1915, Australian and New Zealand soldiers formed part of the expedition designed to recapture the Gallipoli Peninsular during World War I. These soldiers became known as ANZAC's and the day was officially named in their honour in 1916.

In Western Australia, we remembered the fallen this Tuesday, with a public holiday; Darrell and I spent the day quietly, drinking Bovril (and Bonox, the Aussie alternative) and sitting by the fire on a chilly holiday afternoon. With the rain tumbling down outside, we curled up on the sofa and watched Netflix, in particular Miriam Morgolyes, and her new show, 'Almost Australian.'

Miriam's show was particularly poignant for me; I had no idea she had an Australian partner, and her journey towards citizenship was fascinating to watch. I was left feeling content with my decision to leave Britain, in the same way Miriam moved from The UK to live with her partner, Heather. Of course, my journey is very different. Neither Darrell nor I have the money she has, and we have spent many years battling to stay together through the most difficult of circumstances. However, the story of Miriam and Heather isn't all that different to our own. As I sat there watching, with the rain pouring down outside, I briefly thought about the country I left behind and Australia, the continent that feels more like home every day.

It must have been about 3.30pm when the rain stopped, and I finally got round to checking my email. I noticed a message from my solicitor, John, in my inbox, and my heart sank - what on Earth does he want on a public holiday? Judging on previous experience, emails from John aren't generally good, and it is usually highlighting a mistake in my application, asking me to rectify a stressful situation. Gingerly, I opened the email and saw the first word, 'congratulations.' I couldn't believe it; after exactly four months, the Australian government had approved my temporary and permanent residency at the same time. I was finally allowed to stay here, with no conditions and more or less the same rights as every other Australian.

It's strange, this kind of feels like the end of my story - I've been working towards this goal in one form or another, since I have been with Darrell, for near on 28 years. However, this is really just the beginning. I may well have been granted permanent residency and allowed to leave Australia as and when I wish, but this is just the start of my road to citizenship and my Australian passport. At nearly 52 years old, I am embarking on an adventure, I should have completed years ago. Like most things in life, I am rather late to the party, but I have finally got here and relishing the opportunities I have been afforded, even if I am the wrong side of 50!

My new Partner Visa allows me to live in Australia for the next five years, without any conditions. I can return to the UK and work if I wish, go travelling, live in Europe for a period, but essentially I have been given rights to live here with Darrell indefinitely.  After five years, I will have to make a decision. I can renew my visa, or I can apply for citizenship and obtain an Australian passport.

At the moment, I haven't made any firm commitments about where my future lies, but having my Aussie citizenship will be a dream come true. I will also be able to keep my British passport and continue to have rights to reside and work there also. Even though that is welcome, I don't think I will be going to the UK anytime soon, certainly not to live anyway. My future most definitely is in Australia, but as Darrell and I look towards our retirement, we will have to make a decision about where to live permanently. I am still not sure Australia will be our forever home, and if I am honest my heart still lies in Spain. I have a dream to retire back to Gran Alacant and would love to eventually settle in Europe once again.

Of course, Brexit put pay to our European adventure in 2018, but times change and anything could happen in the next decade. The hope is, we will be allowed to settle in Spain at some point, when we have enough money to do so. For now, I am happy to call Australia home and build a future in Perth; ultimately I would love to get my citizenship when the time is right, but until then both Darrell and I need to knuckle down and build a new life. The rocky road we have been on for many years has suddenly got a little less rocky, and I'm at a loss to explain how everything is going our way. Can I really dare to dream? Can this really be going right? Or is everything about to come crashing down? For now, I'm just running with the good times, and thinking only positive thoughts!

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