Parents split across state lines are struggling to maintain contact with their children as some premiers warn coronavirus border closures could remain in place for months.
All states and territories other than New South Wales and Victoria have restricted interstate travel in a bid to prevent outbreaks of COVID-19, but as Australia enters the recovery phase of the pandemic,
As well as the loss of visitors, families split across state borders say the restrictions have given rise to additional challenges for parents who share custody of their children.
Victorian father Reuben Hopkins told SBS News his nine-year-old son had been unable to visit his mother in Tasmania, which boasts some of the strictest travel restrictions, since the borders were closed to non-residents on 20 March.
“We were supposed to be down in Tassie for a couple of days at the end of March but that got cancelled. We were supposed to be there right now," the 36-year-old said.
"He’s already missed a couple of opportunities to visit people, to visit Mum.”
Mr Hopkins usually travels to Tasmania multiple times a year for his work as an audio engineer, allowing for frequent visits between the nine-year-old and his mother, but due to COVID-19, the trips have been postponed.
“Nearly every day he’s saying ‘I really miss Mum, when do I get to visit Mum?'," he said.
Tasmania requires all interstate travellers, other than essential workers, to quarantine for 14 days on arrival. Premier Peter Gutwein said on Monday there was no date set for removing border controls, saying it would be “sometime later this year” dependent on the rest of the country.
While Mr Hopkins' son would likely be able to quarantine at home with his mother for two weeks, he said he was unsure whether he would be able to travel with him to drop him off with his mother or whether he too would be forced to isolate.
Tasmanian Premier Peter Gutwein hasn't announced a timeline for reopening the state's borders. Source: AAP
“No one’s been able to give a definitive yes or no answer as to whether that’s actually possible at the moment,” Mr Hopkins said. “The logistics and the legalities of the situation are pretty uncertain and blurry.”
Jetstar, the only airline currently flying to Tasmania, doesn’t allow minors to travel without a parent or guardian.
The state has moved to Stage 1 of lifting restrictions, which allows for Tasmanian residents to quarantine at home, but non-residents are still required to complete their two-week isolation in government-provided accommodation.
The current rules do allow people to leave their quarantine during the 14-day period though if they are leaving the state.
The restrictions have also wreaked havoc with legally binding co-parenting orders, with the Family Court and Federal Circuit Court of Australia reporting significant spikes in urgent applications.
William Alstergren, Chief Justice of the Family Court and Chief Judge of the Federal Circuit Court. Source: Family Court of Australia
Between 15 March and 15 May, the Federal Circuit Court - which handles more than 90 per cent of parenting cases - saw a 64 per cent increase in urgent applications. In the Family Court, which handles a smaller number of complex cases, the number has more than doubled.
Family Court Chief Justice William Alstergren said the surge was “quite alarming”, with the cause of the applications things they’d “never seen before in family law cases”.
“Before the pandemic, people had arrangements in place … to make sure that they kept their child safe and that there were orders in place which were in the best interest of the child,” he said.
“What happened, though, was all of a sudden, say borders closed and one parent couldn’t go and deliver the child to another parent, or there may have been issues in relation to one parent being more exposed to the COVID-19 virus.”
Other issues included the closures of schools - often where a child is exchanged between parents - as well as the shutdown of supervised visit facilities and domestic and family violence.
“This is all completely new, there is no rule book for it,” Chief Justice Alstergren added.
In order to meet the demand, the courts introduced designated COVID-19 registrars on 29 April to handle pandemic-related urgent requests within 72 hours. The courts have also urged parents to be reasonable and act in the best interests of the child during such an unprecedented time.
According to a , border closures are a matter for each state and territory government and there is "no national approach to how parents should deal with this situation".
Queensland, which hosts the most populated closed state border with NSW, has allowed people to apply for a travel exemption, which does not require people to isolate if they have a family court order.
Meanwhile, in Western Australia, the Family Court found orders were sometimes necessary for travel between regions within the state.
Federal Deputy Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly said on Monday the national health committee had never recommended state border closures within Australia.
Tourism Minister Simon Birmingham urged the states and territories to open up, stating on Tuesday: "We need people moving across this country again when it's safe to do so".
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian has also called for the borders to be opened “as soon as possible” as restrictions on the economy and socialising relax across the country.
“I often joke with the Queensland Premier that I'll end up going to Auckland before I go to Brisbane if we continue the way we are going,” she said last week.
But on Monday, . A domestic travel bubble encompassing Queensland, the Northern Territory and South Australia was a possibility, she said.
Western Australia Premier Mark McGowan has also dismissed the calls to reopen borders, stating on Wednesday he would not be "bullied" by NSW.
"We're not going to give in to that sort of bullying by the New South Wales Premier or anyone else — we are going to protect the health and the economy of Western Australia," he said.
People in Australia must stay at least 1.5 metres away from others. Check your state’s restrictions on gathering limits. Testing for coronavirus is now widely available across Australia. If you are experiencing cold or flu symptoms, arrange a test by calling your doctor or contact the Coronavirus Health Information Hotline on 1800 020 080.
The federal government's coronavirus tracing app COVIDSafe is available for download from your phone's app store.
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