Once an international high-flyer, Carolyn Van Hecke is part of an emerging new aspect of the global financial crisis.

Mrs Van Hecke, 40, her husband Wayne, 35, and two children Thomas, 10, and Emily, 9, came to Australia from Britain after being lured by a two-year contract with accounting firm KPMG and the promise of a bright future.

But after four months, without warning, she was marched from the Adelaide office by the company's security guards after her position was made redundant as a result of the economic slowdown.

She was advised that under the terms of her business-sponsored visa, she and her family had 28 days to leave the country. Mrs Van Hecke, like thousands of accountants and auditors brought to Australia from financial centres in London, New York and Singapore under the Skilled Migrant Program, has been hit hard by the financial crisis and a subsequent sharp fall in demand for her skills.

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