Migration Amendment (Visa Capping) Bill 2010
Jun 4th 2010, 5:10 am
#1
Forum Regular
Thread Starter
Joined: Jun 2009
Posts: 39
Migration Amendment (Visa Capping) Bill 2010
I know this issue was mentioned before in the above sticky. To be more specific please see below.
This is from http://www.acacia-au.com/Minister_Se...plications.php
The Minister for Immigration, Chris Evans, has introduced a Bill to Parliament granting him the power to terminate visa applications based on the individual characteristics of the visa applicant.
The Migration Amendment (Visa Capping) Bill 2010 is intended to deal with the build up in the numbers of General Skilled Migration applications in the pipeline. There are currently 147,000 people waiting for their GSM applications to be processed, approximately 40,000 of whom are international students who have applied onshore for their visas.
However, the Bill potentially could be applied to any type of visa, apart from refugee visas. For instance temporary visas such as student visas and 457s, family sponsored visas or even partner visas.
It is envisioned that the Bill, if passed, will allow the Minister to terminate an application based on the person's individual characteristics. For example, the Minister could issue a legislative instrument to the effect that all applicants nominating cook or hairdresser as their occupation in onshore or offshore skilled applications be terminated. This would result in the application being taken as never having being lodged, the return of the application fee, and termination of any bridging visa or associated temporary visa.
If applying onshore, the applicant would quite possibly have only 28 days to leave the country, even if they have been waiting for years for their GSM application to be processed.
As the application has not been refused, but rather taken never to have been made, it will not be possible to appeal the decision to the Migration Review Tribunal (MRT). Any cases still pending review at the MRT are also likely to be terminated.
In addition, it would not be possible for people matching the characteristics set by the Minister to even apply for the capped visa subclass until the end of the financial year.
Current provisions within the Migration Act only allow cap and cease by visa class or subclass. In particular:
They do not allow applications to be cancelled by specific criteria - if a cap is applied, all applications for the visa subclass still not decided are ceased
For cap and cease to be used, the Migration Regulations need to changed to allow the visa subclass to be capped at a certain number
There are no consequential cancellations of temporary or bridging visas after cap and cease is used
It is still possible to apply for the class or subclass of visa after the cap has been set
At first reading, the new Bill seems to give an excessive amount of power to the Minister to cancel applications in any subclass on any condition he seeks to impose - a power which can be exercised by issuing a legislative instrument and is open to potential abuse.
The Bill has a tendency to subvert the operation of the Migration Act, and the usual process for changing visa criteria. The Minister will be able to prevent certain applicants from being granted a visa, without needing to change the Migration Regulations. This effectively means that new visa criteria can be introduced by the Minister without oversight by Parliament, without community consultation, and retrospectively without notice.
The Bill also indicates that if a person holds a temporary visa which would have ceased on notification of a decision on the capped visa, then the temporary visa will cease 28 days after termination of the capped visa application. It appears that this provision is intended to operate in relation to 2-stage partner visas, but might equally apply to 485 or 457 holders applying for General Skilled Migration.
The Bill has not yet been passed through Parliament, and is currently being reviewed by the Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee, and we will keep you posted on developments.
Dear Mod's, please feel free to close/delete if only repetition.
Does this above bill has any affect on the current applicants or is this purely for cap & cease for Before 2007 sep applicants ? can someone shade more light on this ? and
is this delaying the current process ? i see approx around 40 to 50 applicants just waiting to see progress on their application.
more details on the bill also can be found on http://mia.org.au/latest-news/Call-f...-2010-774.html
This is from http://www.acacia-au.com/Minister_Se...plications.php
The Minister for Immigration, Chris Evans, has introduced a Bill to Parliament granting him the power to terminate visa applications based on the individual characteristics of the visa applicant.
The Migration Amendment (Visa Capping) Bill 2010 is intended to deal with the build up in the numbers of General Skilled Migration applications in the pipeline. There are currently 147,000 people waiting for their GSM applications to be processed, approximately 40,000 of whom are international students who have applied onshore for their visas.
However, the Bill potentially could be applied to any type of visa, apart from refugee visas. For instance temporary visas such as student visas and 457s, family sponsored visas or even partner visas.
It is envisioned that the Bill, if passed, will allow the Minister to terminate an application based on the person's individual characteristics. For example, the Minister could issue a legislative instrument to the effect that all applicants nominating cook or hairdresser as their occupation in onshore or offshore skilled applications be terminated. This would result in the application being taken as never having being lodged, the return of the application fee, and termination of any bridging visa or associated temporary visa.
If applying onshore, the applicant would quite possibly have only 28 days to leave the country, even if they have been waiting for years for their GSM application to be processed.
As the application has not been refused, but rather taken never to have been made, it will not be possible to appeal the decision to the Migration Review Tribunal (MRT). Any cases still pending review at the MRT are also likely to be terminated.
In addition, it would not be possible for people matching the characteristics set by the Minister to even apply for the capped visa subclass until the end of the financial year.
Current provisions within the Migration Act only allow cap and cease by visa class or subclass. In particular:
They do not allow applications to be cancelled by specific criteria - if a cap is applied, all applications for the visa subclass still not decided are ceased
For cap and cease to be used, the Migration Regulations need to changed to allow the visa subclass to be capped at a certain number
There are no consequential cancellations of temporary or bridging visas after cap and cease is used
It is still possible to apply for the class or subclass of visa after the cap has been set
At first reading, the new Bill seems to give an excessive amount of power to the Minister to cancel applications in any subclass on any condition he seeks to impose - a power which can be exercised by issuing a legislative instrument and is open to potential abuse.
The Bill has a tendency to subvert the operation of the Migration Act, and the usual process for changing visa criteria. The Minister will be able to prevent certain applicants from being granted a visa, without needing to change the Migration Regulations. This effectively means that new visa criteria can be introduced by the Minister without oversight by Parliament, without community consultation, and retrospectively without notice.
The Bill also indicates that if a person holds a temporary visa which would have ceased on notification of a decision on the capped visa, then the temporary visa will cease 28 days after termination of the capped visa application. It appears that this provision is intended to operate in relation to 2-stage partner visas, but might equally apply to 485 or 457 holders applying for General Skilled Migration.
The Bill has not yet been passed through Parliament, and is currently being reviewed by the Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee, and we will keep you posted on developments.
Dear Mod's, please feel free to close/delete if only repetition.
Does this above bill has any affect on the current applicants or is this purely for cap & cease for Before 2007 sep applicants ? can someone shade more light on this ? and
is this delaying the current process ? i see approx around 40 to 50 applicants just waiting to see progress on their application.
more details on the bill also can be found on http://mia.org.au/latest-news/Call-f...-2010-774.html
Jun 4th 2010, 6:57 am
#2
Reg. Migration Agent
Joined: Jan 2003
Location: Inner Western suburbs of Sydney
Posts: 4,483
Re: 2010 Immigration Bill
Peter Mares has written a balanced and insightful piece about the capping legislation, see Capping and culling the migration queue | Inside Story - http://inside.org.au/capping-and-cul...itcher=desktop . No prizes for guessing which topic he will also cover in his ABC program tomorrow at 6pm: The National Interest - http://www.abc.net.au/rn/nationalinterest/ . I understand that the Minister will be defending the legislation.
Cheers,
George Lombard
Cheers,
George Lombard
Jun 4th 2010, 7:06 am
#3
Crazy Cat Lady
Joined: Apr 2004
Posts: 65,493
Re: 2010 Immigration Bill
Does this above bill has any affect on the current applicants or is this purely for cap & cease for Before 2007 sep applicants ? can someone shade more light on this ? and
is this delaying the current process ? i see approx around 40 to 50 applicants just waiting to see progress on their application. [/B]
I think some of you guys have quite enough to stress about at the moment without worrying about this. It's likely to have far reaching effects if or when it becomes law but not for the near future.
Jun 4th 2010, 7:15 am
#4
You call that a moustache
Joined: Sep 2006
Location: Heading West..
Posts: 2,060
Jun 4th 2010, 7:58 am
#5
RMA; Aussie Career Coach
Joined: Aug 2009
Location: Brisbane and Gold Coast
Posts: 142
Article about Visa Capping Bill
Hi everyone
The link below is to an article that might be of interest, from Australian Policy Online, about the Migration Amendment (Visa Capping) Bill 2010.
It's written by Peter Mares - one of the few journalists who I believe reports on migration issues with a balanced perspective.
http://www.apo.org.au/commentary/cap...-culling-queue
Best wishes
Susan
__________________
The link below is to an article that might be of interest, from Australian Policy Online, about the Migration Amendment (Visa Capping) Bill 2010.
It's written by Peter Mares - one of the few journalists who I believe reports on migration issues with a balanced perspective.
http://www.apo.org.au/commentary/cap...-culling-queue
Best wishes
Susan
__________________
Jun 4th 2010, 9:39 am
#6
Just Joined
Joined: Feb 2010
Posts: 20
Minister for Immigration Seeks Power to Terminate Unwanted Visa Applications
by Mark Webster, Acacia Immigration Australia, 2 June 2010
The Minister for Immigration, Chris Evans, has introduced a Bill to Parliament granting him the power to terminate visa applications based on the individual characteristics of the visa applicant.
The Migration Amendment (Visa Capping) Bill 2010 is intended to deal with the build up in the numbers of General Skilled Migration applications in the pipeline. There are currently 147,000 people waiting for their GSM applications to be processed, approximately 40,000 of whom are international students who have applied onshore for their visas.
However, the Bill potentially could be applied to any type of visa, apart from refugee visas. For instance temporary visas such as student visas and 457s, family sponsored visas or even partner visas.
It is envisioned that the Bill, if passed, will allow the Minister to terminate an application based on the person's individual characteristics. For example, the Minister could issue a legislative instrument to the effect that all applicants nominating cook or hairdresser as their occupation in onshore or offshore skilled applications be terminated. This would result in the application being taken as never having being lodged, the return of the application fee, and termination of any bridging visa or associated temporary visa.
If applying onshore, the applicant would quite possibly have only 28 days to leave the country, even if they have been waiting for years for their GSM application to be processed.
As the application has not been refused, but rather taken never to have been made, it will not be possible to appeal the decision to the Migration Review Tribunal (MRT). Any cases still pending review at the MRT are also likely to be terminated.
In addition, it would not be possible for people matching the characteristics set by the Minister to even apply for the capped visa subclass until the end of the financial year.
Current provisions within the Migration Act only allow cap and cease by visa class or subclass. In particular:
•They do not allow applications to be cancelled by specific criteria - if a cap is applied, all applications for the visa subclass still not decided are ceased
•For cap and cease to be used, the Migration Regulations need to changed to allow the visa subclass to be capped at a certain number
•There are no consequential cancellations of temporary or bridging visas after cap and cease is used
•It is still possible to apply for the class or subclass of visa after the cap has been set
At first reading, the new Bill seems to give an excessive amount of power to the Minister to cancel applications in any subclass on any condition he seeks to impose - a power which can be exercised by issuing a legislative instrument and is open to potential abuse.
The Bill has a tendency to subvert the operation of the Migration Act, and the usual process for changing visa criteria. The Minister will be able to prevent certain applicants from being granted a visa, without needing to change the Migration Regulations. This effectively means that new visa criteria can be introduced by the Minister without oversight by Parliament, without community consultation, and retrospectively without notice.
The Bill also indicates that if a person holds a temporary visa which would have ceased on notification of a decision on the capped visa, then the temporary visa will cease 28 days after termination of the capped visa application. It appears that this provision is intended to operate in relation to 2-stage partner visas, but might equally apply to 485 or 457 holders applying for General Skilled Migration.
The Bill has not yet been passed through Parliament, and is currently being reviewed by the Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee, and we will keep you posted on developments.
Stay up to date
The Minister for Immigration, Chris Evans, has introduced a Bill to Parliament granting him the power to terminate visa applications based on the individual characteristics of the visa applicant.
The Migration Amendment (Visa Capping) Bill 2010 is intended to deal with the build up in the numbers of General Skilled Migration applications in the pipeline. There are currently 147,000 people waiting for their GSM applications to be processed, approximately 40,000 of whom are international students who have applied onshore for their visas.
However, the Bill potentially could be applied to any type of visa, apart from refugee visas. For instance temporary visas such as student visas and 457s, family sponsored visas or even partner visas.
It is envisioned that the Bill, if passed, will allow the Minister to terminate an application based on the person's individual characteristics. For example, the Minister could issue a legislative instrument to the effect that all applicants nominating cook or hairdresser as their occupation in onshore or offshore skilled applications be terminated. This would result in the application being taken as never having being lodged, the return of the application fee, and termination of any bridging visa or associated temporary visa.
If applying onshore, the applicant would quite possibly have only 28 days to leave the country, even if they have been waiting for years for their GSM application to be processed.
As the application has not been refused, but rather taken never to have been made, it will not be possible to appeal the decision to the Migration Review Tribunal (MRT). Any cases still pending review at the MRT are also likely to be terminated.
In addition, it would not be possible for people matching the characteristics set by the Minister to even apply for the capped visa subclass until the end of the financial year.
Current provisions within the Migration Act only allow cap and cease by visa class or subclass. In particular:
•They do not allow applications to be cancelled by specific criteria - if a cap is applied, all applications for the visa subclass still not decided are ceased
•For cap and cease to be used, the Migration Regulations need to changed to allow the visa subclass to be capped at a certain number
•There are no consequential cancellations of temporary or bridging visas after cap and cease is used
•It is still possible to apply for the class or subclass of visa after the cap has been set
At first reading, the new Bill seems to give an excessive amount of power to the Minister to cancel applications in any subclass on any condition he seeks to impose - a power which can be exercised by issuing a legislative instrument and is open to potential abuse.
The Bill has a tendency to subvert the operation of the Migration Act, and the usual process for changing visa criteria. The Minister will be able to prevent certain applicants from being granted a visa, without needing to change the Migration Regulations. This effectively means that new visa criteria can be introduced by the Minister without oversight by Parliament, without community consultation, and retrospectively without notice.
The Bill also indicates that if a person holds a temporary visa which would have ceased on notification of a decision on the capped visa, then the temporary visa will cease 28 days after termination of the capped visa application. It appears that this provision is intended to operate in relation to 2-stage partner visas, but might equally apply to 485 or 457 holders applying for General Skilled Migration.
The Bill has not yet been passed through Parliament, and is currently being reviewed by the Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee, and we will keep you posted on developments.
Stay up to date
Jun 4th 2010, 9:51 am
#7
Forum Regular
Joined: Oct 2009
Posts: 62
Re: Minister for Immigration Seeks Power to Terminate Unwanted Visa Applications
by Mark Webster, Acacia Immigration Australia, 2 June 2010
The Minister for Immigration, Chris Evans, has introduced a Bill to Parliament granting him the power to terminate visa applications based on the individual characteristics of the visa applicant.
The Migration Amendment (Visa Capping) Bill 2010 is intended to deal with the build up in the numbers of General Skilled Migration applications in the pipeline. There are currently 147,000 people waiting for their GSM applications to be processed, approximately 40,000 of whom are international students who have applied onshore for their visas.
However, the Bill potentially could be applied to any type of visa, apart from refugee visas. For instance temporary visas such as student visas and 457s, family sponsored visas or even partner visas.
It is envisioned that the Bill, if passed, will allow the Minister to terminate an application based on the person's individual characteristics. For example, the Minister could issue a legislative instrument to the effect that all applicants nominating cook or hairdresser as their occupation in onshore or offshore skilled applications be terminated. This would result in the application being taken as never having being lodged, the return of the application fee, and termination of any bridging visa or associated temporary visa.
If applying onshore, the applicant would quite possibly have only 28 days to leave the country, even if they have been waiting for years for their GSM application to be processed.
As the application has not been refused, but rather taken never to have been made, it will not be possible to appeal the decision to the Migration Review Tribunal (MRT). Any cases still pending review at the MRT are also likely to be terminated.
In addition, it would not be possible for people matching the characteristics set by the Minister to even apply for the capped visa subclass until the end of the financial year.
Current provisions within the Migration Act only allow cap and cease by visa class or subclass. In particular:
•They do not allow applications to be cancelled by specific criteria - if a cap is applied, all applications for the visa subclass still not decided are ceased
•For cap and cease to be used, the Migration Regulations need to changed to allow the visa subclass to be capped at a certain number
•There are no consequential cancellations of temporary or bridging visas after cap and cease is used
•It is still possible to apply for the class or subclass of visa after the cap has been set
At first reading, the new Bill seems to give an excessive amount of power to the Minister to cancel applications in any subclass on any condition he seeks to impose - a power which can be exercised by issuing a legislative instrument and is open to potential abuse.
The Bill has a tendency to subvert the operation of the Migration Act, and the usual process for changing visa criteria. The Minister will be able to prevent certain applicants from being granted a visa, without needing to change the Migration Regulations. This effectively means that new visa criteria can be introduced by the Minister without oversight by Parliament, without community consultation, and retrospectively without notice.
The Bill also indicates that if a person holds a temporary visa which would have ceased on notification of a decision on the capped visa, then the temporary visa will cease 28 days after termination of the capped visa application. It appears that this provision is intended to operate in relation to 2-stage partner visas, but might equally apply to 485 or 457 holders applying for General Skilled Migration.
The Bill has not yet been passed through Parliament, and is currently being reviewed by the Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee, and we will keep you posted on developments.
Stay up to date
The Minister for Immigration, Chris Evans, has introduced a Bill to Parliament granting him the power to terminate visa applications based on the individual characteristics of the visa applicant.
The Migration Amendment (Visa Capping) Bill 2010 is intended to deal with the build up in the numbers of General Skilled Migration applications in the pipeline. There are currently 147,000 people waiting for their GSM applications to be processed, approximately 40,000 of whom are international students who have applied onshore for their visas.
However, the Bill potentially could be applied to any type of visa, apart from refugee visas. For instance temporary visas such as student visas and 457s, family sponsored visas or even partner visas.
It is envisioned that the Bill, if passed, will allow the Minister to terminate an application based on the person's individual characteristics. For example, the Minister could issue a legislative instrument to the effect that all applicants nominating cook or hairdresser as their occupation in onshore or offshore skilled applications be terminated. This would result in the application being taken as never having being lodged, the return of the application fee, and termination of any bridging visa or associated temporary visa.
If applying onshore, the applicant would quite possibly have only 28 days to leave the country, even if they have been waiting for years for their GSM application to be processed.
As the application has not been refused, but rather taken never to have been made, it will not be possible to appeal the decision to the Migration Review Tribunal (MRT). Any cases still pending review at the MRT are also likely to be terminated.
In addition, it would not be possible for people matching the characteristics set by the Minister to even apply for the capped visa subclass until the end of the financial year.
Current provisions within the Migration Act only allow cap and cease by visa class or subclass. In particular:
•They do not allow applications to be cancelled by specific criteria - if a cap is applied, all applications for the visa subclass still not decided are ceased
•For cap and cease to be used, the Migration Regulations need to changed to allow the visa subclass to be capped at a certain number
•There are no consequential cancellations of temporary or bridging visas after cap and cease is used
•It is still possible to apply for the class or subclass of visa after the cap has been set
At first reading, the new Bill seems to give an excessive amount of power to the Minister to cancel applications in any subclass on any condition he seeks to impose - a power which can be exercised by issuing a legislative instrument and is open to potential abuse.
The Bill has a tendency to subvert the operation of the Migration Act, and the usual process for changing visa criteria. The Minister will be able to prevent certain applicants from being granted a visa, without needing to change the Migration Regulations. This effectively means that new visa criteria can be introduced by the Minister without oversight by Parliament, without community consultation, and retrospectively without notice.
The Bill also indicates that if a person holds a temporary visa which would have ceased on notification of a decision on the capped visa, then the temporary visa will cease 28 days after termination of the capped visa application. It appears that this provision is intended to operate in relation to 2-stage partner visas, but might equally apply to 485 or 457 holders applying for General Skilled Migration.
The Bill has not yet been passed through Parliament, and is currently being reviewed by the Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee, and we will keep you posted on developments.
Stay up to date
Thank you for the post
The below news extracted from DIAC website
http://www.immi.gov.au/skilled/migration-amendment.htm
Migration Amendment (Visa Capping) Bill 2010
On 26 May 2010 the Migration Amendment (Visa Capping) Bill 2010 (the 'Bill') was introduced into the Parliament. The legislation seeks to fine tune existing laws to provide the Government with a tool for the targeted management of all aspects of the migration program.
The Migration Act 1958 currently provides the Minister for Immigration and Citizenship with the power to cap and terminate all applications for a certain class or subclass of visa. The new Bill proposes to allow the Minister to cap and terminate applications based on certain objective characteristics, rather than having to cap an entire subclass or class of visas.
Example: The Minister could limit the number of General Skilled Migration visas that may be granted in a financial year to applicants who have nominated particular occupations, to ensure the General Skilled Migration program is able to deliver the broad range of skills the Australian economy will need in the medium to long-term.
The Bill is not currently operative and no actual cap is being considered at present. This Bill seeks only to give the Minister the power to implement a cap in future if necessary.
Please note: Under the Bill it is proposed that if a student visa holder lodges an application for a General Skilled Migration visa and their General Skilled Migration visa application is subsequently subject to a decision to cap and terminate, this will not affect their student visa.
Best regards
simfaisal
Jun 4th 2010, 10:14 am
#8
Home and Happy
Joined: Dec 2002
Location: Keep true friends and puppets close, trust no-one else...
Posts: 93,816
Re: Migration Amendment (Visa Capping) Bill 2010
Now we are getting some solid facts on this I have merged the current threads into this one.
PLEASE
Keep the thread on topic
Keep the thread factual
Keep the thread calm and not abusive eiher towards each other, the Minister, DIAC, or the Moderators of BE.
and be patient while waiting for updates - they will be posted by our contributing agents as they become available.
Thanks
PLEASE
Keep the thread on topic
Keep the thread factual
Keep the thread calm and not abusive eiher towards each other, the Minister, DIAC, or the Moderators of BE.
and be patient while waiting for updates - they will be posted by our contributing agents as they become available.
Thanks
Jun 8th 2010, 3:45 am
#9
An Irish navvy
Joined: Jul 2008
Posts: 23
Re: Migration Amendment (Visa Capping) Bill 2010
Could anybody in the know here estimate the likelihood of the 1-year's relevant experience requirement for 175GSM being abolished as a result of the current review of migration policy? Or the likelihood of one/more of the SMP's excluding this requirement?
Jun 8th 2010, 3:53 am
#10
Crazy Cat Lady
Joined: Apr 2004
Posts: 65,493
Re: Migration Amendment (Visa Capping) Bill 2010
Nobody knows what is going to happen, only that something will in the next few weeks. Try and be patient and wait until then. Keep and eye and ear out on the red 'read me' sticky threads at the top of the Immi Forum, that's where all the detailed, legitimate info will be as soon as we receive it.
Thread closed.
