Australian Immigration Daily News

Will a bad driving record prevent me from getting Australian citizenship? 

This is a very common question, of course. 

It is likely that at some point in their driving history, almost everyone will commit some form of offence.  Even I did! Several years after our family moved to Australia I managed to cruise right through two speed cameras faster than the speed limit. Even though I am supposed to be able to understand English, the clear warnings about the speed cameras didn’t register in my mind! So epic fail, or “rip” (rest in peace!). Boom! But luckily for me, I just paid the fines, so the incidents didn’t result in a record of conviction. And they didn’t prevent me from getting Australian citizenship (neither did my inability to answer the question: “What are the benefits of Australian citizenship” at my interview, without prompting – these were the “good old days” before the introduction of the Australian citizenship test (readers are of course required to accept that notwithstanding these admissions of nefarious conduct, I truly am a person of “good character” and the Department did not make a grave error when it approved my citizenship application!!!). 

Is it possible to stop the Department from acting to refuse a visa application on character grounds? 

Or to put this question in a more legally precise way, is it possible to get an injunction to restrain the Minister from “exercising the discretion” under section 501(1) of the Migration Act to refuse the grant of a visa on character grounds? 

These questions were at the heart of a recent case that started out in the High Court, and which was ultimately decided in the Federal Court: Plaintiff S111/2017 v Minister for Immigration and Border Protection (2017) FCA 813 (20 July 2017). 

The following information has been sent from VETASSESS to migration agents via email:

"We are pleased to announce that on 1 August 2017, we are launching Priority Processing service for our General Professional Occupation applicants.

This premium service will offer applicants the option to fast track their application for an additional fee. We understand that some applications need to be processed with urgency - Priority Processing will ensure that the application is finalised within 10 business days.
Consideration for Priority Processing will only be given to new ONLINE applications lodged after 1 August. Full details about this service including the eligibility criteria to be considered will be available on the website from Tuesday 1 August 2017.

What is the correct test for determining whether the position for which an applicant for a 457 visa has been nominated is “genuine”? 

This is a question that is of course of critical importance for applicants for 457 visas and their sponsoring employers, as the Schedule 2 criteria for 457 visas include as a key element the requirement that the Minister be satisfied that “the position associated with the nominated occupation is genuine” - clause 457.223(4) (d) (ii) – and because it is common for 457 visa applications to be refused on the basis that the reviewing delegate is not satisfied that the position is in fact genuine. 

So it is worth noting a recent decision from the Federal Court of Australia in which this issue was revisited, Pasricha v Minister for Immigration and Border Protection (2017) FCA 779. 

'Australia's Changing Immigration Landscape' Conference was held last week on Friday at Westpac, Barangaroo in the city of Sydney.  This migration agent CPD activity was hosted by Liana Allan from Legal Training Australia.

Below are some images from the conference, which was a huge success.

People who would like to ask questions, or who would like to make contact with the presenters, are asked to email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and we will put you in contact with the relevant person.