A teenage girl is pleading for the Australian government to let her New Zealand-born mother stay in the country, as the woman is being held in a detention centre and facing deportation despite having lived in Australia for 37 years.

Angela Russell, 40, is a single mother-of-two who has lived in Australia since she was just three, but is being held in a detention centre with the government set to revoke her visa due to changes to the Migration Act by the federal government.

The Queensland resident was due to be released from prison after serving a three month sentence for stealing at Townsville Women's Correctional Centre when she learned her visa was in question on 'character grounds'.

The single mother has been waiting in Darwin's Wickham Point Detention Centre in the Northern Territory since April while her teen daughter lives alone in Queensland's west.

'I know mum has made mistakes but she's my mum and I love her,' Breanna told NT News.

Teenage girl Breanna (right) is pleading for the Australian government to let her New Zealand-born mother Angela (left) stay in the country as she is facing deportation despite living in Australia since age three

The shocking numbers has prompted the New Zealand Prime Minister John Key to make a stand

'I miss her so much.... I don't want her to be sent to New Zealand, she has lived in Australia since she was three, all of her family is here.'

'It's killing me day by day. Why can't I find out if I'm staying here?' Ms Russell told VICE. 'I'm on parole, so why would I run? Why can't I be a mother and go look after my children?'

Ms Russell is also mother to a four-year-old boy, who lives with his grandmother on the Sunshine Coast. She has reportedly previously served time for 'similar offences'.

Immigration and Border Protection Minister Peter Dutton announced Australian visas will be revoked for convicted criminals; targeting sex offenders, bikies and drug traffickers.

'Care arrangements for children are a central part of location and detention planning prior to and following Section 501 decisions,' a spokesman for Peter Dutton told NT News regarding Ms Russell's possible deportation.

'Assessments are made depending on an individual's circumstance and may involve confirming that there are alternative carers available, such as a relative or second parent, or consulting with relevant child welfare agencies.'

The Queensland resident was due to be released from prison after serving a three month sentence for stealing at Townsville Women's Correctional Centre when she learned her visa was in question on 'character grounds'

There are reportedly 12 New Zealanders at Wickham Point Detention Centre and 200 being held in all detention centres in Australia, all awaiting possible deportation.

The shocking numbers has prompted the New Zealand Prime Minister John Key to condemned the Australian government for their treatment of New Zealanders and the manner in which they are being detained and deported.

He met with Foreign Affairs Minister Julie Bishop in New York on Tuesday to raise the issue that is causing increasing concern across the Tasman.

The 200 New Zealanders being held in Australian detention centres are being affected by the new immigration laws which mean anyone who isn't a citizen and who has served a sentence of 12 months or more can be sent home.

Immigration and Border Protection Minister Peter Dutton announced Australian visas will be revoked for convicted criminals; targeting sex offenders, bikies and drug traffickers

It has been reported that nearly 100 have already been sent back to New Zealand.

'I had a chat with Julie about it and I was pretty blunt,' Mr Key told Radio New Zealand on Wednesday.

'I said there's a special relationship between New Zealand and Australia and you challenge that, to a degree, when you see New Zealanders being treated in this way.'

Mr Key said some of them had spent almost their entire lives in Australia, having gone there when they were very young.

'We also deport people, but not in the way the Australians are talking about,' he said.

Mr Key said it would be one of the most important issues he raises with Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull when they meet.

A date for that meeting is still to be set.

The meeting with Ms Bishop took place amid growing calls for the New Zealand government to take action, following the death two weeks ago of Kiwi born Junior Togatuki in a high-security detention centre while he was awaiting deportation.

The 23-year-old, who left New Zealand at the age of four, had served his sentence for robbery and assault, and authorities say he took his own life.

Ms Bishop has provided assurances to New Zealand that a full inquiry is under way into Togatuki's death.