Visa change forces kids out of school

Mika Sugawara says she was shocked when told it would cost $2000 a month to keep Haruki, 12 (left), and Ayane, 9, in school. Photo / Natalie Slade

A Japanese mother granted a visa extension after the March tsunami destroyed her home city has taken her children out of school because she can't afford to pay international student fees after a change to her immigration status.

Mika Sugawara, who had a work visa before the disaster, had enrolled her son Haruki, 12, and daughter Ayane, 9, at Glendowie Primary School as domestic students for three years.

Now on a visitor's visa, Ms Sugawara was told she must pay a monthly fee of more than $2000 to keep the children at school.

"I was shocked and I think it's really heartless," she said. "I'm struggling to even feed them; how can afford that sort of money to keep them at school?"

An Immigration New Zealand official said a work visa for Ms Sugawara was being processed.

Children with a parent on a two-year working visa can access state education.

According to the school's website, the international student fee is $12,400 a child. Haruki and Ayane had their last day at school more than a week ago.

The 47-year-old single mother said their home city of Sendai was hit hard by the tsunami and relatives could not help financially.

After the disaster, a number of Japanese nationals tried to stay here longer because of radiation fears.

Glendowie School principal Anne-Marie Briggs said: "My advice to the mother was to look at options around getting the appropriate visas to remain as domestic students."