Hello Seniors,
I am a 60 year old man on a single pension (DSP) with a spouse and 2 teenage children who live in the Philippines. As they are not Australian citizens I can't claim for them. I go to visit as often as I can but it is very straining on the budget as all we have to live on is my pension. While I am in the Philippines,I can save just enough for the next fare to get back. I have sold my car and furniture so we can have some comforts like food and a bed. I am only allowed to stay out of Australia for 90 days and then have to go back to report to Centrelink that I am back in Australia so my pension won't be cut. When in Australia, I stay wherever I can so that I can still send money to my family for them to live and pay the bills. I can't afford all the fees for visas etc for them to come to Australia let alone the fare. I know there are other people out there with the same or similar problem as mine. The cost of living in the Philippines is very cheap and a longer stay would be beneficial to both me and my family. Both the children are in high school which is an added burden. I haven't been able to pay the fees this year so I guess they will have to stay out of school and if they are extremely lucky, hopefully get a job without graduation from high school. I don't know what the answer is, but I think that letting pensioners stay longer away would be a significant bonus, and, less pressure on the Government to raise pensions. I thought I'd write to air my views and would be interested in your comments. Thank you for taking the time to read my mail.
Yours Truly,
Geoffrey J.