Sponsored Community Support Program (CSP) Visa

EASTERN CHRISTIAN WELFARE AUSTRALIA (ECWA) has been approved by the Australian Government to sponsor visa applicants for fast-tracked priority processing of their Humanitarian Program Visa application through the Sponsored Community Support Program Visa stream.

So far, ECWA has assisted over 4,000 refugee families migrate to Australia through the Humanitarian Program Visa from Syria, Iraq, Sudan, Egypt, Lebanon, Turkey, Jordan and UAE.  

ECWA hopes for the future is that it will be able to continue to further assist families to be reunited, and to escape persecution in their home countries. 

The Board of Directors of EASTERN CHRISTIAN WELFARE AUSTRALIA are the Archbishops, Bishops, Patriarchal Vicars and representatives of the various Middle Eastern Christian religions, and include the following Australian heads of churches: 

1. His Eminence Archbishop Mor Malatius Malki Malki - Patriarchal Vicar for the Syriac Orthodox Church of Australia and New Zealand. 
2. Reverend Lenard (Youhanna) Ina - Parish Priest of the Syriac Catholic Church in Sydney and Canberra.
3. His Eminence Archbishop Haigazoun Najarian - Primate of the Armenian Apostolic Church of Australia and New Zealand.
4.  His Grace Bishop Robert Rabbat - Eparch of the Melkite Catholic Eparchy of Australia and New Zealand.
5. Most Reverend Monsignor Basil Sousanian - Patriarchal Vicar of the Armenian Catholic Church of Australia.
6. His Excellency Bishop Antoine-Charbel Tarabay - Eparch of the Maronite Church in Australia and New Zealand.
7. Reverend Father Andraws Farag – Parish Priest of the Coptic Catholic Church of Sydney.
8. His Grace Bishop Daniel - Bishop of the Coptic Orthodox Church Diocese of Sydney and its Affiliated Regions.
9. His Eminence Archbishop Amel Nona - Eparch of the Chaldean Church of Australia and New Zealand.
10. His Eminence Metropolitan Archbishop Basilios Kodseie - Metropolitan of Antiochian Orthodox Church, Archdiocese of Australia, New Zealand

To apply as a visa applicant through ECWA, you must be living outside your country of origin, and be subject to substantial discrimination amounting to gross violation of their human rights.  

ECWA will screen potential visa applicants to ensure that the main applicant fits within the following criteria:  

1. be aged between 18 to 50; 
2. have functional English; and 
3. have an offer of employment in Australia.

People applying for a Refugee visa are issued with an Australian Permanent Residency visa.  It is a Permanent Residency Visa that allow visa holders to:    

1. Stay in Australia indefinitely and permanently; 
2. Work and study in Australia; 
3. Enroll in Medicare, Australia’s scheme for health-related care and expenses; 
4. Sponsor eligible relatives for permanent residence; and 
5. Apply for Australian Citizenship.

There are substantial costs involved in applying for this visa if you apply through the Community Support Programme. These are: 

1. ECWA administration costs of payable upon lodgement of the Visa application to the Department of Home Affairs (to be paid on the lodgement of the visa application);
2. Department of Home Affairs 1st visa application charge of $530 (to be paid on the lodgement of the visa application);
3. Department of Home Affairs 2nd Visa Application Charge (2nd VAC): $7,270. There are no additional fees for any additional applicants included on the file. 

You can download the full ECWA CSP Visa Information Booklet here.