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Immigration Daily News Recommendation: All new migration agents be required to complete a period of supervised practiceAustralian Immigration Daily News
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Recommendation: All new migration agents be required to complete a period of supervised practice
One of the key recommendations from the Enquiry into the Migration Agent Profession is that all new migration agents be required to complete a period of supervised practice.
Education Agents and Registered Migration Agents grouped together
The committee acknowledge in their report that the majority of agents [migration agents] are professional and provide an outstanding service but evidence of misconduct and fraudulent action by registered migration agents and education agents was apparent and the impact on their victims was significant.
My comment: It is unfortunate that the committee didn't differentiate RMAs from Education Agents in this sentence as it makes it hard to see which group is responsible. I would hazard a guess it is the less rigidly regulated group; Education Agents.
Unregistered agents and Registered Migration Agents grouped together
Throughout the inquiry process, the committee heard evidence about agents taking advantage of vulnerable consumers.
Witnesses told stories of migration agents:
taking money without completing work;
failing to meet lodgement deadlines;
overcharging for the preparation of visa applications; and
giving incorrect visa information.
Victims suffered considerable financial loss as a result of misconduct and fraudulent actions by registered and unregistered migration agents.
My comment: Unfortunately the committee has not distinguished the unregistered from the registered migration agent here so this unfairly points the finger at our profession.
Biggest concern is Unregistered Agents and Education Agents
The biggest concern throughout the inquiry was always the unregistered agents.
Some education agents had provided unlawful immigration assistance to international students regarding visas, sponsorships and permanent residence—they're simply not allowed to do that—and in some cases education agents were not passing on money to education providers. One organisation [Migration Alliance] reported that they had experienced regular instances of international students who had fallen victim to education agents. A lack of regulation enables them to operate without consequences as the relevant authorities have limited powers to take any action against them.
My comment: Any membership organisation in the migration advice profession that thinks it is doing our profession a 'service' by combining education agents, unregistered agents (affiliate members) and registered migration agents together, as part of a total 'membership base', is actually giving credibility to a group of unqualified persons, who are now in Parliament's sights.
Migration Alliance made submissions to Parliament as early as 2011, which I personally helped to draft, namely:
- Parliamentary Draft Legislation to reduce offshore scams by Unregistered Persons providing offshore Immigration Assistance (28/12/11)
- Parliamentary Draft Legislation to improve migrant worker fair work conditions and market pay rates within the migration zone (28/12/11)
Government should adopt Migration Alliance's proposals. Government should enforce Section 280B of the Migration Act, and adopt the same policy as Canada and New Zealand; Do not accept visa applications from anyone who is not a Registered Agent / Immigration Adviser, whether onshore or offshore. Ever.
Source: Joint-Standing-Committee-on-Migration-report---House-of-Reps-21-Feb-2019.pdf
Comments
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Friday, 22 February 2019I lodged my husband's partner visa application before I was a registered agent but was a law student. We couldn't use ImmiAccount nor did I know about it.
I also lodged a sc 101 child visa for my step daughter before becoming an agent. By this time I had done the course but had not become registered.
Are you saying those applications should not have been accepted?
Doing these applications is what spurred me on to become a registered agent.
I learnt so much from doing them.· Liana - Allan likes this comment. -
Monday, 25 February 2019
I am saying that unregistered persons should not be giving immigration advice and assistance to vulnerable consumers. They are not qualified to do so. Like a person who has an interest in medicine should not be treating a person unless they are actually a doctor. In the legal profession it is said that being your own client is the worst advice you can get. Still, lodging your own visa application such as a partner visa is 'self lodged' and falls within the exempted persons under the Act.
I got another agent to lodge my partner's visa application as I didn't want to be the agent on record on his visa, and the sponsoring spouse (conflict of interest). I found the situation one of 'can't see the forest from the trees' as I was too close to it all. -
Friday, 22 February 2019
MA and MIA should make a joint submission to the Department to consider some advantages to MARA agents such as:
[i] expedited processing where an application is submitted by an MARA registered agent
(An application from a MARA registered agent saves case officers the headache and time in assessing an application and this save time should be compensated)
ii) The department should award brownie points, publicly, competent agents from incompetent agents as a service to consumers to readily identify the good from the not so good.
[iii] publicize more on the advantages and consumer protection in using MARA registered Agents.
Robert Chelliah· Liana - Allan likes this comment. -
Tuesday, 26 February 2019
Hopefully the raft of recommendations gets rid of Migration Agents who should not be practising in the first place.
Migration agents who rip off consumers, lie, cheat and bypass and cheat the law are on NOTICE!
This is also a big wake up call for those agents who continually survive day to day by getting by using forums on facebook to run their practice by asking other agents to give them advice on how to run their own cases (helloooo breach of the code of conduct anyone?) -
Tuesday, 26 February 2019
Claire,
Some newer RMAs like myself ask questions to ensure we are advising our clients correctly. None of the posts I have seen identify clients at all so how is that a breach of the CoC?
Yes there are some bad operators out there and I have personally dealt with some. I also know of people who give migration advice, charge through the roof who are not even registered agents. Then there are some who inspire misplaced loyalty.
I know of one person at least who has been using the same person for years, recommends this person to others but gets nowhere wiith their application for PR and has been to the AAT at least 4 times that I know of.
Immigration blog
Thank Christ almighty a voice of reason. Again.