An Australian father fears he will be separated from his son after battling the country’s complex and lengthy visa processes.
Six-year-old Thanasi Kuzeff was born in Kenya but is an Australian citizen due to his father Daniel Kuzeff’s heritage.
His parents, who are no longer in a relationship, have spent the past four years seeking a lawful way for Thanasi to grow up in Australia while remaining actively involved in his life.
Thanasi arrived in Australia with his father in 2024 and quickly adjusted to his new life in far northern New South Wales, developing strong bonds with his stepmother and younger brother.
He was separated from his mother Leah Wambui Sore, a Kenyan citizen, for more than a year as she had five visa applications rejected before she was eventually granted a visitor visa in January this year.
Ms Sore applied for a Subclass 143 Contributory Parent Visa, which allows parents of Australian citizens and permanent residents to live here indefinitely but there is a 15-year waitlist.
She was recently granted another visitor visa carrying a no further stay condition, meaning she can remain in Australia only until December 1.
In a desperate bid to keep the family together, Mr Kuzeff has urged Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke to intervene.
Leah Wambui Sore is fighting to stay in Australia so that her son Thanasi can grow up here
Daniel Kuzeff may soon be separated from his son Thanasi due to Australia’s visa rules
‘We’ve done everything possible but have reached a dead end,’ Mr Kuzeff told the Daily Mail.
‘It’s been one rejection after another. It will be shattering if we can’t find a way to overcome this obstacle.’
Ms Sore added: ‘For me, it’s really not about what staying in Australia would mean for me. It’s about Thanasi.
‘Daniel and I have separate lives, but when it comes to our son, we both want the same thing.
‘We want him to be happy and stable and to grow up knowing that both his parents are there for him.
‘I don’t want him to have to choose between having his mum in one country and his dad and siblings in another. I just want him to have a normal childhood with the people he loves around him.’
Despite being entitled to remain in Australia as a citizen, Thanasi will likely return to Kenya with his mother if she is forced to leave the country.
‘What shatters me most about what may come is that there is no way we can separate Thanasi from his mother again; he will have to return with her,’ Mr Kuzeff said.
Thanasi will likely return to Kenya with his mother if she is deported later this year
Thanasi spent more than a year separated from his mother Leah before the pair were reunited in Australia in January
Thanasi has developed a close bond with little brother Finley (both pictured at an AFL game)
Mr Kuzeff said his son loves Australia and does not wish to return to Kenya.
‘He recognised very quickly that the life he has here is very different to the one he would have back in Kenya,’ he said.
‘Australia is his home. His school, friends, dad, little brother Finley and baby sister are all here.’
Ms Sore does not want to spend another year watching Thanasi grow up via video calls from the other side of the world.
‘I just want to be there while he is still little enough to need his mum,’ she said.
‘If he stays here, he loses his mum again. If he comes with me, he loses having his dad and his siblings in his everyday life.’
‘I don’t want my son to have to make that choice.
‘More than anything, I just want Thanasi to be able to be a little boy, surrounded by the people who love him.’
‘There is no way we can separate Thanasi from his mother again,’ Mr Kuzeff said
Daniel Kuzeff (pictured) has urged Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke to intervene so that his son’s mother can remain in Australia
Ms Sore was granted her visitors visa after the Administrative Review Tribunal intervened and ruled for a previously rejected application to be reconsidered.
‘This situation has been handled by all sides in an adult fashion; they have worked through it,’ tribunal general member Michael Judd wrote in his April 2025 ruling.
‘These cases are about real people.’
Unless Burke intervenes, Ms Sore’s only current pathway to remain in Australia permanently is through a Subclass 143 Contributory Parent Visa, for which she faces a lengthy wait.
‘His childhood is now,’ Mr Kuzeff said.
‘There are Australian kids with a foreign parent right now, whose parents aren’t together (and) who would face separation because there is no pathway. It’s indescribable how much stress this has caused for years.’
In 2023, then-Home Affairs Minister Andrew Giles exercised his public interest powers to grant Italian national Andrea Tindiani Australian permanent residency.
After 12 years in Australia, Mr Tindiani had faced potential deportation and separation from his nine-year-old son following an amicable split from his Australian partner.
Thanasi (left) will be separated from his father and younger siblings if he has to return to Kenya
‘For me, it’s really not about what staying in Australia would mean for me. It’s about Thanasi,’ Leah told the Daily Mail
‘That was three years ago. Why have no policies been implemented in that time to prevent the heartache and stress of Australian families and their children,’ Mr Kuzeff said.
The Daily Mail has contacted Burke for comment.
A Department of Home Affairs spokesperson said that it does not comment on individual cases.
‘Australia’s migration system provides a range of visa options for family members seeking to live in Australia. All visa applications are assessed on their individual merits and against the requirements set out in Australia’s migration legislation,’ they told the Daily Mail.
Australian citizenship of a child does not, in itself, provide an automatic pathway to permanent residence for a parent. However, there are a number of family visa pathways within the migration program that may be available depending on an individual’s circumstances.
‘The Department recognises the importance of family unity and the interests of Australian citizen children. Decision-makers are required to consider all relevant legislative requirements and information provided in support of an application when assessing visa matters.’
Ms Sore urged Burke to consider the family’s situation and what it would mean for her little boy.
‘I understand Australia has immigration laws and I respect that. I’m not asking to be above the law,’ she said.
‘I’m just asking for some compassion and whether there is a lawful way for me to stay while I wait for my parent visa.
‘Thanasi has already experienced being separated from his mum. Now he finally has both his mum and his dad in his everyday life. I just don’t want him to lose that again.’
An online petition calling for Ms Sore to remain in Australia has attracted more than 400 signatures.
‘Despite the unusual circumstances of our family, the adults in Thanasi’s life have worked together for years with one shared goal: to give Thanasi the opportunity to grow up in Australia with meaningful relationships with his mum, his dad and his younger siblings,’ it states.
‘This is about adults putting aside the complexity of their circumstances because a little boy should not have to choose between his home in Australia and having his mum physically present during his childhood.’
