Migration Amendment (Aggregate Sentences) Bill 2023 - Australian Immigration Daily News

Overview of the Bill

The Migration Amendment (Aggregate Sentences) Bill 2023 (the Bill) amends the Migration Act 1958 (the Migration Act) in response to the decision of the Full Court of the Federal Court of Australia in Pearson v Minister for Home Affairs [2022] FCAFC 203 (Pearson).

The purpose of the Bill is to amend the Act to provide a clear basis for aggregate sentences (that is, one sentence imposed in respect of more than one offence) to be taken into account for all relevant purposes under the Migration Act. This is of particular relevance for the application of the character test in section 501 of the Act.