+34
The Albanese Government will announce a dedicated taskforce to target illicit migration advisers and propose tougher code of conduct rules banning futile visa applications, while warning lawyers about misconduct.
The Albanese Government will announce a dedicated Home Affairs taskforce to crack down on illicit migration advisers and so-called fake agents, Assistant Minister for Citizenship Julian Hill will reveal on Friday.
Migration Agents Face Stricter Rules
The taskforce will hit rogue operators with swift administrative penalties to disrupt online fraud on platforms like Facebook. Hill will use a speech to the Migration Institute of Australia on Friday to outline proposed changes to the migration industry's code of conduct. The changes include a ban on registered agents assisting with applications they know, or reasonably ought to know, have no reasonable factual or legal basis.
The move comes as federal Labor overhauls migration settings amid fierce political debate and a flagging Coalition. Hill will argue the measures are about getting greater control over who arrives, stays and leaves, in Australia's national interest. The changes to professional standards would replace a current provision allowing an agent to proceed with a futile application if a client acknowledges in writing that they understand it is futile.
Hill, who will also unveil a suite of changes to student visa approvals, will stress the changes are not intended to prevent agents from handling complex or unusual applications where there is a reasonable factual or legal basis. But he will also turn his attention to lawyers, warning that some of the worst practices identified by the government involve legal practitioners.
Lawyers Face Greater Scrutiny
Some of the worst, sharpest practice I see in my electorate office and ministerial work is actually by lawyers, Hill says in a draft version of the speech. Hill will say Home Affairs referrals about concerning conduct by lawyers are made to professional or licensing bodies, but there is no systemic transparency about the outcomes. Ultimately, I do not have confidence in the policy regime around how lawyers interact with the migration system, he will say.
He cites three recent cases identified by the Department of Home Affairs. They include a lawyer linked to multiple temporary protection visa applications by undocumented air arrivals containing broadly similar claims. Another case involves a cluster of sponsored parent visa applications involving questionable identity and supporting documents. A third involves a high-volume employer-sponsored visa practice involving companies linked to previously sanctioned or liquidated entities.
Hill will also attack online advertising by lawyers that appeared to coach people on how to falsely claim they were bisexual or being persecuted to support protection visa applications. That's not legal representation. It's a misuse of the migration system for profit, he will say. Hill will argue the regulatory framework for lawyers has created a gap in the integrity of the migration system.
Responsibility for regulating migration-related legal practice shifted away from the Office of the Migration Agents Registration Authority in 2021. About 1700 unrestricted legal practitioners have been removed from the migration agents register and are now regulated under state and territory legal regimes. The government has asked the Department of Home Affairs to consider policy options. The government is expected to work with Attorney-General Michelle Rowland and state and territory attorneys-general on possible changes.
Home Affairs Targets Fake Agents
Hill will also announce a dedicated Home Affairs taskforce targeting so-called fake agents. These are operators who unlawfully provide migration advice without being registered agents or legally qualified lawyers. The taskforce will investigate and disrupt operators taking money for migration advice through Facebook groups, social media and other online channels. It will use a range of administrative measures, including infringement notices, to disrupt the businesses rather than relying solely on prosecutions, which Hill described as slow and expensive.
I'm not going to telegraph what's in their toolkit, but the focus is on disrupting business models in multiple different ways, he will say. Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke last month announced settings to drive down arrival numbers. The measures crack down on visa overstayers, cap backpacker stays, and stop international students from bringing family. Burke said the changes would restore integrity to the program.
The government is aiming to meet net overseas migration targets of 245,000 this year and 225,000 next financial year amid ongoing housing pressures.
brisbanetimes 
smh:‘Sharp practices’ by rogue migration lawyers in Labor’s crosshairs 
theage:‘Sharp practices’ by rogue migration lawyers in Labor’s crosshairsThis story was compiled and edited by the HeadTopics newsroom and HT AI from the reports above.
Julian Hill Fake Migration Agents Visa Application Misconduct Albanese Government Migration Policy Migration Crackdown Fake Agents Visa System Integrity Migration Agents Code Of Conduct
Australia Latest News, Australia Headlines
Similar News: You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
NSB Cracks Down on Tangara Train Surfing During School HolidaysSecurity measures are being tightened on NSW Tangara trains with rear carriages closed due to frequent vandalism and train surfing incidents exacerbated by a lack of CCTV coverage and social media influence.
Read more »
AI Expert Says Rogue Software Claims Are Marketing, Not RealityAn Australian defence analyst argues that claims of rogue artificial intelligence are overstated and that humans, not software, are responsible for containment failures. The article reviews decades of failed AI predictions and recent incidents involving OpenAI.
Read more »
We need ‘right to intervene’ in AI amid growing threat, says Bank of England bossAndrew Bailey’s comments come as fears grow that rogue models could take financial system hostage
Read more »