Immigration: the year in review

October 1, 2003

It has been an eventful year for Australia’s immigration system, marked by significant court decisions, changes to several migration programs, controversy surrounding the Immigration Minister and continuing concerns over professional standards within the migration advice industry.Perhaps the most public row over immigration this year came over the use of the Immigration Minister’s non-reviewable, non-compellable power of discretion. The opposition accused Immigration Minister Philip Ruddock of using his discretionary power to grant visas to friends of donors to the governing Liberal party. Mr Ruddock insists he did nothing wrong, although changes to system are expected.But any changes will have to be made by the new Immigration Minister, Amanda Vanstone, who was formerly Community Services minister. The opposition also moved their former community services spokeswoman, Nicola Roxon, into the immigration portfolio.Controversy continued to rage over Australia’s policy of detaining all unlawful entrants, including asylum seekers and children. Recently, the Family Court has weighed in on the issue, ordering the release of five children from detention. Mr Ruddock promised to appeal the decision to the high court.Also within the humanitarian program, the government moved to make all onshore asylum applicants eligible for Temporary Protection Visas only. Previously, temporary protection visas were limited to unlawful entrants.The business migration program now grants applicants temporary visas with the opportunity to apply for permanent residence after a trial period, a move that has drawn criticism from some business groups who say that the new system will discourage inward investment.Also, the Immigration Department has overhauled the parent visa system to allow an additional 3,500 applicants to come to Australia, with the understanding that they will pay $25,000 to offset possible costs to Australia’s public health system.The government has also begun to look at ways of improving professionalism within the migration advice industry, announcing a common entry exam for those entering the migration advice profession.At present, it is possible to become a registered migration agent and legally give immigration advice with just a few days training, and an English language requirement was only introduced last year.Moreover, a number of cases of unscrupulous and incompetent agents came to light, with independent investigations by the Australian newspaper and the Australian Broadcasting Corporation finding examples of unregistered practice, incompetence and possible fraud.In addition, Anne O’Donoghue, Franco Camatta and Migration Agent Marion Le brought proceedings against Adelaide solicitor Mark Clisby on behalf of an Albanian Citizen to reinstate an action in the Federal Court which had been discontinued without the client’s authority. These proceedings were originally brought before the High Court and remitted back to the Federal Court. As reported in the Australian Newspaper on 23 August,2003Judge Bradley Selway raised "concern" over Mr Clisby's conduct in the matter, which involved the discontinuation of a migration matter without the applicant's authority – just one of at least 600 matters Mr Clisby has before the courts.These cases have led to numerous calls for reform. Among those leading the charge is the newly-formed Immigration Lawyers Association of Australasia (ILAA). Lawyers formed ILAA because they considered that the existing professional body, the Migration Institute of Australia, was more representative of Migration Agents than of themselves.ILAA hopes to better represent the interests of lawyers, improve professional standards within the industry and advocate on immigration matters.By: Anne O'Donoghue