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New Direction No 81 (Order of Consideration – Certain Skilled Migration Visas): replaces Direction No 74; sets the order of processing of applications for visa subclasses 189, 190, 489, 186 and 187; sets the order of processing of nomination applications for visa subclasses 186 and 187

A new instrument that commences on 25 Feb 2020: "As a response to the cancellation of visas as a direct consequence of the Covid-19 pandemic, the instrument creates arrangements for applicants who are in Australia and who are former Visitor (Class FA) visa holders and whose visas were cancelled due to the risk of a Public Health Emergency of International Concern designated by the World Health Organisation, to the health, safety or good order the Australian community, or a segment of that community".

Sponsors "inherit" any outstanding public health debt incurred by visa applicants and the government can recover the debt from sponsors in court, which could add up to several thousands of dollars of out of pocket health expenses, not to mention legal costs. Practitioners might need to advise both visa applicants and sponsors about that liability. Otherwise, sponsors could seek compensation from, and/or complain against, practitioners on the basis that, had they been informed of the liability, they would not have applied for sponsorship.

"Amends the: Australian Citizenship Act 2007 to: replace the current arrangements, whereby a person’s Australian citizenship automatically ceases through certain conduct, with a discretion for the Minister for Home Affairs to determine that a person who is a national or citizen of a country other than Australia ceases to be an Australian citizen if they have: engaged in specified terrorism-related conduct; fought for, or been in the service of, a declared terrorist organisation outside Australia; or engaged in conduct that results in a conviction for a specified terrorism offence..."

The new Regulations 'allow citizenship application fees ... and refunds ... to be paid in foreign currencies and in foreign countries, and [align] the concession codes in Schedule 3 with the concession codes currently employed by the Department of Human Services'

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"

The purpose of the instrument is to remove references in another instrument to one of the streams in the Subclass 403 (Temporary Work (International Relations))...

The Bill that sought to "expand eligibility for migrants to access English tuition" passed both houses of Parliament on 10 December 2020 and received the Royal Assent on 17 Dec 2020, with the commencement to be set out by proclamation. A proclamation has been published and sets out the commencement as...

"The Rules ensure that, if a person was entitled immediately before the transition time to appeal or make an application to a court after the transition time in relation to a decision of the IAA..."

"The Amendment Certificate amends the principal certificate, extending the previously granted deferral of sunsetting for the ... by an additional 12 months, resulting in a deferral of 24 months in total..."