Indonesian nationals will have access to a three-year, multiple-entry visa to Australia from next year, signalling the federal government’s recognition of our neighbour as an increasingly important source country for tourism and business.

The change which extends the current one-year visitor visa will also allow applicants to obtain the visa more quickly and easily by 2017 via the online portal, according to a media release from the office of the immigration minister.

Immigration minister, Peter Dutton, along with Trade Minister Andrew Robb and Tourism Minister Richard Colbeck announced these initiatives while attending the Indonesia-Australia Business Week in Jakarta.

“These initiatives will benefit Indonesia and Australia as we look to promote stronger business and tourism links between our two countries,” Mr Dutton said. “This change reflects Australia’s close relationship with Indonesia and is part of the Government’s agenda to boost our tourism sector and reduce red tape.”

The media release stated that the Government is committed to expanding client access to online lodgement for visitor visas (Business and Tourist Streams) globally and supporting Australia’s position as an attractive business and tourism destination.

On 1 December, the new penalty regime for illegal foreign property purchases is expected to come into effect. The new laws will for the first time capture third party facilitators like real estate agents, accountants, and lawyers, who will face fines of $45,000 for individuals and $225,000 for a company if they knowingly assist foreign buyers to break the law.

The bill introduces a range of new and stricter penalties that will enable breaches to be dealt with according to the severity of the breach, Assistant Treasurer, Kelly O’Dywer told parliament.

The existing criminal penalties will be increased from $90,000 to $135,000 for individuals and from $450,000 to $675,000 for companies. These will be supplemented by civil pecuniary penalties and infringement notices for less serious breaches of the residential real estate rules.

“For the very first time, third parties such as real estate agents, migration agents, conveyancers and lawyers who knowingly assist a foreign investor to breach the rules will also now be subject to both civil and criminal penalties,” said Ms O’Dwyer.

Among the changes set to be introduced from 1 December 2015 is the imposition of fees for residential properties. $5000 for those valued at $1 million or less and $10,000 for property over $1 million, increasing in $10,000 increments for every million dollars thereafter.

A huge amount of media attention over the past year has focused on the cancellation of New Zealanders’ visas on character grounds. 

And if that has been a “hot topic” here in Australia, we understand that it is an even “hotter topic” on the other side of the Tasman. 

It is therefore timely and worthwhile to take a look at another case that came before the Full Court earlier this year involving such a visa cancellation, Fraser v Minister for Immigration and Border Protection (2015) FCAFC 48 (2 April 2015). 

They say “timing in life is everything”. 

This time-worn saying certainly rings true in relation to migration law: it is so so important to sort out problems with the evidence at an early stage!

A recent case that came before the Federal Court, Faruque v Minister for Immigration and Border Protection (2015) FCA (9 November 2015) illustrates just how perilous it can be “not to get to the bottom of an issue” at the earliest possible time and to resolve any questions that the Department may ask concerning the accuracy or authenticity of documents that are submitted in support of a visa application. 

For the first time in Australian history, teachers have gone on strike while students staged a sit-in to protest against the detention of an asylum-seeker high school student.

Iranian student, Mojgan Shamsalipoor, was months away from graduating from Yeronga State High School near Brisbane, when her visa application was refused in December 2014. She has been held in detention for almost a year now, after spending more than two years in the community and marrying an Australian resident.

Immigration Minister Peter Dutton revealed in September he was personally considering a request for Ms Shamsalipoor, to be allowed to apply for a partner visa on Australian soil, after being approached by Coalition MP Natasha Griggs.

With no answer in sight, teachers at the school held a stop work meeting on Tuesday as part of an ongoing campaign to fight for the rights of Shamsalipoor and other students in similar circumstances.

Speaking at the rally, the school's Queensland Teachers Union representative, Jessica Walker, said students also refused to go to class, and held a sit-in to coincide with the industrial action.