What's going on with immigration laws? A Melbourne man was convicted of burglary, stripped of his Australian residency and sent to Serbia, stateless and destitute.

Robert Jovicic was deported to Serbia, a country he had never before set foot in, with a language he does not speak, in June last year despite having lived in Australia for all but two of his 38 years.

Mr Jovicic arrived in Australia from France with his Serbian-born parents in 1968 when he was just two years old. But last year then-immigration minister Philip Ruddock deported him on character grounds after he spent time in jail for a string of burglaries to support his heroin habit.

Serbia has refused to recognise Mr Jovicic as a citizen, meaning he is now stateless and has no right to work or obtain welfare benefits in Belgrade.