Visa, Voice, and Vulnerability: How Immigration Status Shapes Access to Justice for Chinese Women Facing Domestic Violence
Australia’s immigration system should be a source of safety — not another barrier — for women seeking protection from domestic and family violence. In this powerful piece focused on how immigration status shapes access to support for Chinese women, Manjin Zhang shines a light on how visa status can be exploited as a tool of control and why many temporary migrants are locked out of the very supports meant to keep them safe.
Drawing on recent policy shifts and on-the-ground evidence, the article makes a clear case for practical reforms — from a time‑limited “safety visa” and universal access to crisis services, to better language support and legal protections that reflect the realities of extended-family abuse. It’s a timely, solutions-focused contribution that asks us to judge our system by the safety it delivers to those most at risk.
We’re proud to share this thoughtful analysis, and we invite readers — policymakers, practitioners, and community advocates alike — to consider how these recommendations can help ensure that every woman, regardless of visa status, can access justice and rebuild a life free from violence.
Australia’s immigration system should be a source of protection, not punishment, for women experiencing domestic violence.
When Visa Status Becomes a Weapon
For many Chinese women in Australia, safety is tied to a visa sponsor. Abusers exploit temporary or dependent visas as tools of control. The factors that make migrant women vulnerable, cultural isolation, language barriers, and insecure immigration status, also hinder their ability to seek justice.
What Works and What Doesn’t
Existing Protections
Australia has taken steps forward. A family violence provision allows primary partner visa applicants to stay if abuse ends the relationship. In 2021–22, over 95% (721) of applicants reporting violence secured residency.
The federal government recently announced that anyone escaping domestic violence can access an emergency payment (up to $5,000) “regardless of visa status”, acknowledging visa-based hardship for the first time.
Gaps and Unintended Consequences
Unfortunately, success reveals failure for many. The family violence visa provision only covers particular partner visas, therefore thousands of women on temporary visas (students, tourists, work visas) cannot use it. Many Chinese women in Australia are international students or on temporary visas, so they cannot receive government-funded housing, legal help, or financial support when abused.
The National Advocacy Group finds that women on temporary visas in Australia experience challenges accessing essential services, including housing, welfare, and health, and are often forced to stay with or return to violent perpetrators. Refugees must pay thousands of dollars a week for clients without income or Medicare, stressing tiny service providers. Cracks in the system provide perverse incentives.
Paving a Path to Justice and Safety
Advocates and survivors have proposed several policy changes to remove the visa-based barriers:
Create a New “Safety Visa”
Domestic violence should not reintroduce danger. Under Australia’s current system, however, women on temporary visas often remain trapped in abuse because of the fear of deportation or losing residency rights. Existing family violence provisions apply only to limited partner visas (subclasses 820 and 309), leaving thousands of women on student, work, or tourist visas without protection. The National Advocacy Group wants a visa for temporary migrants enduring domestic or family abuse. This would allow a woman to live and work in Australia for 2–3 year years, access Medicare, Centrelink, and housing, and rebuild her life without fear of deportation.
Expand Access to Support Services
Visa categories should not leave survivors unaided. Governments can relax limits on crisis payments, public housing, and family violence legal aid for temporary visa holders. Universal access is essential, but the federal pilot payment is an excellent start. One suggestion is to give all domestic violence victims, regardless of status, complete welfare and healthcare services. This might be done by emergency funding states or NGOs or giving bridging visas with job rights and service access to women who come forward.
Language and Cultural Support
Frontline police, attorneys, and courts should be instructed to never presume a victim understands and always give an interpreter. Settlement services, ethnic media, and community groups should communicate Mandarin and Cantonese legal rights and support information. A simple bilingual pamphlet about domestic abuse safeguards at visa orientation or community activities could inform newcomers about their rights before a crisis.
Legal Protections
Australia’s laws can be refined to reflect migrant women’s realities. Abuse is not always from the visa sponsor or spouse. It can also come from controlling in-laws or other family members in the household. Changing immigration rules to recognise this would help protect women who currently slip through the cracks. Police in all states also need clear guidelines (and accountability) on using interpreters and properly following up cases of domestic violence involving migrant communities.
Currently, the protections under the Migration Regulations 1994 (Division 1.5—Special Provisions Relating to Family Violence) are limited mainly to partner violence. Expanding these provisions to include abuse by other family or household members would address critical gaps in protection. In addition, fully implementing the recommendations of the Family Law Amendment Act 2023, which emphasise prioritising the safety of vulnerable groups in family disputes, would further strengthen safeguards for immigrant women facing domestic violence.
Looking Ahead
By implementing these changes, policymakers and services can turn a vicious cycle into a virtuous one. The unintended repercussions of previous inactivity, silenced victims, and unfettered violence can be replaced with a system in which one’s immigration status does not affect the level of protection received. Chinese women, like all women in Australia, deserve to know that support is available and that their voices are heard, visa or no visa. As a signatory to international agreements such as the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), Australia has an obligation to ensure comprehensive protection and support for all women, regardless of their immigration status.
Content moderator: Brianna Delahunty