Some RMA jobs 'may be at risk' if offshore plans go ahead

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Created on Friday, 17 August 2012 12:04

Written by Editorial staff

Some RMA jobs could be at risk due to budget cuts and a government move toward offshore processing, one writer has asserted in The Australian.

Chris Merritt wrote today (August 17) that legal centres - including the Refugee and Immigration Legal Centre in Melbourne - could become financially vulnerable if offshore processing plans go ahead.

Offshore processing of so-called "irregular maritime arrivals" (IMAs) could mean that the federal government funding the centre receives under the Immigration Advice and Application Assistance Scheme (IAAAS) might be cut off.

IAAAS costs for 2011, as documented by the Department of Immigration and Citizenship, included the preparation of 348 protection visa applications for individuals in immigration detention, as well as 12,040 instances of community immigration advice and application assistance.

Some 6,523 services were specifically provided for IMAs during this time - and the costs associated with IAAAS community and detention onshore services totalled $3.049 million.

During the 2010-11 financial year, some $1.3 million in federal government funding was granted to the centre, which made up 76 per cent of its total income. During the same year, the centre paid out $1 million in wages to legal advisers, Merritt reports.

Refugee lawyer Ben Saul, president of the Refugee Advice and Casework Service - an organisation funded under the IAAAS grants program - told The Australian that there are a couple of scenarios that could impact on RMAs.

The first, he explained, could be a reduced number of migrants applying for visas due to offshore processing changes.

But this, he added, could be countered with added costs faced by migration lawyers who provide legal advice, who may be sent to Papua New Guinea to prepare cases and could therefore take on additional travel expenses.

The current IAAAS arrangements allow for the most vulnerable visa applicants to receive professional immigration assistance at no charge.

Under this scheme, migration advice is also provided to prospective visa sponsors, as well as individual applicants.

All protection visa applicants who are currently in detention are eligible for the scheme, as well as other applicants who are deemed to be disadvantaged - including those who are based in remote locations, have a non-English speaking background, are illiterate or suffer from any type of physical or psychological disability or harm.

Support for these vulnerable individuals include registered migration agents, as well as officers of legal aid commissions - both of whom provide independent advice.