<div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>Exclusive: </span></strong><span>Sameer Mutreja has spent eight years living in Australia and says he considers it his home.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>After arriving in Sydney from his native India in 2017 on a student visa, Mutreja completed two university degrees in project management while working part-time in the construction industry.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Considered an ideal candidate for permanent residency because of his skills, Mutreja was invited by the New South Wales government to apply for a state-sponsored visa in January 2020.</span></div></div><div><div id="adspot-mobile-medium"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/british-couple-facing-deportation-over-ms-diagnosis-granted-permanent-residency/5cf49f09-347c-4e66-8ae8-0a427f0235ab" rel="" target="" title="Last-minute decision saves British couple facing deportation over MS diagnosis"><strong><span>Last-minute decision saves British couple facing deportation over MS diagnosis</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>His future in Australia seemed all but assured.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Having passed all the required health and police checks, Mutreja - who now co-owns a local construction company - was expecting his visa to be approved within a matter of months.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Then the pandemic hit, and visa processing times blew out.</span></div></div><div><div class="OUTBRAIN" data-reactroot="" data-src="//www.9news.com.au/national/sydney-construction-manager-facing-deportation-after-ms-diagnosis/fde1ef5e-90b8-4211-b683-bcab115a68ab" data-widget-id="AR_5"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Mutreja waited almost two years for his visa application to be processed.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Then, his health took a turn for the worse after having a bad reaction to a COVID-19 vaccine in November 2021.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"A week after I had the vaccine, I started getting double vision and vertigo," Mutreja said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Thinking he needed stronger glasses, Mutreja went to an optometrist and then an eye specialist, who diagnosed him with an inflamed optical nerve.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>A few months later, in April 2022, Mutreja said he started noticing other strange symptoms.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"I had issues with my hands, they went numb. I couldn't hold a spoon. I had pins and needles going from my legs all the way up my chest."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>After seeing a doctor and getting an MRI test, Mutreja was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS). </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The construction site manager said his doctor did not believe the COVID-19 vaccine had caused his MS, however, he advised him his body's reaction to the shot might have triggered the onset of his illness.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Mutreja said it didn't occur to him that his MS diagnosis would pose a problem for his visa application, which was still pending.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>In October 2022, Mutreja was asked to complete another health check as his first one had expired.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>A few months later, in January 2023, Mutreja received a notification from the Department of Home Affairs that his permanent visa had been refused and he was now facing deportation.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"I was in shock," Mutreja said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"I had to speak to multiple lawyers to understand what was happening, because I didn't even know what it meant."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>In its ruling, the Department of Home Affairs said Mutreja exceeded the "significant cost threshold", which calculates the hypothetical cost of an individual's healthcare needs over 10 years and triggers deportation if it is more than $86,000.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Mutreja said the decision did not seem right.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"I didn't do anything wrong. I followed the rules to a T and I've been a tax-paying resident from day dot, it's not fair," he said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The construction manager said his condition was being well-managed through lifestyle changes and medication.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The current drug he was taking for his MS was also a generic one, which cost far less than the amount triggered by the significant cost threshold, he said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Mutreja said he was willing to pay for his healthcare costs, however, this was not an option the department would accept.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Last month, </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/british-couple-facing-deportation-over-ms-diagnosis-make-lastditch-appeal-to-minister/59e7746d-78af-481a-ad94-ee3a83922750" rel="" target="" title="9news.com.au reported on a case"><span>9news.com.au reported on a case</span></a><span> similar to Mutreja's involving a British couple - Jessica Mathers and Rob O'Leary.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Like Mutreja, Mathers was deemed an economic burden to Australia because of her MS diagnosis.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Days after 9news.com.au published the article, Immigration Minister Tony Burke </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/british-couple-facing-deportation-over-ms-diagnosis-granted-permanent-residency/5cf49f09-347c-4e66-8ae8-0a427f0235ab" rel="" target="" title="personally intervened"><span>personally intervened</span></a><span> and granted the couple permanent residency.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Mutreja said the fact that the minister needed to intervene showed the policy of issuing blanket rejections for visa applicants with certain health conditions was wrong. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"It (the policy) does need change," he said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"There has to be someone looking at it case by case. There has to be some kind of personal understanding."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Mutreja has lodged an appeal with the Administrative Review Tribunal (ART), however, he now faces a wait of up to four years for his case to be assessed.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Immigration lawyer Adrian Joel, who is acting on behalf of Mutreja, said his client's case was concerning in many respects, chief among them was the refusal of the department to take into consideration the actual cost of his treatment.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"In Sameer's case, he's being treated with off-label, generic drugs (prescribed) by leading experts in Australia, but the government just won't recognise the medicine," he said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"I just think it's absolutely appalling that they won't even consider it, particularly in the case of Sameer, who is an extremely competent, senior-level professional."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Last year, the Department of Home Affairs conducted </span><a href="https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/reports-and-publications/reviews-and-inquiries/departmental-reviews/report-review-migration-health-requirement-australias-visa-sct"><span>a review</span></a><span> of its use of the significant cost threshold to determine visa applications, after a push from the Greens, who have called the policy "discriminatory".</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The report found almost 2300 visa applicants exceeded the significant cost threshold in 2022-2023.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The total estimated costs of the health services hypothetically required by those visa applicants was $1.06 billion. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>However, the 30-year-old policy was not in tune with medical advancements and prevented some people living with stable and managed health conditions, such as HIV, Crohn's Disease and skin disorders like psoriasis, from being granted a permanent visa, the report found.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>A spokesperson for the Department of Home Affairs said the department was unable to comment on individual cases.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"The Department of Home Affairs administers the health requirement to protect the community from public health and safety risks, contain public expenditure on health care and community services, and safeguard the access of Australian citizens and permanent residents to health care and community services," the spokesperson said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"The health requirement is not condition-specific and the assessment is undertaken individually for each applicant based on their condition and level of severity."</span></div></div>