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Becoming an Aussie: Denis' citizenship journey

Oct 21, 2022
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Denis Kuo left the bustling city of Taipei in Taiwan for the laid-back lifestyle of Far North Queensland in 2013.

He settled in Cairns to dive the Great Barrier reef and fell in love with Australia’s natural beauty, relaxed way of life and his now fiancé Vivian.
After eight years, the Customer Value Specialist at Bupa, considers himself an Aussie at heart, but he recently made it official at an Australian citizenship ceremony.
“Of course, I still miss my hometown, but I feel like I’m part of Australian culture and it’s a part of me,” he says. “To me, being a citizen means I have even stronger connections with Australia.”
“When I joined the ceremony and had a chance to sing the national anthem, I felt quite impressed in that moment, everyone was coming together to celebrate and sharing their joy” recalls Denis.

There are different ways to become an Australian citizen and there are criteria you need to meet.
You must:

be a permanent resident
have lived in Australia for four years (including 12 months as a permanent resident)
be of good character
understand your responsibilities and privileges

You also need to pass a citizenship test, which examines your knowledge and understanding of Australian society, values, and history.

Getting used to ‘Aussieisms’ took Denis some time.

“Aussies shorten everything instead of saying Woolworths they’d say Woollies or G’day instead of how are you today?” laughs Denis. “At first I didn’t know what people were talking about.”

The 35-year-old says he feels at home in the multicultural community of Cairns.

“We have people from many different countries and people respect each other, treat each other well and are very friendly,” he says. “So, it’s not only the lifestyle, but also the way people embrace culture and diversity.”

Denis says events like the Chinese New Year and Mid-Autumn, or Moon festival are an opportunity to celebrate and share Asian cultures with the broader Cairns community.

He also stays connected to his culture through a small, close-knit Asian community in Cairns.

“Cairns is such a lovely place we often take day trips or go hiking, but we also like to play boardgames,” he says. “We enjoy some strategy games that really help to unwind from work.”

At work, Denis enjoys helping migrants navigate the Australian health care system, though his role at the Bupa Health Insurance store.

“When I first moved to Australia, I didn’t realise going to the dentist or optometrist wasn’t covered by Medicare,” he says. “Now I can help people understand what they are and aren’t covered for and ensure they’re able to access the best possible health care when they need it.”

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All information above has been provided by the author.

Bupa

This article originally appeared on https://www.bupa.com.au/healthlink and has been published here with permission.