Australian Immigration Daily News

The report published on Monday 11 February by ANAO indicates alarming inefficiency levels when it comes to processing citizenship applications.  The report originated as a result of the Office of the Commonwealth, the Refugee Council as well as several Members of Parliament expressing their interest in time it is taking to process citizenship applications.

The time to process citizenship application has prior to announcement of the proposed changes in April 2017 was 4 to 6 weeks.  As many may recall, the Department of Home Affairs placed processing of Citizenship applications on hold following this announcement and resumed processing the applications upon defeat of the draconian legislation which included proposal to increase English language efficiency for migrants, increase residency requirement as a permanent resident to four years as well as other character and security provisions.

Several complaints were also received from the general public expressing their concerns in relation to current processing times which is in excess of 12 months.

The instrument repeals LIN 18/090 (F2018101194) (the old law) in accordance with subsection 33(3) of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901 (the AIA).

The purpose of the instrument is to provide the approved place and manner for making a Medical Treatment visa application. From 2 March 2019, the approved form can be lodged using the online Form 48ME form or by the paper Form 48ME method that existed under the old law. The lodgement of the non-internet application by submitting a paper form 48ME will be in accordance with the directions provided by the Department of Home Affairs either verbally or through email.

The instrument commences on 2 March 2019.

The report, prepared by the Australian Institute of Criminology (AIC) in partnership with the Walk Free Foundation, revealed there were between 1,300 and 1,900 victims from 2015-16 to 2016-17.

The Assistant Minister for Home Affairs Senator the Hon. Linda Reynolds, who carried the Modern Slavery Bill through the Senate, said the findings from the Estimating the dark figure of human trafficking and slavery victimisation in Australia report will enable better targeted responses to these crimes, and improve identification and support for victims.

“The exploitation of vulnerable people is a lucrative business. Slavery alone generates more than $190 billion annually,” Assistant Minister Reynolds said.

“The Australian Government recognises this is a global problem, and is continuing to show firm action on abolishing human trafficking and slavery within our communities,” Assistant Minister Reynolds said. “In a historic step, the Modern Slavery Act 2018 came into force on 1 January 2019, which sets a clear standard for action. “Importantly, it underscores Australia’s commitment to being a regional leader in countering modern slavery, and a determined partner in effective and enduring efforts to counter modern slavery in all its forms.”

The following State Governments will be delivering information sessions with Legal Training Australia in the months of February and March 2019.  The public are welcome to attend these online webinars.  To attend as a public viewer please Register as a Public Student on this page (third button on the right).  To register as Migration Agent or Lawyer please click here.

Once you have Registered with our website you can then book your seat to the online webinars here.

New Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) analysis shows that in 2016 half of the 1.5 million temporary residents in Australia were living in Sydney (27 per cent) and Melbourne (24 per cent) with a further 14 per cent calling Brisbane home.

ABS Director of Migration Statistics, Myles Burleigh, said for the first time detailed social and economic characteristics of temporary residents in Australia have been made available through the 2016 Australian Census and Temporary Entrants Integrated Dataset (ACTEID).

“By combining 2016 Census data and temporary visa information from the Department of Home Affairs, we now have a comprehensive picture of where groups of temporary residents live, the countries they come from, what work they do, what they earn and if they are studying,” he said.