"They are working and contributing to the economy and paying taxes and levies," says Tim Gassin, chair of advocacy group Oz Kiwi. "But while they are covered by Medicare, they are not entitled to access any benefits should they fall on hard times." An estimated 600,000 New Zealanders are in Australia, most of whom are doing well, enriching their adopted country. Vicky Rose is co-ordinator of the Nerang Neighbourhood Centre on the Gold Coast, where New Zealanders make up 20 per cent of the population. "New Zealanders are effectively a motivated workforce – keen, ready and wanting to work,"she says. But when something goes wrong they discover they are vulnerable, that they live precariously, unprotected and without recourse to any kind of government support. Since legislative changes in 2001, New Zealanders' rights have been slowly whittled away. Rights activist David Faulkner says there is "overwhelming evidence" that New Zealanders are being subject to "endemic discrimination".

In 2001 the direct path to citizenship was cut off. "Then they knocked off social security access," says Gassin. "In 2005 they removed access to higher-education loans. In 2012 it was the removal of disability services." Inia arrived in March 2001, just a couple of weeks after the cut-off point of February 26. "There is not even an avenue for me to apply for residency or citizenship," she says. "I don't want it for free, I want the opportunity to be able to apply for residency. There is no option for anyone in my situation. Many others out there are in the same situation." Gassin says not a lot has changed under February's new deal between John Key and Malcolm Turnbull. New Zealanders who have earned at least $54,000 each year for five years and meet health criteria can apply for a different class of visa – one that would in turn allow them to apply for citizenship. It applies only to special category visa-holders who have arrived in Australia since 2001. In 2001 the direct path to citizenship was cut off. "Then they knocked off social security access," says Gassin. "In 2005 they removed access to higher-education loans. In 2012 it was the removal of disability services." No one who arrives after February 19, 2016, will be eligible. Those who are marginalised or struggling will remain so, as will their children. A large number will still be excluded from what Australians consider basic rights.

No one is suggesting that we go back to the 1970s, when New Zealanders could get off the plane and get on the dole. Back then Bondi was famous for "bludging" New Zealanders taking extended state-sponsored holidays – sometimes for years. But the seemingly arbitrary nature of the bureaucratic process has frustrated many. When Australian-based New Zealanders who were working overseas on the February 26, 2001, returned, they discovered the law had changed and they were no longer entitled to any benefits or citizenship. They included actor Russell Crowe, who arrived as a child and contributed millions to his adopted country. He was denied citizenship in 2006 because he had been away in 2001 working on the Oscar winning film Gladiator. "Arbitrary and ridiculous," was his curt response. Says Rose, "It's like Malcolm Turnbull inviting you for dinner then saying you needed to bring your own food, but if you get food poisoning you are on your own." "The reality... is that we will still get the same horror stories – disabled without support, single mothers struggling to support their children," Gassin says. "Homelessness is still going to be there, it won't make the slightest bit of difference."

Gassin is concerned about "the lock-in of disadvantage across two or three generations" as the children from poorer backgrounds have been unable to access Youth Allowance or HECS. "Research shows that the children of New Zealand citizens are only half as likely to go to university as their classmates." This is an issue the federal government conceded and addressed last year. A spokeswoman for the Minister of Social Services said: "The government recognises that some New Zealanders who have been long-term residents of Australia since childhood can face additional challenges in accessing higher education. On November 30, 2015, the government successfully secured passage of legislation, extending access to student loans to New Zealand Special Category Visa holders who came to Australia as children, and have resided here for at least 10 years. This change commenced on January 1, 2016." New Zealanders pay only domestic fees (not the much higher international fees) for going to university. But a more vulnerable group is still barred from access to welfare support. "We hear from a lot of women – mostly single mothers who can't get any support for their children," says Gassin. "They might have an Australian father who is not paying any child support. The children are are living in dire poverty with a Kiwi mother." To go back to New Zealand would mean abandoning their children. Though the government spokeswoman says New Zealand women can access counselling services, there are no financial pathways for them to escape violent relationships. Rose says no refuge will turn a woman away but ongoing support is nearly impossible without Centrelink. "I know of women being made destitute by their partners so they can get the kids. They can't get into government housing because they are not permanent residents; they can't get into rehab because they can't pay for it."

New Zealanders who have been injured at work, lost their job or find themselves in situations beyond their control can become homeless. They can even be educated, middle-class people. Kiwis in dire straights cannot access their superannuation under the hardship clause because you need to be on Centrelink to do so. Because they can fall through the cracks so completely, there are no documented figures of how many are living below the poverty line. Rose says that of the 30 people who seek help from her neighbourhood centre each day, "50 to 60 per cent are Kiwis." The spokeswoman for the Minister of Social Services says that because of the "special relationship", New Zealanders "are provided with more generous entitlements than those provided to people from other countries who do not hold a permanent visa". There has not been a lot of incentive for the Australian governments to change an arrangement where they receive billions in taxes without giving much in return. Compare this with Australian citizens in New Zealand, who can vote after one year and claim benefits after two. "We have some liberal party politicians acknowledging that they stuffed up in 2001," says Gassin. "But they have built a budget on taking taxes from 200,000 people."