A father has received the best gift of all just in time for Christmas after months of tireless campaigning, after months of tireless campaigning, he was granted permanent residency to stay in the country with his son.
Andrea Tindiani, 37, moved abroad from Italy in 2012 and faced deportation earlier this year after going through a raft of temporary visas to stay with his nine-year-old Australian-born son Marley.
The Castlemaine local campaigned tirelessly for months to stay with his family before an appeal to Immigration Minister Andrew Giles granted Mr Tindiani permanent residency on Thursday.
‘Dear friends and sympathizers…I share with you all with all my heart that Immigration Minister Andrew Giles has decided to intervene in my case and granted me permanent residency!’ the doting dad shared online.
Andrea Tindiani, 37, was granted permanent residency by Immigration Minister Andrew Giles on Thursday
‘We are over the moon to receive such incredible news… this means I can continue my life here and fulfill my ongoing commitment to being a present father to my son Marley.
“It has been an incredible journey and I could never have completed it without your support, compassion and encouragement,” he continued.
This journey would have been much tougher without the support of his immediate family, Mr Tindiani added.
“We all learned a lot from this experience, but most importantly it reaffirmed the important role that FAMILY, COMMUNITY, RESILIENCE, FAITH, LOVE and COMPASSION play in everyone’s lives,” he said.
‘After eleven years, I can finally find comfort in the thought that I belong here, in Australia, with my son and our family.’
The Italian-born father campaigned tirelessly for months after being threatened with deportation following a failed 2021 affirmative residence visa application
Mr Tindiani (pictured left) moved to Australia from Italy in 2012, before having his son Marley (pictured centre) with the child’s mother Emily (pictured right) in 2014.
The father originally moved to the country on a working holiday visa, before receiving sponsorship from his employer in Victoria the following year.
He had his son Marley in 2014 before splitting with the child’s mother, Emily.
Mr Tindiani was dismissed in 2016 due to the restructuring of his company and quickly went through a cycle of student visas until 2021, when he unsuccessfully applied for a confirmatory residence visa.
A change.org petition started in May quickly gained traction with more than 18,000 signatures and $11,000 raised to support his cause.