Australian Immigration Daily News

The Migration Amendment (Streamlining Visa Processing) Bill 2018 (the Bill) amends the Migration Act 1958 (the Act) to enable the Minister to specify groups of visa applicants who are required to provide one or more personal identifiers to make a valid application.

A biometric (termed ‘personal identifier’ in the Act), is a unique identifier that is based on individual physical characteristics, such as a facial image or a set of fingerprints, which can be digitised into a biometric template for automated storage and checking. Once ‘anchored‘ to a person’s biographic information, such as name, nationality and date of birth, a biometric adds significantly to verifying that a person is who they claim to be, and to linking an individual to security, law enforcement, and immigration information.

The Department’s biometric program has been progressively introduced over time. It commenced in 2006 with collecting facial images and fingerprints of illegal foreign fishers, and was extended in 2010, when the Department commenced collecting facial images and fingerprints from offshore visa applicants in specified higher risk locations and onshore protection claimants.

Source:

Migration-Amendment-Streamlining-Visa-Processing-Bill-2018.pdf

A Bill for an Act to provide for a plebiscite at the next general election in relation to migration to Australia, and for related purposes was put to the Senate by Senator Fraser Anning yesterday.  Crossbencher Fraser Anning has been widely condemned for speech praising white Australia policy and pushing for plebiscite a on Muslim immigration, which he calls the 'final solution'.

This is what was said:

Senator ANNING (Queensland) (17:08): I move:

The recent decision in the case of Brown V Minister for Home Affairs being  an appeal from a decision at the FCC is of interest to the profession.

The relevant citation for the Appeal decision is Brown V Minister for Home Affairs [2018] FCA 1643.

The hyperlink to the reported decision is here: ( http://www.austlii.edu.au/cgi-bin/viewdoc/au/cases/cth/FCA/2018/1643.html?context=1;query=Brown%20V%20Minister%20for%20Home%20Affairs%20;mask_path= )

Subclass 190 is designed for skilled visa applicants who have submitted an expression of interest (EoI) in SkillSelect and, after being nominated by a State/Territory government body, have received an invitation to apply for this visa. Subject to receiving an invitation to apply, persons can apply for the subclass 190 visa from in or outside Australia.  Each Australian state and Territory is responsible for managing their 190-visa intake.  This includes management of occupation lists as well as any other additional requirements imposed by the State.

From 29 November 2018, the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) is replacing the current first-in, first-served system with a merit-based assessment matrix that will moderate supply and demand throughout the year and more effectively address the ACT’s skills needs. The 190 visa subclass will continue to focus on occupations that are listed as ‘in-demand’, and assess a range of factors that support successful settlement and contribution to the ACT economy, such as previous residence and other ties to the ACT, English proficiency, and employment in the ACT.

Impact on existing applicants:

Skilled News Letter – Migration Alliance Summary

Department of Home Affairs released their November edition of Skilled Newsletter.  Topics of interests include Temporary Skills Shortage (TSS) visa, Employer Nomination Scheme, Transfer of Labour Agreements to online platform and more.

Migration Alliance brings you the following summary to help you to prepare your application under the new regime.