# VISA Granted but undisclosed illness



## mjr_ (Aug 1, 2012)

Hi,

We have had our 189 PR visa granted in the last few days, however have not disclosed an illness that has occurred since our medicals.

In the last couple of months I have been diagnosed and undergone surgery for bowel cancer and just started chemotherapy (I am 39). All the results following the surgery are positive that I have been cured and the chemo is optional but statistically adds to the chance of being cured. 

As you can imagine this has taken our focus over the last couple of months and the VISA has been completely out of our mind. We did not make a decision to not disclose the situation, however it just hasn't been at the top of our minds or our top priority.

Having not heard anything for a few months (due to delays with processing our medicals) we received an email from our case worker telling us our visa has been granted.

I'm worried that if I contact our case worker then this will lead to the VISA been withdrawn and all lost due to the processing having gone to far for this information to be taken into account.

Does anybody have any experience or advice on what we do? 

Thanks.


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## divyap (May 11, 2013)

mjr_ said:


> Hi,
> 
> We have had our 189 PR visa granted in the last few days, however have not disclosed an illness that has occurred since our medicals.
> 
> ...


Now that you are an aus PR, you need not worry about your past undisclosed conditions anymore. 

All you have to do is, get well, don't worry, start your life afresh.. 

Even if you had blatantly lied, it was their duty to find. Since during your medicals, you were normal, thats more than enough to stop worrying. 

Im 100% sure this will in no way affect your PR or another stuff related to immigration. 

Cheers.. 
All the best.. Divya


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## mjr_ (Aug 1, 2012)

Thanks for the reply Divya,

I assume that there will be no follow up by diac now that the visa has been issued and that there will be no future questioning that would require me to disclose this illness. Is this correct?

Thanks


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## mjr_ (Aug 1, 2012)

Anybody else have any thoughts?
Thanks


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## mjr_ (Aug 1, 2012)

Nobody? :-(


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## AM (May 29, 2013)

its fine. i dont think there is any reason for you to worry since meds were cleared


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## shingle (Oct 30, 2011)

only concern yourself with getting well- you have PR so it's not an issue as far as DIAC are concerned- nothing was picked up in your medicals so all's well. Are you planning on moving soon then ? you could continue your treatment over there?


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## Guest (Aug 30, 2013)

Actually you need to report significant changes up until the point you validate which us when you actually confirm your PR. If you check your visa grant letter/email you will see it saying so right there.


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## divyap (May 11, 2013)

No. This isn't significant. It's common for ppl to get cancer/other diseases. PR can also get cancer. All the PRs wont be reporting such things. Once granted PR, you can forget to worry abt your visa for the next 5 years.. 

Im sure that this case need not ne reported. 
After medicals, anything with respect to medicals is a liability of Aussie health system if you enter Australia. 
You can even travel with such disease to Australia let aside traveling after cure. 

All the best.


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## jre05 (Feb 16, 2013)

divyap said:


> No. This isn't significant. It's common for ppl to get cancer/other diseases. PR can also get cancer. All the PRs wont be reporting such things. Once granted PR, you can forget to worry abt your visa for the next 5 years..
> 
> Im sure that this case need not ne reported.
> After medicals, anything with respect to medicals is a liability of Aussie health system if you enter Australia.
> ...


One hysterical thing: PR can also get cancer

(Yes everything in this life gets cancer and dies away one day). The Permanent Resident Visa Paper and its value too, perhaps one day, when we ourselves will not be here forever in this world. I read it like "PR Visa paper" Ha Ha, but certainly that's true too.

Just relaxed seeing this witty thing, with the immediate smile and a small laugh it has brought in my face. Good one.

However, I know it is intended to be like "PR holder can also get cancer"

No offense and no silly comments intended on this serious thread.

Best regards,
JR


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## mjr_ (Aug 1, 2012)

_shel said:


> Actually you need to report significant changes up until the point you validate which us when you actually confirm your PR. If you check your visa grant letter/email you will see it saying so right there.


Nothing in the letter or email I received states that I need to report any changes up to point of validation. We have until mid February to validate.


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## mjr_ (Aug 1, 2012)

Thanks to others that have replied. Will finish chemo here in the UK as have good private cover through work. This will go on until end of January 2014. We then have about 2 weeks to validate Visas.

It would be too much to do trying to move whilst having chemo. Have house, cars, pets and kids to sell before we can move! 

JR - No offense taken. Luckily my sense of humour was not located in the part of me that was surgically removed!


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## Dieti (Jul 30, 2013)

Are you selling your kids?  lolz 

By the way, how do you manage to get your original country and the country of expat to disappear? 




mjr_ said:


> Thanks to others that have replied. Will finish chemo here in the UK as have good private cover through work. This will go on until end of January 2014. We then have about 2 weeks to validate Visas.
> 
> It would be too much to do trying to move whilst having chemo. Have house, cars, pets and kids to sell before we can move!
> 
> JR - No offense taken. Luckily my sense of humour was not located in the part of me that was surgically removed!


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## mjr_ (Aug 1, 2012)

Dieti said:


> Are you selling your kids?  lolz


Not anymore - the wife wants to keep them for some reason. Lol.


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## mjr_ (Aug 1, 2012)

Dieti said:


> By the way, how do you manage to get your original country and the country of expat to disappear?


I'm using the android app on my cellphone, so maybe that doesn't support the country details.


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## Dieti (Jul 30, 2013)

Lol...... And You are super fast... Lol. 
Wishing you a fast recovery!!! That's called the flow of life and to enjoy it fully and effortlessly is to be it. 




mjr_ said:


> Not anymore - the wife wants to keep them for some reason. Lol.


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## jre05 (Feb 16, 2013)

mjr_ said:


> Thanks to others that have replied. Will finish chemo here in the UK as have good private cover through work. This will go on until end of January 2014. We then have about 2 weeks to validate Visas.
> 
> It would be too much to do trying to move whilst having chemo. Have house, cars, pets and kids to sell before we can move!
> 
> JR - No offense taken. Luckily my sense of humour was not located in the part of me that was surgically removed!


Hello mjr,

You are truly quite interesting, from the recent posts here, I can see you are very sportive and easy going and have a sweet disposition and a person with good sense of humor.

I wish you a speedy recovery. 

Best regards,
JR


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## waitingkills (Jul 20, 2013)

Mjr, 

I believe you should carry on with your plans to move to australia..This is not much of a concern...As cancer is not communicable and you are not going to be a burden on Australian health system.....I believe they would have granted you a visa even if it would have detected in your medicals. 

regards


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## Guest (Aug 31, 2013)

divyap said:


> No. This isn't significant. It's common for ppl to get cancer/other diseases. PR can also get cancer. All the PRs wont be reporting such things. Once granted PR, you can forget to worry abt your visa for the next 5 years..
> 
> Im sure that this case need not ne reported.
> After medicals, anything with respect to medicals is a liability of Aussie health system if you enter Australia.
> ...


 Cancer is not significant, what planet are you from? It is extremely costly to treat and manage which is the deciding factor in medicals for migration. The point in this case is the op knew they had this before grant and did not tell their CO even if it was not intentional. 
Please stop giving out really poor advice on the basis of what you hope the system is like rather than fact and migration law.

Nothing is the liability if the Australian health system until you validate AND are residing in Australia. 
It is specifically mentioned in numerous documents published by the Government that you need to report changes until you validate.


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## espresso (Nov 2, 2012)

Hi everyone, 

to back up what __shel_ said, Form 1022 states: 



> *Section 104 of the Migration Act 1958* (the Act) requires you to inform the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (the department) of any *changes in your circumstances that affect any answer to a question in your application form*.
> 
> You do not have to notify the department of any changes in your circumstances that occurred:
> a) after you were granted your visa (if you applied for your visa in Australia); or
> b) *after you have been immigration cleared* (if you applied for your visa *outside Australia*).


I also checked my _Visa Grant Notice_ and it clearly says:



> If your circumstances have changed since you made your visa application, and as a result an answer to a question on your visa application form or the information you have given to the Department of Immigration and Citizenship about your visa application is no longer correct, you must advise us in writing as soon as possible. Please make sure that you include your name, date of birth and Application ID when you write to us. [...]
> 
> You can provide this information to the GSM processing office by letter or email, together with any accompanying documents.


So yeah, if you want to "play it by the rules" you should inform DIAC about your cancer. According to the Panel Member Instructions cancer is classified in the following way: 



> *Cancer*
> *A-Grade:* No recurrence ≥ five years post-treatment.
> *B-Grade:* New diagnosis, recurrence exists, or if < five years since treatment. Specialist report required.


So yeah, it may seem a bit nit-picky, but legally you are required to report it. On the other hand, if you'd been diagnosed AFTER the grant and validation trip, you would not be required to report it. It's a small thing but these are the rules.

By the way, I would trust __shel_'s assessment on medical issues w.r.t. to immigration. _shel wrote this sticky post about migrating for people with disabilities and has given lots of advice for people to pass the medical requirements despite medical complications (epilepsy, surgery, cancer, downs syndrome). It's not about being an ass and telling you "ha, you are going to lose your visa now" but about knowing the rules and to ensure that you won't have any problems (legal or otherwise) down the road. 

All the best and I hope your treatment is going well,
Monika


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## Guest (Aug 31, 2013)

Thank you monika, more than I could do this morning on my tablet & with screaming child! 

Yes it definitely wouldnt be an automatic bar, I would want to let them know just in case it came up and bit me when dealing with them in the future ie for a citizenship or return resident visa. As many regulars know I have epilepsy, have had brain surgery and take medication and disclosed historical post natal depression and 2 lots of knee surgery (no I am not falling apart  ) but got my visa just fine after a few initial hassles of extra medicals and paperwork. 

BTW I do plan on updating the medicals sticky and do a centerlink one. Any contributions via pm welcome


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## divyap (May 11, 2013)

Your suggestions seems to be general ones and doesn't specifically help this case.. 

What do you want him to do now? 

The reason why im so confident is because my friend got her PR even after she was diagnosed with cancer after her medicals for 190 visa 2 months back. 
She did inform her CO about this, but CO didnt even bother abt this and she was only asked if she has already started her treatment for which her answer was "yes".. and she was granted visa too.. 

Ppl plz don't quote something from some doc and put in a general content which is applicable to anybody who reads them. 

The fact here is, he is a PR and he can choose to undergo treatment Australia too. Rules apply only his application is under process.

The only mistake from his side is that he is trying to be honest but as a matter of fact he can also choose not to disclose this under the cover "privacy"..

I request you to understand the this person is already a PR and he could have even have done one of the below which obviously he hasn't done:
1. Deliberately undisclosed it
2. Wasn't diagnosed
3. Could skew the dates by traveling to aus and then getting this diagnosed in aus


No quotes from any doc cannot answer/solve this case.. I know a real life example of one such case. If you know any please help here.


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## Guest (Aug 31, 2013)

No he can not choose to not disclose under privacy, there is no pricacy when applying for migration and australias privacy laws do not apply. You sign numerous documents agreeing to forgo your privacy and report everything to DIAC. 

You can not assume what happened with your friend is the case with everyone, each application us individual just like the person applying is. Difference in that case is your friend informed the CO and they were fine with it, whole different story when you do not declare despite knowing well before grant which could be looked upon as visa fraud by DIAC if they so wished. It is irrelevant that it was not done deliberately because they now know as does everyone if they read the documents they are sent fully. 

Rules do not only apply whilst visa is under process as you put it. Migration Law is applicable until you validate which is when you actually get your PR because if you fail to validate it is taken away from you which can not happen if you do validate bar in cases of visa fraud and Australian security.


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## espresso (Nov 2, 2012)

Hi divyap, 

on the contrary, I believe that providing the *general rules* is very important. It's great that your friend _informed the CO about her cancer_ and it was no problem. But that does not mean that you can deduce that DIAC does not have to be informed. COs make mistakes too or may take mitigating circumstances under consideration - applications are decided on a case-by-case basis. *Anecdotal evidence* such as your friend's experience does not guarantee that the decision will be the same for another applicant in other circumstances. Plus, the migration rules change all the time, so that is also a factor to consider. 

Who do you think has a better standing: 
Person A, who played by the rules and informed the CO about a serious medical condition that was diagnosed between medicals and visa grant and who and has an email from the CO that says "Yeah, that's fine!" OR
Person B, who reads about this case on an internet forum and decides that DIAC does not have to be informed. Somebody notifies DIAC that person B knew s/he had cancer during visa processing but hid this fact from the CO. The visa gets canceled due to a violation of Section 104 of the Migration Act 1958. Pointing to the case of person A won't help much in that case... 

In _mjr__'s own interest I would suggest to disclose this change in circumstances to DIAC. But hey, I'm not a migration agent or lawyer - maybe a consultation would be a good idea! Obviously, mjr_'s first priority is to get through treatment and beat the cancer! I'm glad to hear that you comprehensive health cover in the UK and focus on getting better. My partner's grandma recently went to her 3rd round of chemo and it was grueling. Get better soon . 

All the best, 
Monika


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## mjr_ (Aug 1, 2012)

Thanks for the replies.
I've double checked my grant notice and definitely no mention of change in circumstances.

If I was migrating on my own then I might take a chance of not disclosing, but as I have a family and a life to dismantle in the UK before we move, I am not going to chance not doing things correctly.
I'll complete a form 1022 and send to my case worker.
Would you recommend getting assistance from an agent or lawyer? We have done everything ourselves so far.


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## espresso (Nov 2, 2012)

Hi mjr_, 

our CO sent us three documents: Visa grant notice, Important information and *grant notification letter*. The section that you have to inform them about changes is in the last one . 

I don't think you need legal advice at this stage. Just fill out form 1022 and let the CO know that you are currently undergoing treatment for your cancer and that you did not get back to him/her earlier because migration was/is the last thing on your mind until you've been treated. Tell him/her that you haven't validated your visa yet and what the procedures are in such a case. If you are lucky - like divyap's friend - they won't request any more documentation / tests. If they do refer your case to the MOC for a cost/impact assessment, I would recommend to consult a lawyer with expertise in the area, who can ensure that you make a convincing case!

All the best, 
Monika


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## stormgal (Sep 30, 2009)

First, I'm sorry, mjr_ about your diagnosis. I hope you recover and go through remission quickly. 

Second, I went back and looked at my grant notification letter - and there is a paragraph titled, "Changes to your circumstances." Sure enough, we have to notify the department of a variety of issues that may come up.

What I don't see is the part if after you have validated your visa you don't have to notify the department of any changes. The letter is kind of worded in a way that you have to notify the department of any change - all the way up to citizenship. I do not see anything regarding validation cancelling the need to notify the department about the changes. What do you think? How did you guys come up with that?


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## divyap (May 11, 2013)

espresso said:


> Hi mjr_,
> 
> our CO sent us three documents: Visa grant notice, Important information and grant notification letter. The section that you have to inform them about changes is in the last one .
> 
> ...


Honestly, this is the worst advice I ve every seen in this forum. 
You are unnecessarily complicating a normal case. 

:-(

I'm pretty sure cancer isn't a concern to Australia. Even if it burdens the health system, they would be ready to do so. But im sure it's not a burden. Cancer is a burden only in underdeveloped world. As long as it's not a contaminatable disease like TB, swine flu etc etc, it doesn't matter. 

One could be rather left to concentrate on recovering than worrying abt intimating the same to govt. 

I hope everything should be fine for everybody. 

All the best. 
No more comments from me in this thread anymore.


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## stormgal (Sep 30, 2009)

divyap said:


> Honestly, this is the worst advice I ve every seen in this forum.
> You are unnecessarily complicating a normal case.
> 
> :-(
> ...



You're kidding, right??? Cancer treatment is extremely expensive - Barack Obama's mom died because she could not afford to get adequate treatment for her uterine cancer! And she was a highly educated and professional woman!


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## Sunlight11 (Apr 27, 2013)

mjr_ said:


> Thanks to others that have replied. Will finish chemo here in the UK as have good private cover through work. This will go on until end of January 2014. We then have about 2 weeks to validate Visas.
> 
> It would be too much to do trying to move whilst having chemo. Have house, cars, pets and kids to sell before we can move!
> 
> JR - No offense taken. Luckily my sense of humour was not located in the part of me that was surgically removed!


Hello,
You may decide to disclose the illness to your CO, that's alright. However, just by any chance, if your CO decides to complicate PR issues for your illness then what? You would be kicking yourself for a long time.... As you are finishing your Chemo in your home country and NOT becoming an instant burden to AU Medicare, I do not see any reason to escalate this issue to the Australian Immigration. 

Playing by the rule is recommended, but blind following isn't smart.

Wish you goodluck if you inform your CO of the matter and I hope he'll will act in your favour..


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## Guest (Aug 31, 2013)

stormgal said:


> First, I'm sorry, mjr_ about your diagnosis. I hope you recover and go through remission quickly.
> 
> Second, I went back and looked at my grant notification letter - and there is a paragraph titled, "Changes to your circumstances." Sure enough, we have to notify the department of a variety of issues that may come up.
> 
> What I don't see is the part if after you have validated your visa you don't have to notify the department of any changes. The letter is kind of worded in a way that you have to notify the department of any change - all the way up to citizenship. I do not see anything regarding validation cancelling the need to notify the department about the changes. What do you think? How did you guys come up with that?


 I was told this to a migration agent elsewhere who provided a link to the relevant law. Could probably find the law again as its pretty easy to find on comlaw. 


On another note..... 

Those that want to advise people to comit visa fraud or break the law can go do it elsewhere. Expat forum does not assist in such advice and it against forum rules for posters to suggest or advice on it. 

Staying within rules, regulations and laws is not following blindly but being a decent and normal human. Seeing who suggests such stuff and where they come from helps others understand why DIAC and other countries migration authorities came up with low risk and high risk countries and applicants! 

The OP did not ask for all if this and has made up their own mind by now what they will or wont do so lets end it here.


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## jre05 (Feb 16, 2013)

Well the objective of the thread is whether the applicant should convey it to the CO/Department or not but the discussion is deviating from the objective to whether the Cancer treatment is a burden to the country or not. Let's focus on how we can help MJR guys. 

Right off the bat, we should try to understand if it falls in Category A or Category B of MOC document. TB/Aids is viewed seriously and most of us undergo the TB test only unless otherwise advised by MOC for special tests.

Now, I did some googling and found the following threads, MJR and others, please go through it if that can be of a help. MJR, there was a guy from London on this following thread, he had some similar circumstances and the thread has some discussions on that.

SNIPPED BY MODERATOR

This is news 3 years back from Australian channel. *(Migrants with HIV and Cancer are allowed to settle in Australia)*

Cookies must be enabled. | The Australian

Immigration and Cancer from NSW:

http://www.cancercouncil.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Immigration-and-cancer.pdf

These are few informations from the above link:

Cancer Council NSW 153 Dowling Street, Woolloomooloo NSW 2011
Cancer Council Helpline 13 11 20 Telephone (02) 9334 1900 Facsimile (02) 9334 1741 
Email [email protected] Website www.cancercouncil.com.au

Lastly, the last year's Australian cancer statistics and information.

http://www.aihw.gov.au/WorkArea/DownloadAsset.aspx?id=60129542353

Please refer any source of relevant pointers that can help mjr.

Best regards,
JR


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