Australian Immigration Daily News

The Morrison Government is welcoming a surge of International Students and Backpacker visa applications and arrivals since our announcement last month of visa fee refunds. Nearly 13,500 International Students arrived in Australia last week alone – a 33% increase on the week prior. Around 80,000 International Students have arrived since late 2021.

And 1,000 Backpackers arrived in Australia last week, with nearly 35,000 Working Holiday Maker visas approved since November 2021, so there are many more to come. International education supports 240,000 Australian jobs and contributed almost $38 billion to the Australian economy in 2018-19. The Working Holiday Maker program is worth $3.1 billion to the Australian economy, with backpackers filling vital workforce shortages while spending more of their time and money in regional Australia.

Source: Open-for-Business.pdf

The latest Migration Agents Activity Report has been published on the OMARA website today: Migration Agents Activity Report - 01 July to 31 December 2021 (mara.gov.au)

The Bill introduces amendments to allow for discretionary visa refusal or cancellation where a non-citizen has a conviction for a designated offence punishable by at least two years' imprisonment.

Designated offences include violent and sexual crimes, breaching personal protection orders like AVOs, using or possessing a weapon, or assisting with any of these crimes.

An Australian visa is a privilege that should be denied to those who pose a threat to the safety of Australians. It should not be easier to deport an international sports star than a convicted criminal. That's why this Bill broadens existing discretionary powers to cancel and refuse visas under the "character test".

The Code of Conduct webpage has been updated and now has links to the guidance document and the key changes between the current Code and new Code: Code of conduct (mara.gov.au) 

A second guidance document will be soon be developed and then published.