Living in limbo

Thousands of asylum seekers are still caught up in the government's now-abolished fast-track visa system, most have waited over a decade for permanency.

Rathy Barthlote was only 28 when she was forced to flee her homeland.

With her husband and two-year-old daughter, she escaped Sri Lanka's Tamil genocide and arrived by boat to Australia in 2013.

Over a decade later, they are still waiting for the safety and security of permanent residency.

We are living the limbo life

Rathy applied for fast-track processing which was introduced by the Coalition government in 2015.

That system was abolished in July this year, leaving thousands in limbo - still waiting for their visa status to be determined.

Rathy paid thousands for her case to be heard in court. But the last update she received was almost three years ago.

"It's very hard," she said.

"I don't know how long we are going to go like this. If we get a correct visa, we can live our life happy."

Rathy is just one of the many self-proclaimed "victims" of the fast-track system.

Many others have also gathered to protest for outside the Department of Home Affairs on Melbourne's Bourke Street.

They're calling on the government to grant permanent visas.

Founder of the Tamil Refugee Council Aran Mylvaganam says "people feel hopeless." Source: SBS / Olivia Di Iorio

Tamil Refugee Council founder Aran Mylvaganam has remained at the site since its establishment.

"We basically have been left in a desperate situation where every other action that we took has fallen on deaf ears," he said.

The majority of those impacted come from Sri Lanka or Iran, according to Sanmati Verma, Legal director of the Human Rights Law Center.

Ms Verma said the fast track process was designed to see people fail.

That's the ironic thing about the so-called fast track process; there was nothing fast about it.

"The mental pressure on people, the pressure on their families and their children is absolutely inhuman and unspeakable," she said.

A spokesperson for the Department of Home Affairs told SBS Examines the Government is focused on providing those who have been residing in Australia for long periods of time, a chance to continue their lives in Australia with certainty and security.

They said an avenue for those waiting for permanent status has been provided.