In early January of this year my husband Nathan sustained a life changing spinal cord injury. As a result of the injuries from the accident, he has been diagnosed as an incomplete quadriplegic with some partial limb function. The accident occurred at our family home in Trafalgar, approximately 120km from the Melbourne CBD. Despite the trauma of the accident itself, one of the biggest aftershocks was the cruel blow of acknowledgement that we are ineligible for support through the Australian National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), as Nathan is a New Zealander, whom has been living, working fulltime and paying tax in Australia since 2007. Nathan is currently residing at the Royal Talbot Rehabilitation Centre in Melbourne whilst he undertakes an extensive rehab program to regain a physical base line that will enable him to return to our family home. The care team at the Royal Talbot anticipate this may occur mid-June this year. Once he is discharged, our situation will become even more dire without the ability to afford care, ongoing physiotherapy & modification to our home that will accommodate with Nathan’s needs. Whilst we were elated to hear Anthony Albanese announce that New Zealanders like Nathan can apply to become an Australian citizen on the 1st of July 2023. Advice we have received to date indicates that it will take at least 6 months before Nathan maybe eligible to be assessed and begin to receive support from the NDIS. Due to the time between Nathan’s discharge and the point at which he can potentially access support from the NDIS, we simply cannot afford the significant costs associated with Nathan’s rehabilitation, care and home modifications that we require so desperately. Much to our enormous gratitude, Nathan’s work colleagues have started raising funds to help us, and to date have raised a little over $30k towards our needs and have very kindly contributed that amount to this fund. We sincerely hope that you too will consider supporting us by contributing to this fund. We also ask that you help to spread the word to any of your New Zealand friends that may reside in Australia, please ask them to seriously consider their residency/citizenship. Thank you for taking the time to read my plea for your help. We will greatly appreciate any amount you are able to donate to help us secure our future together. Please stay tuned for updates on Nathan’s journey.