u/Comfortable-Page3405

My mum and stepdad haven’t been overseas for 30+ years. My mum is born Aussie, my stepdad came here from South Africa 32 years ago and has been a permanent resident since.
They decided to travel overseas on 6/4/26. They had no idea that my stepdad needed to apply for a return resident visa - they did this at the airport before boarding (including all the required documents, letters, checks). They were supposed to return 3/5/26 however visa had not yet been approved. They have spoken to dept home affairs and their application had been prioritised. Last night (6/5/26) they were told the police check they had used was incorrect, they need a section 33 check. They have now done this but it can take 15 business days to come through.
This is all 100% their error, but they are essentially stuck overseas and they don’t know for how long.
Does anyone have any suggestion on how we can expedite this process?