Many people confuse Permanent Residence with Citizenship.
Permanent Residence (PR) is actually a visa that allows you to stay in Australia indefinitely but only allows travel within the first 5 years. After 5 years you must either apply for a Resident Return visa (RRV) or Citizenship if you want to re-enter Australia.
Under Department policy, if you spend less than 2 years (730 days) of your PR in Australia, then you will probably receive only a 1 year RRV, not the 5 years you may have expected.
Applicants who are applying for a one-year visa while they are in Australia must prove they have significant links to their country [of origin], whether they be financial, personal or cultural.
If applicants who last left Australia while holding a permanent visa want to apply for a one-year visa to return, they must also prove their links to the country. In addition to this, if the applicant has been continuously outside the country for more than five years, they must provide evidence that they had a compelling reason for doing so.
To apply for a three-month return visa, applicants must prove they legally spent at least one day in Australia in the last five years, spent under two years in Australia in the last five-year period or provide evidence of a compelling or compassionate reason for leaving Australia.
If you have PR and travel a lot then be very careful how much time you spend out of the country.
Australian citizenship solves this problem.
Australian Citizenship has many benefits including access to many Government jobs, the right to vote and consular assistance when you are overseas.
About the Author: Clint Oliver is a licensed migration agent. He is married to a Filipina who speaks English, Visayan and Tagalog. There will be no language barrier for anyone who will see him in his office.