Australian Immigration Daily News

Wage theft and slavery-like practices continues to exist in our modern day society.  This is especially evident among specific groups such as temporary migrant workers.

According to the recent “Wage Theft in Australia” report, temporary migrant workers comprise up to 11% of the Australian labour market.  The Report States that in 2017, findings from the National Temporary Migrant Work Survey revealed that a substantial proportion of international students, backpackers and other temporary migrant workers were paid roughly half the legal minimum wage in their lowest paid job in Australia.

Migrant workers’ ability to seek remedies for underpayment is also an indicator of the efficacy of Australia’s labour law regime and institutions.

Schedule 1 to this instrument determines the class of Category A identification documents for the purpose of section 5AA of the regulations.

Note: If a document of the class determined in Schedule 1 cannot be verified electronically by AusCheck for the purpose of a background check, subparagraph 5(1)(m)(ia) of the regulations provides that AusCheck can use details of one or more of the applicants Category B identification documents or Category C identification documents to verify electronically the individual’s identity for the purposes of a background check.

Source: AusCheck-Cat-A-docs-detemination-2020.pdf

The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) visa data-matching program has been operating since 2009.

This protocol consolidates the existing visa data-matching programs:
o October 2015 to 2016–17 financial years program (gazetted 4 August 2015)
o 2017–18 to 2019–20 financial years program (gazetted 18 December 2017).

This protocol outlines the ATO's intention to continue collecting data on visas granted in the period 2020–21 to 2022–23 financial years.

For this program the ATO collects information from the Department of Home Affairs (Home Affairs) on active and newly granted visas. The data is matched against the ATO's records to ensure visa holders, visa sponsors and migration agents are meeting their tax and superannuation obligations.

 Source: AT0-and-Dept-Home-Affairs-data-matching-2020.pdf

This instrument repeals and replaces the Australian Values Statement for Public Criterion 4019 – 2016/113 (IMMI 16/113) and updates the language of the values statement for all visa subclasses specified to better reflect the values that are important to Australian society.
Some or all of this item commenced on 30/10/2020

https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/F2020L01305

The Trades Recognition Service (TRS) will close on 1 December 2020 due to low demand and no new applications will be accepted from this date.  

TRA Skills assessments will continue to be available to people who have gained their skills outside a formal apprenticeship pathway through the Offshore Skills Assessment Program available in Australia and selected overseas locations.  

Australian citizens are not eligible to apply for skills assessments under any TRA Programs including TRS.