An Indian woman who travelled to Australia to care for her seriously ill brother says she will have to return to India with his estate still unsettled after Australian authorities rejected her request for more time to stay in the country, ABC News Australia reported.Shipra Saini moved to Australia in 2025 to look after her brother, who died from a brain haemorrhage on November 1 last year. She is now living in Ballarat, Victoria, trying to manage his affairs, including obtaining a death certificate and probate, selling his home and belongings, transferring possessions to India, paying expenses and distributing the remaining assets.Saini estimated she spent more than $40,000 on visa applications, living costs and settling the estate. Restrictions on her ability to work have forced her to rely on a loan.“Until my brother was here, [Australia] was a beautiful country,” she said, adding that the visa process had made her feel she had “lost the charm of this country”.In August 2026, Saini sought another visa after her solicitor advised that she needed at least six more months. Her application was rejected, and her existing visa, carrying condition 8503, expires on October 30.The condition generally prevents holders from applying for most other visas within Australia without a waiver. Saini said delays in obtaining probate and selling the property were beyond her control. Under pressure to meet the deadline, she accepted the first offer for her brother’s home instead of waiting for a potentially better one.“I’m on the brink of breaking down,” she said, describing the situation as an additional burden while grieving her brother.
Saini says she will go back to India, will settle issues remotely
Saini plans to return to India later this month. She will miss her brother’s November memorial service and will be unable to attend the property settlement or complete his employment-related entitlements, including superannuation, in person with her solicitor’s help.The Department of Home Affairs said it could not comment on individual cases for privacy reasons.Immigration lawyer Jordan Tew said the system needed greater “flexibility” for people facing compassionate circumstances. He argued that administering a deceased relative’s estate was different from seeking additional time for leisure or work, and that selling property could take longer than expected.Tew warned that the government’s plan to extend condition 8503 to all visitor visas could leave more people needing waivers when their circumstances change. He said the concern was not migration targets themselves, but how policies were implemented and whether genuine applicants were caught up in restrictions.Saini said her experience illustrated the human cost of the political focus on reducing migration.“How could they be treating the immigrants this way?” she asked.“Politicians, they just go with the wave of whatever is going on,” she said, arguing that the political climate had made people less willing to help.
