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By Michael Jeremy RMA, and Evie Kennedy

The latest Australian Taxation Office Statistics highlights a significant pay gap between Australia’s richest and poorest neighbourhoods. On average, there is an income difference of $155,823 between the richest and the poorest postcode.

A large amount of Australia highest earners fell within the 2027 postcode, which includes Sydney’s Edgecliff, Rushcutters Bay, Point Piper and Darling Point. The professions that garnered the highest taxable incomes included Medical specialists, judges and lawyers, mining engineers and financial dealers.

Australia's largest foreign mission is its embassy in Jakarta. That mission will soon be without an ambassador. Ministerial visits have also been suspended. With contact at the highest levels suspended how will it affect business and the thousands of travellers between the countries?

The Australian Government had hoped that “Indonesia would show mercy to the two young men, who have worked hard since their arrests to rehabilitate themselves and improve the lives of other prisoners,” according to a statement from the office of Foreign Minister Julie Bishop today.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran’s family and friends at this extremely difficult time” Ms Bishop said.

Ms Bishop confirmed that Australia, “will withdraw our Ambassador for consultations once the men’s bodies have been returned to the Chan and Sukumaran families...Ministerial visits will remain suspended” said Ms Bishop.

DFAT nor the DIBP have provided any information on how these measures will specifically affect business or travellers between the countries. However, according to various analysts, Australia’s reaction which as serious as it seems, will not affect the daily operations of the Australian consulates in Indonesia. It does not mean diplomatic relations have ended as the rest of the consulate will continue to operate and provide services.

DFAT’s smartraveller.gov.au website advice is to ‘exercise a high degree of caution’ on travel to Indonesia’ which is at the same overall level of advice prior to the announcement of the downgrading of diplomatic contact. 

For all those people thinking about calling 131 881 to speak to someone in a DIBP call centre here are some tips:

PHONE CALL 1

1. Always ask the operator what their name is.  They may only give you a first name.

Migration Alliance is in receipt of information from a few different RMAs regarding ImmiAccount and missing documents.  The following email from an RMA best describes the core issue:

"I have noticed an issue today with online applications on my ImmiAccount

On a number of my lodged 457 applications, documents which had been attached during lodgement are subsequently missing from the uploaded document list.