48-year-old man "head over heels in love" with a 104-year-old widow: the court did not believe in their romance (5 photos)

The Interior Ministry has rejected Mart Soeson's application for permanent residence in Austria.





48-year-old Estonian lawyer Mart Soeson was unable to convince officials that he had been in a romantic relationship with 104-year-old pensioner Elfriede Riit. He was denied a visa to stay in Australia, despite swearing his honesty to the last.

Mrs Riit, who was also Estonian and fled Europe after World War II, was reportedly married to Soeson's maternal grandfather for almost 40 years.



Soeson met Riit in early 1996 when he came to Australia to study English. She invited him to her home in Bankstown. The lawyer eventually returned to Estonia, but visited Riit several times over the following years, gradually strengthening their bond.

"Yes, I know that we have an age difference. For some people, it's a problem if the woman is older and the man is younger. I can't change that attitude," he said.





In December 2018, the Ministry of the Interior rejected Mart's application for a permanent residence permit due to concerns that his relationship with Elfriede was not genuine. The Estonian appealed the decision to the tribunal, but it was upheld.

"I couldn't shake the feeling that something was missing in my life, and that something was Elfriede," Soeson, who was "head over heels in love," testified under oath.

The couple lived together until the pensioner moved into a nursing home in September 2022, following a doctor's order. Mart visited his partner regularly, bringing her favorite foods, including chocolate and berries. They attended concerts, went to chapel, watched TV together, went out for coffee with friends, and made appointments with doctors.



On April 13, the woman died as a result of an infection and Alzheimer's disease, effectively ending Soeson's chances of staying in Australia.