The announcement By The Assistant Minister for Customs, Community Safety and Multicultural Affairs, the Honourable Jason Wood MP made at the Migration Alliance Conference on 15 November 2019 to the effect that legislation was being tabled, deregulating the provision of “Immigration Assistance” by Australian Lawyers has been realised.
The "running sore" being the dual regulation of Australian Lawyers by both Law Societies and the OMARA is coming to an end. The Assistant Minister and the Government are to be commended on this initiative.
The dual regulation of Australian lawyers has been the subject of various reviews and commentary but it is the current Federal Government who has taken the initiative and tabled the relevant legislation.
It is anticipated that approximately twenty-five per cent of the population of Registered Migration Agents currently under the supervision of the OMARA will fall under the Supervision of the offices of the Legal Services Commissioner (NSW) and its equivalents interstate.
Vulnerable consumers will be now able to initiate complaints in respect of Australian Lawyers practising in Australian immigration law. Those complaints will be diverted to the relevant State or Territory legal regulator.
These changes reflect the recommendations of the Kendall Review in 2014, and are consistent with the stated objective of this Government to remove “red tape”.
The profession welcomes these initiatives and applauds the Assistant Minister for bringing these matters before Parliament, and thanks him for his solid support and recognition of the very important role played by Registered Migration Agents within the Australian migration advice profession.
Migration-Amendment-Regulation-of-Migration-Agents-Bill-2019---The-Bill.pdf
and
Migration-Amendment-Regulation-of-Migration-Agents-Bill-2019---Explanatory Memorandum.pdf
The Law Council has today also supported the Bill:
Removal-of-dual-regulation-to-reduce-costs-for-consumers.pdf