Australian Immigration Daily News

Purpose

The purpose of the instrument is to specify: activities for subparagraph 22A(1)(a)(i) of the Act, organisations for paragraph 22A(1)(b) of the Act, and kinds of work for paragraph 22B(1)(a) of the Act. A person applying for Australian citizenship by conferral (the applicant) must satisfy the eligibility criteria under section 21 of the Act, including a residence requirement. The residence requirement can be satisfied under either the general residence requirement (see section 22), the special residence requirement (see sections 22A and 22B) or the defence service requirement (see section 23).

5 To meet the special residence requirement in section 22A of the Act an applicant must, amongst other requirements, seek to engage in a specified activity of benefit to Australia, and are required to become an Australian citizen in order to do so (see subparagraphs 22A(1)(a)(i), (ii) and (iii)). The head of, or senior member of a specified organisation must give the Minister written notice stating that the applicant has a reasonable prospect of being engaged in that activity. Subsections 22C(1) and (2) of the Act enable the Minister to specify the activities and organisations in a legislative instrument.

To meet the special residence requirement in section 22B of the Act the applicant must, amongst other requirements, be engaged in a specified kind of work. The applicant must be engaged in that work at the time of application and must be required to regularly travel outside Australia because of that work. Subsection 22C(3) of the Act enables the Minister to specify the kind of work in a legislative instrument.

The instrument is made under subsections 22C(1), (2) and (3) of the Act to specify activities, organisations and kinds of work. The instrument broadens the special residence requirement from IMMI 13/056 by specifying additional activities, organisations and kinds of work. In particular, the instrument:

Overview of the Legislative Instrument

Under Part 3-2 of the Higher Education Support Act 2003 (the Act), one of the factors in determining whether students are entitled to Higher Education Loan Program (HELP) assistance is that they must satisfy the citizenship or residency requirements under the relevant provisions in the Act. As a result of amendments to the Act contained in Part 1 of Schedule 1 to the Education Legislation Amendment (2021 Measures No. 2) Act 2021 (the Amendment Act), eligible former permanent humanitarian visa holders can meet the citizenship or residency requirements for HELP assistance under the Act where they hold certain specified visa classes or subclasses (see specifically the amendments to paragraphs 90-5(1)(b), 104-5(1)(b), 118-5(1)(b) and 126-5(1)(b) of the Act in Part 1 of Schedule 1 to the Amendment Act).

The purpose of the Determination is to specify the classes or subclasses of visas provided for by the Migration Act 1958 or regulations made under that Act for the purposes of paragraph (c) in the definition of “eligible former permanent humanitarian visa holder” in subclause 1(1) of Schedule 1 to the Act.

The effect of the Determination is that holders of the specified classes or subclasses of visas will meet the definition of “eligible former permanent humanitarian visa holder” in subclause 1(1) of Schedule 1 to the Act where they also satisfy paragraphs (a) and (b) of that definition (which they will satisfy where they were previously, but not currently, permanent humanitarian visa holders). In turn, eligible former permanent humanitarian visa holders will be able to meet the citizenship or residency requirements for HELP assistance eligibility.

 Source: Higher-Education-Support----TUDGE.pdf and Higher-Education-Support-Explanatory-Statement.pdf

With first dose vaccination rates at over 78 per cent and double dose rates nationwide at 55 per cent and on track to reach 70 per cent in some jurisdictions over the next week, our government has been finalising plans so Australian families can be reunited, Australian workers can travel in and out of our country, and we can work towards welcoming tourists back to our shores.

Within weeks, large parts of the country will be moving to Phase B and then to Phase C of the National Plan to safely reopen Australia and to stay safely open. Under Phase C, international travel is on track to reopen safely to fully vaccinated Australian travellers.

Source: Next-steps-to-reopen-the-world.pdf

Overview of the Disallowable Legislative Instrument

The Migration Amendment (Australian Agriculture Workers) Regulations 2021 (the AAW Regulations) amend the Migration Regulations 1994 (the Migration Regulations) to support the Government’s objective to fill labour shortages in primary industry sectors.

COVID-19 has impacted Australia’s agriculture sector by limiting the supply of overseas workers, while COVID-19 related travel restrictions and practical difficulties have impeded international and domestic movement. The departure of temporary migrants has placed further pressure on the supply of low and semi-skilled workers, in particular, seasonal workers in primary industry sectors.

Despite temporary measures introduced to encourage Australian workers and temporary visa holders to relocate and take up work in the agriculture sector, the Government continues to receive reports of growers unable to harvest crops due to labour shortages. The Australian Agriculture Worker (AAW) Program will provide the agriculture sector with a wider pool of workers to draw from where Australian workers and workers available through Pacific labour mobility schemes are not sufficient to meet primary industry labour needs in Australia.

Source: Migration-Amendment-Australian-Agriculture-Workers-Regulations-2021.pdf 

and Migration-Amendment-Aus-Ag-Worker-Regs-2021-Explanatory-Statement.pdf

Migration (arrangements for Visitor (Class FA) visa applications) Instrument (LIN 21/056) 2021
This instrument operates for the Minister to specify the approved forms, place and manner (the arrangements) for making a valid visa application for a Visitor (Class FA) visa. The Subclass 600 (Visitor) visa (subclass 600) is the only subclass for the Class FA visa and has five streams: the Tourist stream, the Sponsored Family stream, the Business Visitor stream, the Approved Destination Status stream and the Frequent Traveller stream. The instrument specifies the arrangements for making a visa application for each stream.
Some or all of this item commenced on 30/09/2021
https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/F2021L01339


Migration (LIN 20/046: Arrangements for Visitor (Class FA) Visa Applications) Instrument 2020
This instrument operates for the Minister to specify the approved forms, place and manner for making a valid visa application for a Visitor (Class FA) visa, and specify for the Approved Destination Status stream in the Visitor (Class FA) visa, which includes the Subclass 600 (Visitor) visa, the travel agents that may organise a tour of which an applicant must be intending to travel to Australia as a member of that tour.
As a response to the cancellation of visas as a direct consequence of the Covid-19 pandemic, the instrument creates arrangements for applicants who are in Australia and who are former Visitor (Class FA) visa holders and whose visas were cancelled due to the risk of a Public Health Emergency of International Concern designated by the World Health Organisation, to the health, safety or good order the Australian community, or a segment of that community.
Item was repealed on 30/09/2021, and is no longer in force
https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/F2020L00160