The Joint Standing Committee on Migration will discuss education agents at a public hearing on 19 September 2018 in Canberra. This will be part of its inquiry into the efficacy of current regulation of Australian migration agents.
The inquiry is examining issues including:
• examining the registration and regulation of migration agents in Australia including: education, English proficiency, payment, fee-scheduling as well as the suitability and stringency of the accreditation process and evidence of deficiencies.
• the nature and prevalence of fraud, professional misconduct and other breaches by registered migration agents, the current review mechanisms for migration agents and the adequacy of penalties.
• deficiencies and barriers to relevant authorities' investigation of fraudulent behaviour by registered migration agents in visa applications, including the adequacy of information and evidence sharing between such authorities.