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Immigration Daily News OMARA's 'random monitoring' emails in Queensland - RMAs are advised to ignoreAustralian Immigration Daily News
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OMARA's 'random monitoring' emails in Queensland - RMAs are advised to ignore
The following email is being received by RMAs in Queensland at the moment:
Dear AAAAAAA [name removed for privacy reasons]
The Office of the Migration Agents Registration Authority (the OMARA) is monitoring the conduct of registered migration agents to verify agents' compliance with the Code of Conduct.
The OMARA is authorised under section 316 (b) of the Act to “… monitor the conduct of registered migration agents in their provision of immigration assistance and of lawyers in their provision of immigration legal assistance” and section 316 (g) of the Act to “… monitor the adequacy of any Code of Conduct”.
The current focus of the OMARA is on agents that operate in Queensland. You have been randomly selected for monitoring. It would be appreciated if you would take the time to complete an online survey relating to your business practices and compliance with the Code of Conduct for registered migration agents. The survey can be accessed by following the link below:
Follow this link to the Survey:
Take the Survey
Or copy and paste the URL below into your internet browser:
https://dibpau.qualtrics.com/WRQualtricsSurveyEngine/?Q_SS=8G4utjXH8pVYHrf_2bm23MBNxEgwpJX&_=1
Please note that you may be selected for a monitoring visit in the near future. Should this occur, the OMARA will be in contact with you to make appropriate arrangements for the visit.
Thank you for your cooperation. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any queries regarding this matter.
Yours sincerely,
XXXX YYYYY
Assistant Director
Registration, Professional Development and Monitoring
Office of the Migration Agents Registration Authority
Email: [name removed for privacy reasons]
Advice from Christopher Levingston, Accredited Specialist Immigration Lawyer is that absent a formal written request under section 308 or other statutory power there is no requirement for any RMA to comply with or take part in "random monitoring".
If you participate in a random audit then once you have provided information to the DIBP (OMARA) they can use that information to make further, more serious demands. Don't self-incriminate by giving the OMARA documentation without a formal demand letter from them. Don't give the OMARA evidence which they are not entitled to have which they could then use against you later. Let them come to you with a breach and assert their power. Don't give them firewood so they can use that to burn you at the stake. Look at what happened to Sam Issa and Kurt Kraues. That all started with a random audit.
Comments
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Friday, 13 March 2015I think it's about time to revisit our work around the Independent Body for RMAs and re-connect with OMARA on what it's doing so that we're all on the same page - I don't mind a survey if it's linked to some kind of ethical and useful research or policy change that will give RMAs an edge to enhance THEIR and OUR work practices. I have problems with is the assumption that it's always about us - the pesky people whose behaviours need to be monitoried, controlled and beaten into submission - we're being kept on a tight leash to ensure that consumers are protected... as if we were a bunch of creeps with a license to defraud unsuspecting clients when most of us (myself included) spend inordinate amounts of time fixing the stuff ups from non RMAs, including education agents AND departmental staff who land THEIR clients into all kinds of complex situations. What about protecting consumers from government departments which are unhelpful? what about regulating unregistered practice? what about looking into Educational Institutions including universities who lead their international students up the garden path in order to keep them AND give them unregistered advice? what about looking into offshore processing and the wheeling and dealing that goes on between some o/seas posts, their middle stakeholder which gatekeeps on behalf of the Australian government on visa applications? I'm sure we can add to this list but you get the point... WILL THESE GET A SURVEY and A RANDOM AUDIT some time in the future by OMARA? let's make it consistent, shall we? Not having a good day...
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Friday, 13 March 2015
This email has just been sent to Assistant Minister for Immigration, Senator Michaelia Cash's chief of staff:
Dear Nicole
The Migration Advice Profession objects to random monitoring by the Office of the MARA. It is a waste of time and resources for OMARA to be randomly approaching RMAs and asking them to complete a survey, which is not locked down but is accessible to the public. The survey therefore won't give accurate results. The survey should be hosted by the Office of the MARA (not by DIBP), should be locked and accessible to RMAs only, aligned to their MARN and name.
At the moment anyone can complete the online survey, including people who were not asked to do it. This means the data collected will be useless. Who is monitoring OMARA? This is plain old money and resource wastage.
Can't the OMARA spend money on promoting and advertising 'why to use an RMA' instead of spending money trying to 'catch out' RMAs? As the stats show, the vast majority RMAs are compliant so let's spend money promoting the good news stories around agents.
Cut red tape please. No more useless random monitoring or surveys.
For more information and to check out the public survey please see here:
http://migrationalliance.com.au/immigration-daily-news/entry/2015-03-omara-s-random-monitoring-emails-in-queensland.html -
Friday, 13 March 2015
Here I would like to say in frustration that the person who is paying fee to MARA follows code of conduct is a goat for them.To be true sometime i work from India and people here are working without any license without any obligation filling even application for skilled migration business visa and no one is here to stop them . If you write against them to dept or MARA they say we can't help it. But as far as NZ and canada is concerned they have some privileges such as none can even file tourist visa for no without the membership of IAA but for AUS anyone can file even skilled visa . Universities are also happy to work with local agents who provide them fraudulent docs but not with MARA who work under code of conduct and if you request any uni for authorisation they will say we are not recruiting any new agents but give authorisation to another local with in the same period . Local agent give illega advise about 457 visa and gsm openly and no one is here to stop this.
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Friday, 13 March 2015
More attacks on innocent RMAs who have done nothing to be investigated. Imagine if the courts, ACCC and AFP operated on the premise of proof of innocence? Oh sorry, the AFP would never do this since it claims it does not have the resources to investigate demonstratively unlawful behaviour, let alone set up wild goose chases.
Is this a way to justify the expenditure of the $7 million plus OMARA receives as as registration fees?
Bea is right in pointing out that OMARA seems to do little to stop unregistered agents but everything to attack those who have met the requirements for registration and received no complaints against them.
How is it that when you log on to immiaccount and open an incomplete application you are asked
are you...
a person appointed by the applicant to assist with the process[ for example an education agent or tourism agent]?
Is this not admission of the acceptance of unlawful migration advice and assistance?
The fact that the survey is DIBP based demonstrates that there is no separation between OMARA and DIBP. Never was; never will be. How many OMARA staff were previously DIBP? This is the reason why MA should be lobbying to assume the role of MARA as is done by the LAW Society of NSW concerning solicitors.· Migration Alliance likes this comment. -
Friday, 13 March 2015
I just received an email from OMARA 2 days ago asking for the same. A few hours later, I received another email saying that the survey in not random and it is compulsory. It has even given me a CRM.
Dear Agent,
This morning you would have received an email from Qualtrics requesting your cooperation to complete a survey about your company’s ‘No Win No Fee’ or Conditional refund policy.
Please note that Qualtrics is the OMARA’s third party survey provider. The survey is mandatory and needs to be completed by Wednesday 25 March 2014.
If the survey from Qualtrics did not appear in your email inbox, please check your other folders including spam/junk.
If you have any queries regarding this survey, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Yours sincerely
Shall I disregard it? -
Friday, 13 March 2015
Sirous please forward the emails that you received to help@migrationalliance.com.au attn Christopher Levingston asap. He will provide advice asap for free. Anyone else in the same boat please do the same.
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Friday, 13 March 2015
It would seem that it really should be in [and left in] spam/junk folder. How much is the contract with Qualtrics worth? Who authorised it? Does Qualtrics have any association with DIBP/OMARA personnel? This information should surely be made available to the public.
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Monday, 16 March 2015
Those of us who have practiced in the area of Criminal law know that our gaols are full of people who tried to explain their situation, and were later convicted due to information disclosed in that explanation, rather than exercising their right to silence and forcing the authorities to prove their guilt.
RMAs should do the same -
Monday, 11 May 2015
So Christopher and Ray, are you also saying that agents should not allow the MARA to visit them to check files and ask questions? I work from home, before that I rarely saw clients when I did have an office except at their place of business etc. I would not want a MARA person tramping around my home.
Can I simply say thanks, but no thanks, if they invite themselves?
Immigration blog
Firstly this is a DIBP survey system: we just completed the survey and we advise agents not to complete the survey as the survey is done by DIBP on a DIBP system and not by OMARA itself.
Secondly, the survey does not attach to an agent or name, nor MARN and has already been doctored by the public who can access the survey without being an RMA and answer questions willy-nilly however they like.
Suggestion after review: The survey should be removed, OMARA should start again and lock access to anyone who is not an RMA. OMARA should not conduct random monitoring. Waste of time. Open surveys which are accessible to the public who can then rig the results are a waste of time and money / resources.