From 1 October 2012, nationals from China, India, Bhutan and Nepal who are already granted an Australian visa can travel to Australia without a visa label in their passport. Their visa information is held electronically by the Australian Government. Information on visa status and entitlements is available on the Visa Entitlement Verification Online (VEVO) system. Most Australian visa holders are no longer required to have visa labels as evidence of the grant of their visas.

The introduction of label-free processing is part of the Australian Government’s global program of label-free travel to Australia, to reduce processing time and improve security.

Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, Chris Bowen MP, announced new legislation setting out criminal and civil penalties against employers who hire illegal workers.

The legislation’s key amendments include:

• Amending the criminal offences and creating new non-fault civil penalty provisions and an infringement notice scheme for people who allow or refer an unlawful non-citizen to work, or allow or refer a lawful non-citizen to work in breach of a work-related visa condition;
• Creating statutory defences where reasonable steps are taken at reasonable times to verify a foreign national worker’s entitlement to work;
• Broadening the application of criminal offences and civil penalty provisions to hold a person liable for participating in an arrangement, or series of arrangements, that results in a foreign national working without lawful entitlement;
• Extending both criminal and civil liability, in certain circumstances, to executive officers of bodies corporate, partners in a partnership and members of an unincorporated association’s committee of management; and
• Creating search warrant and notice to produce powers specifically to facilitate the investigation of suspected breaches of these offences and civil penalties.

From 3 September 2012, the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) will change the delivery of immigration services in China. Two Australian Visa Application Centres (AVACs) will be introduced in Beijing and Shanghai. There will also be changes to the locations where certain visa applications are processed in China.

 

SkillSelect is an online service that enables skilled workers and business people interested in migrating to Australia to record their details to be considered for a skilled visa through an Expression of Interest (EOI). From 1 July 2012, all intending migrants interested in the points based skilled migration or business investment and innovation visa programs will be required to submit an EOI and receive an invitation in order to lodge a visa application.

According to DIAC’s Migration Blog over 5000 expressions of interest (EOIs) have been successfully submitted in SkillSelect since 1 July 2012.

According to the recently published report on the migration program 2011-12, the 2011-12 permanent migration program was delivered on target to the planning level of 185 000. The skilled stream outcome was 125 755 places. There were 16 471 places delivered under the highest priority Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme, with Western Australia accounting for 23.2 per cent of the outcome. State and territory sponsored visa classes were also delivered in record numbers, with the 22 247 places marking a 37.5 per cent increase on the previous year.

Seven of the top 10 source countries in Australia’s 2011-12 migration program are from Asia: India, China, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, the Republic of Korea and Vietnam. The family stream had a final outcome of 58 604 places, representing 31.7 per cent of the total migration program. The family stream allows Australians to unite with their close family and particularly with their partners and children.

19 July 2012 Source: Department of Immigration and Citizenship

 

The Federal Magistrates Court has handed down a decision against a Victorian 457 visa sponsor who underpaid a worker by $10 000. According to DIAC, this is the first time an action had been brought before the courts under the Migration Legislation Amendment (Worker Protection) Act 2008.

The 457 sponsor had failed two of the sponsorship obligations: the obligation to pay equivalent terms and conditions, and the obligation to keep appropriate pay records. The court issued a pecuniary penalty of $35 000 plus costs of almost $11 000.