Legislative Updates

The purpose of the new instrument is to "include an exemption for New Zealand citizens who are unable to meet the income threshold requirements for the 2020-21 income year due to the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic"

The new Certificate defers the sunsetting date of a legislative instrument "to enable the Department to evaluate the need for amendments to the family violence provisions, evaluate the need for any changes relating to the independent expert, and draft a new instrument, while avoiding having to remake the instrument twice in a short period of time"

"The amendments in the Bill respond to the decision of the Full Court of the Federal Court of Australia (the Federal Court) in Pearson v Minister for Home Affairs [2022] FCAFC 203 (Pearson). In Pearson, the Federal Court relevantly held that, in effect, an aggregate sentence (a single sentence for more than one offence) imposing a term of imprisonment does not, in and of itself, constitute a ‘substantial criminal record’ within the meaning given by subsection 501(7) of the Migration Act..."

"The purpose of the instrument is to specify an Australian Government endorsed event and a class of persons in relation to that event for the purpose of clause 408.229 of Schedule 2 to the Migration Regulations"

The new legislation supports "the trial of the Australia Travel Declaration (ATD) as a digital version of the passenger card, also known as the ‘incoming passenger card’"

"The purpose of the instrument is to set out the eligibility requirements for registration and other rules that apply to the conduct of a visa pre-application process for a Pacific Engagement visa..."

'The [Bill] will facilitate the secure, automated and accountable exchange of identity information between the Commonwealth and state and territory governments, pursuant to the objectives of the Intergovernmental Agreement on Identity Matching Services (IGA), agreed by COAG in October 2017. The Bill will achieve this by providing explicit legal authority for the Department of Home Affairs ... to collect, use and disclose identification information'

The new regulations "clarify and enhance the statutory framework for the Minister to prescribe alternative requirements to the standard skilled nomination and visa criteria, in labour agreements"

"The purpose of the instrument is to specify a class of persons for paragraph 1402(3B)(b) of Schedule 1 to the Regulations.  The instrument specifies as a class of persons, persons who were granted Subclass 449 visas due to the ..."

"The amendments made by this instrument enable employers to nominate a proposed occupation in relation to a person with one of the abovementioned ... occupations who is the holder of or who has applied for a Subclass 482 visa or Subclass 494 visa without being required to provide a HWC or HWEC"