by Cam Lucadou-Wells
South East Melbourne is a hot spot for asylum seekers awaiting their fate on bridging visas.
The Dandenong postcode is home to the most asylum seekers on bridging visa E in Victoria, new official stats show.
The short-term visa is granted to ‘unauthorised maritime arrivals’ awaiting a decision on their refugee status.
As of June 2022, there were 591 BVE holders in the 3175 postcode – about one in eight of those living in Victoria.
Next highest in Victoria was Sunshine with 459.
Springvale ranked seventh with 138, Doveton tenth with 132 and Noble Park 11th with 131.
Also in the South East, Cranbourne was home to 59 BVE holders, Endeavour Hills 52 and Hampton Park 49, Hallam and Narre Warren each with 32 and Pakenham 27.
The most common nationalities were Sri Lanka (1448), Iran (1423), Pakistan (502) and Afghanistan (276). A further 468 were ‘stateless’.
Nearly two thirds of the BVE holders were aged between 26-45 years, and most commonly men. More than 750 were children.
Across Australia, there were 10,868 BVE holders. More than 80 per cent lived in Victoria or NSW.
