Australian Immigration Daily News

The Bill introduces amendments to allow for discretionary visa refusal or cancellation where a non-citizen has a conviction for a designated offence punishable by at least two years' imprisonment.

Designated offences include violent and sexual crimes, breaching personal protection orders like AVOs, using or possessing a weapon, or assisting with any of these crimes.

An Australian visa is a privilege that should be denied to those who pose a threat to the safety of Australians. It should not be easier to deport an international sports star than a convicted criminal. That's why this Bill broadens existing discretionary powers to cancel and refuse visas under the "character test".

The Code of Conduct webpage has been updated and now has links to the guidance document and the key changes between the current Code and new Code: Code of conduct (mara.gov.au) 

A second guidance document will be soon be developed and then published.

Reopening to tourists and other international travellers to secure our economic recovery - Nation will reopen to fully vaccinated visa holders, welcoming return of tourists, business travellers, and visitors

Australia will reopen to all fully vaccinated visa holders, welcoming the return of tourists, business travellers, and other visitors from 21 February. These changes will ensure we protect the health of Australians, while we continue to secure our economic recovery.

Australia’s health system has demonstrated its resilience throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, including though the recent Omicron wave. With improving health conditions, including a recent 23 per cent decline in hospitalisations due to COVID, the National Security Committee of Cabinet today agreed Australia is ready to further progress the staged reopening of our international border.

Purpose
Regulation 3.03AB was recently inserted into the Regulations by the Home Affairs Legislation Amendment (Digital Passenger Declaration) Regulations 2021 (the DPD Regulations) for the purpose of exempting a person travelling to Australia from completing or providing a passenger card when they have provided a digital passenger declaration to the departmental system that processes digital passenger declarations (DPD) (the person).

Under this provision, the person is not required to complete or provide a passenger card if they have provided a DPD and, before an event referred to in subparagraph 172(1)(a)(iii) or (b)(iii) of the Migration Act 1958 occurs, the person has not withdrawn their DPD and a clearance officer has not required them to provide a completed passenger card. Under subregulation 3.03AB(2) of the Regulations, a clearance officer may require a person to provide a completed passenger card if circumstances specified in a legislative instrument exist.

Source: LIN22015.pdf and LIN-22015-Explanatory-Memo.pdf