NSW Can Unpaid Debt Stop Me from Traveling Overseas?

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20 April 2016
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Hi

For the last 8 years, I've been on a carers pension looking after my father. State debt was deducted for my fines which are now down to about 3k. Dad passed on late 2014 and my benefits stopped early 2015.

I'm 46 years old and a bricklayer by trade. At my age, with all the time off and awaiting a hernia operation, it's very hard to work full time. My wife lives overseas and I travel a lot. She recently gave birth to our beautiful little daughter.

I need to go back but I'm worried about all the costs of living and faced with that, it's been impossible to get back to my debt to SDRO.

Can anyone tell me wether or not this will affect my ability to go overseas to see my wife and daughter?
 
S

Sophea

Guest
Hi Mark, I have never heard of SDRO preventing anyone travelling overseas because they have a debt. They will take your passport off you if you are bankrupt, but not simply a debt.
 
20 April 2016
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Thank you very much. I thought as much. No, never been bankrupt at all, just had a hard last decade and until I'm all fixed up by the doc, life's a touch hard
 

Tim W

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You may have heard of a thing called a Non-Departure Order.
The ATO uses these to stop taxpayers with whom they have issues from leaving the jurisdiction.
(they used one on Paul Hogan a while back).

As far as I know, SDRO doesn't use them. But they can and do use Property Seizure Orders.

You say you "travel a lot".... that being the case, perhaps you can afford to pay off those fines more quickly than you are.
 
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20 April 2016
3
0
1
You may have heard of a thing called a Non-Departure Order.
The ATO uses these to stop taxpayers with whom they have issues from leaving the jurisdiction.
(they used one on Paul Hogan a while back).

As far as I know, SDRO doesn't use them. But they can and do use Property Seizure Orders.

You say you "travel a lot".... that being the case, perhaps you can afford to pay off those fines more quickly than you are.

I travel only to my wife and it was only while dad was ill because my brothers would pay the ticket because they weren't the ones who put their life on hold for a decade I was. I've no other debt in my life just that and being on the waiting list for a hernia operation while trying to lay bricks isn't enjoyable I can tell you, with 3 children to pay for I can't possibly get back to the sdro. Mate, even as little as $10 a week would affect me.

My doctor wants me to go on disability pension until after the op but I can't afford it as I'm still some 9 months from the procedure, you see my youngest brother is in he one who'll pay the ticket for me because he knows my life, maybe it's hard for you to understand hardship, I don't know but thanks for your comments.