Legislative Updates

The new instrument specifies "an additional circumstance where the first instalment of VAC may be refunded, to encourage visa holders in nominated subclasses to travel to Australia and participate in the Australian economy"

"The purpose of the instrument is to specify the exchange rates and foreign currencies used to make payments of certain fees, for paragraph 5.36(1A)(a) of the Regulations, from 1 January 2022"

The new instrument commenced on 1 January 2022 and makes changes to: the list of eligible countries; instances where approval from a foreign country is required; & more

The new Code of Conduct for RMAs takes effect from 1 March 2022 and includes provisions on: duty to disclose to the department the existence of false or misleading documents or information in some circumstances; duty not to evade a requirement of the migration law; duty to take all reasonable steps to verify the identity of the client; duties relating to work or services performed by persons other than RMAs; etc

The new regulations amend the Migration Agents Regulations 1998 (Cth) to repeal the current Code of Conduct from 1 March 2022 and make amendments consequential to that repeal and the introduction of a new Code

"The purpose of the instrument is to specify Australia and a number of foreign countries for paragraph 5.36(1)(a) [of the Migration Regulations 1994 (Cth)] and the associated currency, or currencies, in which a fee may be paid in that country for paragraph 5.36(1)(b)... It is noted that the instrument has an additional purpose for the Australian Citizenship Act 2007 ..."

The intent of the new instrument "is to provide a concession where subclass 600 visa holders’ intended travel has not been completed due to the COVID-19 pandemic"

The new regulations "amend the Customs Regulation 2015(Customs Regulation) and the Migration Regulations 1994 (Migration Regulations) to facilitate the introduction of a digital passenger declaration (DPD), for use by travellers on a voluntary basis... The DPD may also be used to provide COVID-19 vaccination information and related declarations, which is the information that can currently be provided using the Australia Travel Declaration"

"Western Australia’s South West region will look to fill critical labour shortages for business and industry with the Federal Government creating a Designated Area Migration Agreement (DAMA) with the Shire of..."

"The instrument specifies requirements to make a request for the Minister to prioritise the consideration of a valid application for a visa.  On a request made in accordance with regulation 2.12M of the Regulations, in relation to a valid application for a visa, the Minister may prioritise the consideration of the application."