09 September 2008

New Australian migration laws to reduce court cases

The Australian Federal Government has made amendments to the immigration legislation so that fewer immigration cases are taken to or held up in court. The new legislation will alter notification requirements for challenged migration cases, as well as include more than 100 minor changes to Australia’s migration laws across four acts, reports the Age.

The way in which decisions on visa applications and cancellations are communicated between the Migration Review Tribunal (MRT), the Refugee Review Tribunal (RRT) and the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) will be improved under the new changes to the Bill. 

The Migration Amendment (Notification Review) Bill 2008 is a necessary change to prevent technical errors from unnecessarily delaying the resolution of challenged cases.  For example, if the minister or tribunal can communicate with a minor’s carer instead of the minor, then they will now lawfully be allowed to respond on their behalf. 

Currently, the Government is going into overdrive to recruit international skilled workers to move to Australia in response to an increasing skills shortage.  The mining industry is particularly desperate for skilled workers; in Western Australia alone the Government is now trying to entice 27,000 skilled workers to move to the state on Australian skilled visas.

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The Australian Visa Bureau is an independent consulting company specialising in helping people apply for an Australia visa.

Article by Jessica Bird, Australian Visa Bureau.