Preparations for Migration Review Tribunal

Regulation changes from 1 March

In this issue we report on plans for the new Migration Review Tribunal and changes to the Regulations affecting some applicants for Ministerial consideration as well as present and past AusAID students

Inside this issue:

Migration Review Tribunal
Concession on work rights
Tighter restrictions on AusAID students
Australian Citizenship Council - call for submissions
Hot links
Contact us

Migration Review Tribunal commencing 1 June

Legislation passed by the Parliament last year (Migration Legislation Amendment Act (No. 1) 1998) establishes a Migration Review Tribunal from 1 June 1999. The new MRT will replace the existing "two-tier" review process of the Migration Internal Review Office and the Immigration Review Tribunal.

The method of operation of the MRT will be substantially similar to that of the existing IRT, except that the Principal Member will be able to exercise substantial personal control over the way applications for review are dealt with. Each Member will be required to sign a "Performance Agreement" which will include an undertaking that:

he or she is aware of and accepts the fact that the concept of independence as it relates to members of the Migration Review Tribunal extends only to the specific decision-making function and does not release members from the obligation to comply with directions given by the Principal Member in relation to practices and procedures to be observed by members in discharging their statutory functions

Just what directions the Principal Member chooses to give in relation to "practices and procedures" will clarify exactly how this new arrangment will work in practice.

Appointments to positions on the MRT will be made by the Governor-General, though as in all such matters he will act on the advice of Cabinet. Effectively, as is the case with the existing IRT (and RRT), the Minister for Immigration will have considerable say in who is appointed.

Applications for positions on the MRT, including that of Principal Member, have been called for. Application forms are available from the Deparment's website.

Migration Legislation Amendment Act (No. 1) 1998 - http://scaleplus.law.gov.au/html/comact/10/5887/top.htm
Member performance agreement (Adobe Acrobat document) - http://www.immi.gov.au/mrt/mrt-perform.pdf
Applications - http://www.immi.gov.au/mrt/0299advt.htm

Concession on work rights

From 1 March, people who hold bridging visas based on a request to the Minister for special consideration can get permission to work in the following circumstances:

where the Minister is personally considering the exercise of his powers to substitute a more favourable decision or has decided to substitute a more favourable decision but for the time being cannot grant a substantive visa; and

where the person can show that they are experiencing financial hardship.

To be eligible to apply for permission to work, the applicant will need a letter from the Minister stating that the case is being personally considered. According to the Department, cases where this will occur will be "very special" and "rare".

DIMA Client Information Sheet - http://www.immi.gov.au/general/cis0399.htm

Tighter restrictions on AusAID students

Also with effect from 1 March, new Regulations will require all current and former AusAID students to leave Australia at the end of their studies and not return for at least two years. The intention is to support AusAID policy that assisted students should return to their home countries and put their skills and knowledge to work there.

DIMA Client Information Sheet - http://www.immi.gov.au/general/cis0399.htm

Australian Citizenship - call for submissions

You can have your say on Australia's citizenship laws by writing to the Australian Citizenship Council at the following address:

The Australian Citizenship Council Secretariat
C/o Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs
PO Box 25
BELCONNEN ACT 2616

Submissions must be in writing and should be received by Friday, 2 April 1999.

An issues paper is available in PDF format: - http://www.immi.gov.au/citizen1/issues.pdf

Hot links

With each edition of Australian Immigration Law Update we will try to find some new or interesting sites that you might enjoy visiting. This month, you might like to try out some of these:

http://www.uni-wuerzburg.de/law/ei00000_.html - Constitution of the Republic of Ireland - worth a look for anyone interested in the current debate about how to choose a Head of State
http://migration.uni-konstanz.de/passerelle/passindex.html - The Passerelle - information about immigration worldwide, published by the Center for International and European Law on Immigration and Asylum, University of Konstanz
http://www.state.gov/www/global/human_rights/hrp_reports_mainhp.html - US State Department, Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - including 1998 reports

Contact us:

Parish Patience Immigration
Level 1, State Street Centre
338 Pitt Street
SYDNEY NSW 2000
AUSTRALIA

Tel: +612 9286 8700
Fax: +612 9283 3323
Email

Liability is limited by the Solicitors Scheme under the Professional Standards Act 1994 (NSW)

Previous editions:

Disclaimer

The contents of this newsletter are not intended to be legal advice. Parish Patience accepts no responsibility for any action taken in reliance on anything contained in the newsletter. Individuals should seek advice about their own circumstances only from a registered migration agent.