The immigration minister has intervened to grant permanent residency to a Sydney man who was almost deported after falling victim to a migration agent.
Mohamed Barghachoun, who is deaf, paid a migration agent more than $1,500 to lodge his application for a partner visa in 2019.
He married his long-term partner, Australian woman Jihan Merhi, who is also deaf.
However, he found out in July last year that the agent had never properly lodged the application, and had ignored letters from the Department of Home Affairs.
Despite the family's pleas to Home Affairs and Immigration Minister Andrew Giles, Mr Barghachoun's visa was cancelled and, in January, he was told he must leave Australia.
On Wednesday of this week, Mr Giles intervened, granting a Former Resident visa, which is a type of permanent residency.
Mr Barghachoun spoke to the ABC through an Auslan interpreter.
"It's just unbelievable. I am so happy," he said.
"We are just so emotional, crying tears of joy.
"Now we can make plans with our family, think positive about our future and we can grow old together here as a family."
"And watch our children grow up," Ms Merhi added.
Ms Merhi grew up in Australia and met her husband online while he lived in Lebanon, connecting over their shared disability.
The couple has had difficulty dealing with department officials, as they can only communicate in writing or in Auslan, and cannot speak over the phone.
When they first applied for a partner visa in May 2019, the department's decision record showed the couple provided satisfactory evidence of their relationship.
The document said officials then tried unsuccessfully to contact their migration agent, Paul Jeffrey Smith, six times between August 2019 and January 2022.
Despite the couple's claim of being misled by their agent, the immigration minister's office told Mr Barghachoun in January that his visa had expired, and he must leave Australia.
"To date, there has been no further contact by you or your sponsor, nor have you provided the requested documentation," the decision reads.
"As you have not provided any evidence that you continue to be the spouse of an Australian citizen … I am not satisfied you meet the requirements."
Mr Barghachoun only discovered that his visa had expired when his Medicare card was cancelled with no warning.
With the help of Auslan interpreters, Ms Merhi contacted the Department of Home Affairs's Immigration and Citizenship , which said it had no evidence of her ongoing marriage or three children.
However, on January 23, the federal government granted a last-minute three-month visa extension to Mr Barghachoun, 24 hours before he was due to get on a plane.
When the ABC first ran the family's story, they received dozens of offers of pro bono legal assistance from immigration lawyers.
One immigration lawyer said he had seen a dozen cases a year where visa applications were rejected because migration agents missed strict deadlines.
"It's definitely a serious problem. The law doesn't allow for any flexibility," the lawyer said.
"And the applicant suffers the consequences."
