00:01A less than warm welcome for Kate Griffiths in a region crying out for midwives.
00:07We just had this dark cloud hanging over us from the day we've got, pretty much the day we got
00:12here.
00:13SA Health fast-tracked Kate's employment, bringing her and her husband to Australia on a temporary visa with the promise
00:20of permanent residency.
00:22That's ultimately what drew us to Wyella was because we knew that the birth centre had closed down
00:27and women were having to travel quite a far distance to access care.
00:31They bought a home, but under SA law, migrants must have permanent residency within 12 months of purchase to avoid
00:39additional stamp duty.
00:40They fell outside that grace period because SA Health says there were delays in processing her paperwork.
00:47For the stamp duty, it's in the region of around $25,000 to $26,000.
00:51The state government initially rejected a refund, but now the Treasurer says the money will be given back.
00:58It's something we could have fixed a lot earlier, but revenue SA just applied the law.
01:02But the moment it got to a politician's desk, it got fixed.
01:05Kate was also charged a $44,000 established dwelling fee by the Australian Taxation Office.
01:12In a letter, it told her it would not be within the national interest to remit the application fees.
01:17This policy, it's not designed to punish, penalise the people who they are actively recruiting to bring to this country.
01:31Miss Griffith's expertise is sorely needed in South Australia.
01:35Several weeks ago, SA Health paused birthing services at Crystal Brook and Jamestown due to workforce shortages,
01:42while the same service at Capunda also remains shut.
01:45She's now taking her flight to Canberra.
01:48Kate's experience sends the absolute wrong message to people, to allied health professionals living outside of Australia that are considering
01:56to make a move.
01:58An Aussie dream that's currently a nightmare.
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