4. Australia's Migration System

Australian Government Administration of Migration

4.1Responsibility for Australia’s migration system is vested in the Department of Home Affairs (the Department). According to the Annual Report 2022–23, after a ‘series of considered realignments’, the Department is:

…now structured to address threats as and when they arise, seize opportunities, and deliver on the Government’s extensive reform agenda…

including enhancing cyber security, fostering national resilience, and reforming the Migration Program.[1]

4.2At the time of that report, the Department comprised five groups: Chief Operating Officer; Executive; Cyber and Infrastructure Security; National Security and Resilience; and Immigration.[2] It employed 8,685 staff in 42 cities in Australia and across the world (with a further 6,537 staff in the Australian Border Force [ABF]).[3]

4.3Between late 2022 to mid-2023, the Department restructured to integrate immigration, citizenship, and multicultural affairs, acknowledging their ‘intimately related functions’.[4] This change roughly coincided with the comprehensive review of Australia’s migration system (announced in September 2022 with the report delivered in March 2023).[5] The Committee heard from the Secretary of the Department that, with the support of his ministers and the government, he had:

…gone as far as I can, … in effectively re-creating, if you will, a mini department of immigration within the larger Home Affairs Department.[6]

4.4Under this configuration the Department would ‘continue to ensure Australia’s migration, citizenship and settlement services programs act as nation building functions that underpin Australia’s prosperity and cohesion.’ The Department’s Corporate Plan indicating that the new structure would also assist in the Department’s ability to support the development and implementation of reforms arising from the Migration Strategy.[7]

4.5Nominally titled as ‘Immigration’ in the Department’s Organisational Structure, this section is organised into three groups: immigration operations, immigration policy, and legal. Operations encompasses governance, integrity and assurance, the Office of the Migration Agents Registration Authority, onshore and offshore regional directors, and service design and delivery programs. Policy also incorporates integrity and assurance functions, as well as visa programs; status resolution and visa cancellation; refugee, humanitarian, and settlement operations; citizenship and multicultural affairs; and the people smuggling policy and implementation taskforce.[8] Through these functions, Immigration is framed as contributing to Australia’s prosperity and unity.[9]

What is Australia’s Migration System?

4.6In recent times, the Australian migration system has often been defined in terms of its failings.

4.7As the focus of several Government reviews, roundtables, and summits (see Chapter 1), the system has been characterised as a ‘renovator’s delight’[10], in desperate need of a rebuild to meet contemporary expectations. The outline of the Government’s strategy, A Migration System for a More Prosperous and Secure Australia, circulated for discussion in April 2023 identified that:

• The system fails to prioritise the migrants we need to enhance our economic prosperity and security;
• The system is too complex for employers and migrants;
• The system fails to deliver the right outcomes for Australians and migrants post-arrival; and
• The system is not aligned with the Australian values of integrity, fairness and inclusion.[11]
  8. On the release of that outline, the then Minister for Home Affairs, Hon Clare O’Neil MP, summed up that Australia is a ‘truly great country with a fundamentally broken migration system’.[12]
  9. In departmental documents, what constitutes Australia’s migration system is typically assumed, rather than defined. The scope of the existing migration system was, however, outlined in a discussion paper provided to guide submissions to the Review of the Australia’s Migration System. The paper identified the following elements that were both within and outside the consideration of the review:
• Temporary and Permanent visa programs;
• Underpinning legislative and policy framework;
• Systems and processes that support the administration of these programs (e.g., ICT, providers collecting biometrics, assistance provided by migration agents);
• Settlement policies and programs;
• Multicultural policies and programs;
• Irregular migration and status resolution;
• Regional processing and Operation Sovereign Borders;
• Administered programs such as grants;
• ABF activities connected with immigration compliance, removals, and detention; and
• Public Interest Criteria in respect to visa approvals (e.g., character, national security and health check requirements).[13]
  10. To summarise, Australia’s migration system encompasses the policies, legislature, regulations, programs, and frameworks by which potential migrants and humanitarian entrants are assessed, gain access and settle in Australia, and likewise those that deny access, detain and remove those found ineligible for entry. It is intended to support the Government’s migration targets as well as broader goals that enhance economic, social, and cultural prosperity while maintaining the security of the nation.

Foundations

Legislative Framework

4.11Australia’s migration system is underpinned by the Migration Act 1958 (the Act) and Migration Regulations 1994.[14]

4.12The object of the Act is ‘to regulate, in the national interest, the coming into, and presence in, Australia of non-citizens’ (a departmental advice sheet clarifies that this ‘includes how non-citizens enter Australia, how long they stay, and when they must leave’).[15] It operates in conjunction with a broad range of Commonwealth acts and legislative instruments to guide departmental policies and programs in respect to aspects of migration. These include (but are not limited to) the:

• Australian Citizenship Act 2007;
• Immigration (Education) Act 1971;
• Immigration (Guardianship of Children) Act 1946;
• Australian Border Force Act 2015; and
• Privacy Act 1988.[16]

International Treaties

4.13In addition, Australia is a signatory to international agreements that have an impact on migration policy and practice, such as the:

• Convention relating to the Status of Refugees (and Protocol);
• Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons;
• International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights;
• Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment; and
• Convention on the Rights of the Child.
  14. Aspects of these international agreements are reflected in sections of the Act. The Migration and Maritime Powers Legislation Amendment (Resolving the Asylum Legacy Caseload) Act 2014, for instance, amended the Act to introduce ‘a new statutory framework which articulates Australia’s interpretation of its protection obligations under the Refugees Convention’.[17]
  15. Further, in respect to Australia’s non-refoulement obligations, the Department observes that for those who are not determined to be refugees under the Actbut remain unable to return to their home country as they are at risk of severe harm may be accorded ‘complementary protection’. These obligations, they add, ‘come from the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and have been incorporated into the Act’.[18]

Immigration Program

4.16Australia’s immigration programs can be broadly divided into three areas Temporary visas, a Migration Program, and a Humanitarian Program.

Temporary Visas

4.17Temporary visas allow overseas travellers to enter Australia for a variety of reasons (e.g., tourism, study, international relations, working holiday and other temporary work) that deliver economic and cultural benefits to the nation. On 31 March 2023, there were almost 2.46 million temporary visa holders in Australia, in contrast to 1.66 million on 31 December 2021 and 2.2 million on 31 December 2019.[19] The numbers reflecting a resurgence following the adverse impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on international travel (especially visitor and student categories).[20]

4.18There are no caps placed on the number of temporary visas granted, and most categories are demand driven rather than planned.[21] At present there are more than 1.8 million temporary migrants living in Australia who hold work rights, the cohort having almost doubled in size since 2007.[22]

4.19Australia’s temporary visa system comprises several schemes, including:

• COVID-19 Pandemic Event visa (closed 1 February 2024[23]);
• Visitor visa;
• Student visa;
• Working Holiday Maker;
• Temporary Skilled Work;
• Pacific Australia Labour Mobility (PALM) scheme;
• Bridging visa; and
• New Zealand citizen Special Category visa.[24]
  20. Out of these various categories, visitor visas usually account for most temporary visas granted—two-thirds prior to the COVID period. For example, in 2018–19, out of a total of 8.8 million temporary visas granted 5.7 million were visitor visas, compared to 406,000 student visas and 209,000 working holiday visas.[25] While visitor visa holders are not permitted to engage in paid work in Australia, most other types of temporary visa allow for work stipulated by the conditions of the specific visa class.
  21. Australia’s visa settings provide very few pathways for migrants to transition from a temporary to a permanent visa. Recent announcements, however, have established a direct pathway for New Zealand citizens and an expansion of pathways for holders of Temporary Skill Shortage visas to progress from temporary to permanent visas.[26]

Migration Program

4.22Since the commencement of the Migration Program in 1945, Australia has settled over 7 million permanent migrants. Over time, the broad focus of the program has shifted from the intake of migrants (primarily from the United Kingdom) to increase Australia’s population, to attracting migrants to meet labour market demands.[27] Currently, the Migration Program is designed to meet Australia’s demographic, economic and labour market needs and, in particular, to ‘address persistent and emerging skills shortages and to attract people with specialist skillsets that are difficult to find or develop in Australia’.[28] The program broadly consists of two main streams: Family and Skill, which are further sub-divided into various categories; and a much smaller Special Eligibility program.[29]

4.23The number of permanent visas allocated each year is set in the Budget, in accordance with Section 85 of the Act. For the 2023-24 Financial Year, the allocation of permanent visas is 190,000.[30] These visas are roughly split 70:30 between skilled and family visas, with 137,100 places allocated to the Skill stream, 52,500 to the Family stream, and 400 to the Special Eligibility stream.[31]

4.24The Family stream comprises four categories:

• Partner;
• Parent;
• Other Family; and
• Child.
  25. Planning levels for 2023–24 allocated 8,500 places to the Parent category and 500 to Other Family. Section 87 of the Act prevents the capping of Partner and Dependant Child visa places, unlike other categories.[32] The Department notes, however, that there is ‘scope in administering the program to consider planning levels and prioritise processing accordingly’.[33] An indicative planning level of 40,500 places being allocated to the Partner category and 3,000 to the Child category.[34]
  26. The Skill stream comprises eight visa categories:
• Employer Sponsored;
• Skilled Independent;
• Regional;
• State/Territory nominated;
• Business Innovation and Investment Program;
• Global Talent Program;
• Distinguished Talent; and
• Temporary Work.[35]
  27. In 2020–21 and 2021–22, over a third of the Skill stream visa allocation was accounted for by the Business Innovation and Investment program (BIIP) and the Global Talent program—to promote economic growth during the COVID-19 pandemic. The BIIP targets migrants with the ability to contribute to the economy through innovation and business investment, while the Global Talent visa program aims to ‘attract talented migrants of the highest calibre, with entrepreneurial ideas and cutting-edge skills within target industry sectors’ to encourage innovation and jobs creation.[36] The planning levels for 2022–23 saw a reduction in both programs, with a further reduction in the planning level for the BIIP in 2023–24.
  28. The changes to the BIIP, it was noted, allowed a ‘greater focus on addressing immediate workforce shortages while still providing visa places to migrants who can best contribute to Australia’s economic growth and whose innovations can increase the productivity of Australian businesses’.[37]
  29. The Minister for Foreign Affairs announced in February 2023 the creation of a new visa category: Pacific Engagement. The Pacific Engagement visa is designed to allow citizens of eligible Pacific countries who have a job offer in Australia to apply for a permanent visa without meeting the skill requirements of the Migration Program Skill stream. A quota of 3,000 places has been announced.[38] This program contrasts to the PALM scheme which, while targeting unskilled workers from Pacific countries, only offers temporary residence.

Humanitarian Program

4.30Since the close of the World War II, Australia has resettled more than 950,000 people in humanitarian need. The Department notes that Australia’s Humanitarian Program aims to:

• meet Australia’s international protection obligations and positions Australia as a global leader in international resettlement efforts;
• operate flexibly to respond to evolving humanitarian situations and global resettlement needs; and
• reunite refugees and people who are in refugee-like situations overseas with their family in Australia.[39]
  31. The Humanitarian Program is divided into offshore and onshore processing streams. For 2022–23, the annual intake ceiling was set at 17,875 for permanent settlement in Australia. By late March 2023, 11,650 visas had been granted under the program.[40]
  32. Asylum seekers who arrive in Australia irregularly (either by boat or air) and who are subsequently found to be owed protection are not included in the Humanitarian Program intake numbers. Such people are offered a 3-year Temporary Protection Visa (TPV) or a 5-year Safe Haven Enterprise Visa (SHEV) and need to reapply for a replacement visa at the end of this term. The SHEV offers the chance for permanent settlement to persons who work or study in a designated regional area for three-and-a-half years without accessing social security payments and who meet the eligibility requirements for a permanent Skill or Family visa.[41]
  33. As at 30 April 2022, there were 18,959 people on TPVs or SHEVs in Australia. A part of the cohort known as the ‘asylum legacy caseload’, these people arrived prior to the commencement of Operation Sovereign Borders in 2013 and were therefore not transferred offshore for processing.[42]
  34. On 13 February 2023, the government announced a permanent pathway for existing TPV and SHEV holders so as to resolve their status while maintaining strong border protection settings.[43] With the exception of those who have had their visa cancelled or refused, TPV and SHEV holders are able to apply for a Resolution of Status visa that grants permanent residence.[44]

Regulation and Enforcement

4.35Regulating and enforcing who is allowed to arrive in Australia and under what circumstances has been a longstanding element of Australia’s migration system (see Chapter 2). This remit overlaps with the work of other parts of the Department, such as the undertakings of the National Security and Resilience Group in respect to domestic national security and resilience. The Department also operates collaboratively with the Australian Border Force in the Home Affairs portfolio, among other agencies.[45]

4.36The Department frames its regulatory and enforcement roles in terms of ‘managing risk and community protection’. While it acknowledges that most non-citizens arriving in Australia are ‘genuine entrants who comply with their visa conditions’, they note the need to be vigilant as there remain those who turn to fraud to achieve their migration goals and others who are manipulated and exploited.[46]

Operation Sovereign Borders and Regional Processing

4.37In September 2013 Operation Sovereign Borders (OSB), a Joint Agency Task Force, was established to:

Implement a whole-of-government effort to combat maritime people smuggling, prevent avoidable deaths at sea, and protect the integrity of Australia’s borders.[47]

4.38The program was instituted following a spike in the number of unauthorised maritime arrivals (UMAs), that is, migrants who arrived or attempted to arrive by boat, without the authority to do so.[48]

4.39Administered by the Department of Home Affairs, OSB is a military led program that brings together the Australian Federal Police, the Australian Defence Force, Australian Border Force and the Department, with additional support from a wide range of departments and agencies.[49] The program is delivered through three pillars:

• offshore deterrence and disruption;
• detection, interception and transfers; and
• regional processing and third country resettlement.[50]
  40. The latter pillar is largely delivered by the Regional Processing, Return and Resettlement Task Group led by the Department. In this role, the Department, in association with the Australian Border Force, works to:

… support regional processing and third country resettlement arrangements, and the safe return of people found not to engage the international protection obligations of regional processing countries.[51]

4.41Under OSB, transitory persons (people who are taken to a regional processing country) do not have access to settlement pathways in Australia. Those without valid claims for international protection are provided with assistance through the Department’s Status Resolution Support Services and/or Return and Reintegration Assistance Program (RRAP) to voluntarily return to their country of origin or another country to which they have rights of entry, or they are involuntarily returned. Those deemed refugees are encouraged to take advantage of Australia’s resettlement arrangements with third countries (such as the United States and New Zealand).[52] Almost all of those who were returned did so voluntarily, and were provided with assistance (that may include financial assistance) under the RRAP.[53]

4.42In June 2022, the Department advised the incoming government that 3,127 UMAs had been transferred to Nauru and Papua New Guinea for regional processing since July 2013.[54] The Refugee Council of Australia notes that the current location of those arrivals fall mainly into three groups: those who have been resettled in a third country (1,108), those who are in Australia (1,083), and those who have been returned or removed to their country of origin (770).[55] Those in Australia are considered to have been relocated for a temporary purpose (such as medical treatment) and are detained as unlawful non-citizens, requiring ministerial intervention before they can be released into the community.[56] Almost all of this cohort have been recognised as genuine refugees and live in the community. Roughly three quarters have been granted a bridging visa E while most of the remainder are in community detention.[57]

4.43As at 23 October 2023, the Department reported that there were 13 transitory people on Nauru, 11 of them at the regional processing centre. The latter group had arrived in September, and were reported to be the first transfer to Nauru in nine years.[58] By 3 November, eight of those 11 had voluntarily returned, with the remaining three being held at the processing centre until the resolution of their migration status or their departure.[59]

4.44While the processing centre at Manus Island, Papua New Guinea, closed in 2017, Nauru remains designated as a regional processing country.[60] Regional processing is undertaken by the government of Nauru, assisted by Australia ‘through the engagement of specialist service providers, capacity building, mentoring and training’ and funding support.[61] A Memorandum of Understanding establishing an enduring regional processing capability at Nauru came into effect in mid-2022.[62]

4.45In addition, the Department supports OSB through policy measures such as restrictions on the ability of UMAs to access permanent protection visas, the provision of lawful settlement pathways via the Humanitarian program, and a counter-people smuggling policy that is delivered collaboratively with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.[63]

Irregular Migration, Unlawful Non-Citizens and Status Resolution

4.46Irregular migration is defined by the International Organization for Migration as the movement of people that ‘takes place outside the laws, regulations, or international agreements governing the entry into or exit from the State of origin, transit or destination’.[64] Such arrivals typically comprise non-citizens—that is, people who are not citizens. Further, the Act holds that a ‘non-citizen in the migration zone who is not a lawful non-citizen is an unlawful non-citizen’.[65] The Department adds that this definition means that unlawful non-citizens (UNCs) ‘do not hold a visa that is in effect’.[66]

4.47Irregular migrants who arrive by boat and are relocated to Australia for a temporary purpose, make up a small proportion of Australia’s UNC cohort. This group also includes UNCs who arrived by plane without a valid visa, as well as those who have overstayed the duration of their visa, have had their visa cancelled, or are otherwise in breach of their visa conditions. While noting that that determining the size of the UNC cohort is difficult due to the challenges of matching traveller data, the Department estimated that there were 66,800 UNCs in Australia (not including those in detention) as at 30 June 2022. They also note that this cohort is remarkably fluid as ‘most non-citizens are only unlawful for a short period and either engage with the Department’s Status Resolution Service to resolve their immigration status or depart voluntarily’.[67]

4.48The Department’s Status Resolution Service provides aid to non-citizens who need help to resolve their immigration status. Most non-citizens enter the service voluntarily after being located as the result of Border Force or police activities. The status resolution cohort mainly comprises those who hold a Bridging E (subclass 050) visa and a smaller population who are held in either immigration detention or in the community under a residence determination. Further, on a needs basis, eligible individuals can access targeted assistance (such as accommodation and health care) under the Status Resolution Support Services program.

4.49Resolution of immigration status is achieved by:

• departure from Australia;
• grant of a substantive visa; or
• acquisition of Australia citizenship.[68]
  50. As noted earlier, those who require assistance to leave Australia can access the Return and Reintegration Assistance Program. The types of help provided includes travel assistance (air tickets, travel documents etc.) and counselling. For UMAs, this might also encompass financial and other assistance to reintegrate on their return.[69]

Immigration Compliance

4.51In late 2022, former Victorian police commissioner Christine Nixon was commissioned by the Federal Government to investigate migrant worker exploitation and the exploitation of Australia’s visa system. Nixon’s Rapid Review into the Exploitation of Australia’s Visa System made several findings including that a:

Greater focus on investigative and enforcement capacity is required at state and federal levels to effectively deter and disrupt serious visa and migration fraud and organised crime related activity.[70]

4.52To that end, the review’s recommendations included the continuation of funding to operation INGLENOOK—a multi-agency task force with strong investigative capacity identifying, deterring, and disrupting individuals and professional facilitators exploiting Australia’s visa system, particularly in the sex industry—as well as re-prioritising an immigration compliance function within the Department. In respect to the latter, the review noted that since the transfer of the immigration investigation functions from the Department to Australian Border Force in 2015, investigative and field compliance resources had diminished.[71]

4.53In October 2023 the Government response to the Nixon report agreed with both of these recommendations and committed to establish a new Immigration Compliance Division within the Department. The response, acknowledging the effectiveness of multi-agency operations to leverage their various strengths, noted that the new division would incorporate Operation INGLENOOK as a permanent function that would take a broad approach to exploitation in the migration system.[72]

4.54Supported by funding of $50 million over four years from 2023–24, the new division is intended to ‘create a whole of portfolio capability’ to ‘protect the integrity of the visa and migration system’. The then Minister for Home Affairs, Hon Clare O’Neil MP, adding that the division would be brought together ‘into a permanent strike force’ that will address ‘the big problems’ in the system and ensure that those who are responsible for exploitation ‘are rooted out and held accountable’.[73]

Office of the Migration Agents Registration Authority

4.55The Office of the Migration Agents Registration Authority (OMARA) regulates the activities of Australian registered migration agents (RMA) who provide immigration assistance.

4.56In particular, OMARA protects those who use migration advice services by ensuring that RMAs comply with the minimum professional standards in the Code of Conduct for Registered Migration Agents. The code details the obligations of an RMA to their clients, employees, and other RMAs; alongside recordkeeping, management and financial duties and responsibilities.[74] OMARA applies this regulatory instrument to:

• protect clients of migration agents; and
• strengthen the integrity of the immigration advice industry and Australia’s immigration system.[75]
  57. The history of regulation of Australia’s migration advice industry comprises five distinct periods:

• Registration with no monitoring---the Immigration Act 1948 provided for a person to become a ‘registered agent’ after satisfying fitness and character requirements. Registration was also provided for under the Migration Act 1958 with the addition of penalty provisions.
• Commonwealth regulation—the Migration Agents Registration Scheme was established in 1992. Its registration board was administered by the Department of Immigration, Local Government and Ethnic Affairs. A 1997 review found that while consumer protection levels improved, it was not efficient or effective in dealing with complaints and concerns.
• Self-regulation under the Migration Institute of Australia (MIA)—in 1998 the MIA assumed the role of the Migration Agents Registration Authority under a Deed of Arrangement with the Commonwealth, representing statutory self-regulation. Successive reviews, however, found that the industry was not ready to move to full self-regulation.
• Return to Commonwealth regulation—2009 saw the establishment of the Office of Migration Agents Registration Authority as a discrete office attached to the Department of Immigration and Border Protection.
• Regulation by OMARA as part of the Department—in 2015, following the recommendation of the 2014 Independent Review of the Office of the Migration Agents Registration Authority (the Kendall Review), OMARA was consolidated into the Department of Immigration and Border Protection.[76]
  58. At 30 June 2023, there were 4,883 RMAs, almost all of which operate on a commercial basis (see Figure 4.2). RMAs are required to renew their registration on an annual basis if they wish to continue to lawfully provide immigration assistance. Most RMAs have at least seven years’ experience in the role (61 per cent), and 66 per cent of RMAs had never had a complaint made against them (at 30 June 2023). While the reverse statistic that 34 per cent have had a complaint made against them is acknowledged, OMARA adds that ‘a large number of complaints are dismissed due to insufficient evidence, withdrawal of the complaint, or the complainant not providing consent for the complaint to be published to the RMA’.[77]
  59. For the half year January to June 2023, OMARA received 222 complaints about the conduct of RMAs. Most of these complaints (70 per cent) were dismissed or no breach was found. Of the remainder, most were addressed directly with the agent, or the RMA was issued with a suspected breach notice as part of an early resolution model to manage less serious conduct and educate RMAs about their obligations. In the 6 per cent of cases where breaches were found, one former agent was barred for two years and two RMAs had their registration cancelled for five years.[78]

Source: OMARA, Migration Agent Activity Report, 1 January 2023 to 30 June 2023, 2023

4.60OMARA reported that in the six months to June 2023, RMAs lodged half or more than half of the applications for Temporary Skill Shortage visas, Employer Sponsored visas, Business Skills visas, and General Skilled visas; and roughly 40 per cent of Family visa and Temporary Resident visa applications (see Figure 4.3).[79]

4.61While OMARA records that the total number of applications lodged by RMAs is just 12 per cent, this includes the large number of less complex visa applications made by tourists visiting Australia. If the Visitor visa class is removed, the proportion of applications lodged by RMAs more than doubles to 28 per cent.[80]

Source: OMARA, Migration Agent Activity Report, 1 January 2023 to 30 June 2023, 2023.

4.62During 2020–21, there was a significant drop in the number of RMAs (from 6,888 at the end of December 2020 to 4,971 at the end of June 2021) registered with OMARA. The reduction arose from changes to the Migration Act 1958 that came into effect on 22 March 2021, whereby Australian lawyers holding a practising certificate were able to provide immigration assistance in connection with legal practice without being registered as a migration agent.[81] This change brought Australia’s practices in line with similar jurisdictions – Canada, the UK and New Zealand.[82]

4.63The 2023 Nixon review into the exploitation of Australia’s visa system made several recommendations on the need to strengthen regulation of RMAs and enhance OMARA’s capability to detect and respond to unlawful immigration assistance and to enforce compliance.[83] The Government response agreed with most of the recommendations and committed to implement changes by increasing OMARA’s staffing level and strengthening existing frameworks. Among the latter, they committed to incorporating a background check component into the Fit and Proper Person and person of integrity assessment framework; and including a positive obligation for RMAs to ensure their clients understand Australian workplace rights and reporting in the Code of Conduct, then reinforcing this obligation in the Continuous Professional Development training framework.[84]

Supporting Systems

4.64The effective functioning of the Australia’s migration system is underpinned by the people and the processes of the Department of Home Affairs. At a public hearing, the then Secretary of the Department, Mr Pezzullo observed:

…any organisation—it wouldn’t matter whether we were a bank, an insurance company or an airline—needs good systems, good processes, good technology, well-trained staff and motivated passionate staff.[85]

Staffing

4.65Between 2015 and 2022 the overall staffing level of the Department remained fairly constant, ranging between about 13,700 and 14,400 people (including Australian Border Force personnel).[86] This relative consistency, however, was not evenly distributed across working groups within the Department. In particular, the number of staff involved in visa processing declined. At the same time, the number of visas (both temporary and permanent) remaining on hand to be processed rose (see Figure 4.4).

Source: Department of Home Affairs, cited in Australian Government, Review of the Migration System, Final Report, March 2023, p. 171.

4.66The Community and Public Sector Union maintained that there has long been a need for more permanent staff in the Department, and particularly in visa processing, where ‘[y]ears of cuts and under resourcing left backlogs’.[87]

4.67Disruptions resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, also transformed staff arrangements in the immigration and citizenship programs, affecting the Department’s ability to deliver services and programs both domestically and overseas. Most Australian staff deployed overseas returned home, and staff priorities were refocussed from processing visas to the more than one million travel exemption requests.[88]

4.68In March 2022, the Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Reference Committee, noted that a backlog of Non-Contributory Parent, Partner and Other Family visa applications has resulted in lengthy wait times that could extend up to fifty years. They recommended that the Department develop a strategy to make the application process more efficient, simpler, quicker, and more transparent.[89]

4.69On 2 September 2022, the then Minister for Home Affairs, Hon Clare O’Neil MP, and the then Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs, Hon Andrew Giles MP, announced an additional $36.1 million ‘for visa processing, to support a surge capacity of 500 staff over the next nine months’.[90] In 2023, funding was extended for a further twelve months to support 380 visa processing officers through the provision of an additional $48.1 million.[91]

4.70At Senate Estimates in October 2023, the Department reported that the number of full-time equivalent staff in the immigration programs division and the immigration operations division had risen from 2,205 at 30 September 2022 to 2,709 at 31 July 2023. And, over the 12 months from June 2022 processing staff had reduced the number of permanent and temporary visa applications that were on hand by about 40 per cent, down to roughly 570,000.[92]

Information and Communication Technology

4.71The Committee heard from the then Associate Secretary of Immigration who stressed the need for the migration program to be supported by ‘a sophisticated ICT [Information and Communication Technology] system’ to enhance staff ‘efficiency, morale and motivation’. She added:

I take my hat off every time I go and sit with our visa processors, watch them use five screens, cut and paste information and do it cheerfully and with good humour.[93]

4.72Australia’s migration system is underpinned by several electronic systems, many of which have been in operation for decades. In a 2019 submission to a Senate inquiry, the Department noted that it managed ‘visa processing through about fifty computer systems that have been developed over 30 years’. Adding that the ‘two key visa application processing systems are over twenty-five years old’ but remain stable and supported’. However, they cautioned that the opportunities to improve these legacy systems and processes were being ‘exhausted’ and the ability of these systems to facilitate the entry of genuine visa applicants while preventing access to those who would cause harm was ‘diminished’.[94] Efforts to modernise during the late 2010s to a system with a single point of entry, faced criticism for using private finance and partnering with an external entity and did not proceed.[95]

4.73The two main systems used in processing visas are the:

• Integrated Client Service Environment (ICSE) system; and
• Immigration Records Information System (IRIS).[96]

The latter system having been deployed in 1989 as the Department’s overseas processing system.[97]

4.74When communicating with the Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) in late 2022, the Department advised that:

IT systems remain a considerable impediment to the efficient and effective delivery of migration programs, particularly for family visa programs. Current systems are not what would be considered acceptable standards for modern service delivery, noting core systems are over 30 years old and several programs still require paper-based visa lodgement.[98]

4.75The complexity and poor integration of these systems culminated in client information being dispersed and insufficient support being provided to those making decisions.Further, the Department noted that a number of the recommendations made by the ANAO were ‘dependent on Information Communications Technology (ICT)/systems functionality not currently available.’[99]

4.76In May 2023, the Government announced $27.8 million in funding over two years to upgrade existing visa ICT systems to ‘improve visa service delivery efficiency and increase Australia’s attractiveness in the global race for talent, students and tourists’.[100]

In the Public Interest

4.77Visa applicants are expected to meet a range of requirements that relate to their health, character, English language proficiency, biometrics, adherence to and knowledge of Australian values, and provision of accurate information. While much of the documentation is collected and submitted by applicants (or on their behalf), other requirements, such as those noted below, are collected by external parties on behalf of the Department.

Biometric Collection

4.78The Department, then the Department of Immigration and Border Protection, has been collecting biometric information for more than fifteen years. In 2006, it began collecting the facial images and fingerprints of foreign fishers. In 2010, gathering of personal identifiers expanded to encompass biometrics from selected offshore visa applicants and onshore protection claimants. The Migration Amendment (Strengthening Biometrics Integrity) Bill 2015 introduced further reforms to ‘consolidate and simplify’ existing provisions and to address ‘gaps and shortcomings’.[101] The procedural manual for the collection of biometrics for offshore visa processing adding that the amendments introduced a ‘broad discretionary power to collect biometrics for the purposes of the Migration Act 1958 and Migration Regulations 1994’.[102]

4.79At present, the collection of biometric information is required for many visa types, as well as for those making an application from one of 53 countries included in the biometrics program. Biometric details collected from applicants usually comprises a digital photograph of their face (visible from the chin to above the eyebrows and both ears); and a digital scan of their fingerprints.[103]

4.80The Department’s website advises applicants that they collect biometrics to:

• protect you from identity fraud;
• make travel to Australia safer; and
• secure our borders.

And, that in order to do this, they may check that data with Australian and international agencies to verify an applicant’s identity, criminal history and protection status. Further, on arrival in Australia an applicant’s biometric data may be collected again, to compare with the stored biometric details, as part of an identity check.[104]

4.81Offshore applicants are required to visit an Australian Biometrics Collection Centre or an Australian Visa Application Centre for the collection of their biometric data. Service Delivery Partners (SDP) provide this service on behalf of the Department. By 1 January 2024, SDP services will be delivered by VF Worldwide Holdings Ltd in the Americas, Mekong, Middle East and North Africa, Pacific, South Asia, South East Asia, and North Asia; and by the TLS Group in Europe and Sub-Saharan Africa. Applicants are charged a fee for this service.[105]

4.82Of the 53 countries, 50 offer at least one collection point (typically in the capital city), with eight countries offering two, five countries offering three, and three countries offering five. For the remaining three countries–Afghanistan, Somalia and Yemen–applicants are required to visit a collection centre in a neighbouring country.[106] The Department notes that, where it is safe to do so, it intends to expand the biometrics collection programs to further countries.[107]Applicants may be required to provide biometrics each time that they apply for a visa.[108]

4.83Onshore applicants who need to provide biometrics are advised to contact the relevant processing office so that collection can be arranged.[109]

4.84The Department reports that it checks all biometrics with its own records, as well as checking all fingerprints against Australian law enforcement records and data held by Australia’s Migration Five (MF) partners—the immigration authorities of Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States of America. For the financial year up to 31 March 2023, the Department had queried more than 2,300,000 fingerprint records (roughly double the amount queried the year prior).[110]

4.85The 2023 Nixon Review recommended expansion of biometric collection, and enhancing its verification in key ICT systems used by the Department, at the border and with international partners. For the most part, the Government responded that these recommendations were in line with its existing work to ‘strengthen collection and reuse of biometric information’.[111]

Health Assessments

4.86Most visa applicants are required to prove that they meet minimum health standards. The Health Requirement provides ‘a risk based approach to health screening for visa applicants’. It is intended to protect the Australian community; control spending on services such as social security benefits, allowances and pensions; and ensures that those in Australia continue to access health services that are limited.[112]

4.87To meet the minimum standards, applicants must be free from diseases or conditions that are likely to incur a significant cost in providing health care or community support, or would overly burden healthcare and other services that are in short supply (e.g., dialysis and organ transplants). Currently, active tuberculosis is the only health condition that automatically prevents an applicant being granted a visa.[113] An applicant whose condition is assessed as likely to cost the community $51,000 or more (over certain specified periods), is considered to incur a ‘significant cost’, and will not be granted a visa unless a health waiver is available and exercised.[114]

4.88The tests undertaken by applicants are determined by the Department. They depend on several factors including:

• type of visa;
• duration of stay and activities;
• country of citizenship and residence during the previous five years;
• age;
• completion of an Australian Immigration Medical Examination (IME) within the last year;
• completion of a health declaration; and
• medical issues of special significance identified by the Australian Government.
  89. The Department’s guidelines also note that, in some instances, family members who are not visa applicants may also be required to undertake an IME.[115]
  90. To take one example, minimum requirements are to be met by almost all permanent and provisional visa applicants. The tests for those aged fifteen or over comprise:
• Medical examination;
• Chest x-ray;
• Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) test; and
• Serum creatinine/estimated Glomerular Filtration Rate (eGFR).
  91. Additional tests are required for those in this cohort who are working or studying to be a doctor, dentist, nurse or paramedic; similarly for those planning to work or train in health, aged or disability care and are from a higher risk country; or those who are applying for an onshore protection visa or a refugee visa. Likewise additional tests are necessary for pregnant women planning to deliver their baby in Australia and for children to be adopted. Further tests may also be required of applicants if a health condition is discovered during this process.[116]
  92. The examinations and tests are made by approved physicians and chief radiologists who, mostly, submit results directly into the visa ICT system.[117] These health experts (both offshore and onshore) are members of Australia’s Panel Physicians Network and are appointed by the Department to perform IMEs at approved panel clinics.
  93. Panel physicians located offshore are not contracted to the Australian Government but are paid by visa applicants on a fee-for-service basis. Under the terms of their appointment, it is required that the fees they charge are consistent with local charges for similar services.[118] Onshore these services are provided by the Department’s contracted medical service provider—Bupa Medical Visa Services.[119]
  94. To be eligible for panel membership, physicians and chief radiologists are required to have a minimum of five years’ experience and be able to communicate effectively in English. Among a series of further conditions, they are required to ‘personally carry out and complete’ their respective examinations, and to ‘impartially grade and submit them’. It is then the role of the Medical Officer of the Commonwealth—not panel members—to assess whether an applicant meets the health requirements.[120]
  95. The Department manages the number and location of panel clinics and panel members, and conducts quality and integrity audits of their work.[121] In 2022–23, more than 1.2 million IMEs were finalised across 565 panel clinics. A third of the IMEs were subject to some form of review, with less than 3 per cent having errors identified. Over the same period, 545 panel clinics were subject to review and all were ‘assessed as effective’.[122]

Settling In

4.96While Australia’s migration program tends to focus on attracting suitable migrants to fill the short- and long-term employment, social, and cultural needs of the nation, there has been growing recognition of the importance of ensuring that those migrants successfully settle and make a home in their adopted land.

4.97From the mid-1960s, there was awareness that migrants, especially those without English as their first language, faced barriers to settlement and were in need of assistance.[123] While initiatives followed, it was not until 1973 that the Department of Immigration was reorganised to incorporate a new division of citizenship and settlement that consolidated existing programs and focused on providing support and retaining migrants as settlers. Programs included expanding existing migrant education; improving community education on migrants and their cultures; and increasing the involvement of ethnic groups in integration activities. Welfare needs of migrants were addressed by a team of 48 multilingual welfare officers; the allocation of grants for social workers; and an emergency telephone interpreter service.[124]

4.98In 2023, the final report of the Review of the Migration System identified ‘Building a community of Australians’ as one of the core objectives that should drive the nation’s future migration system. Reaffirming the importance of successful migration and settlement, the reviewers observed that a key element of that objective was ‘building a cohesive, multicultural community of people participating fully in Australian life’.[125]

Multiculturalism

4.99The Australian Government’s approach to multiculturalism is delineated in the 2017 multicultural statement—Multicultural Australia: United, Strong, Successful. The statement is organised under eight key themes:

• Our shared story;
• Shared values;
• Shared rights and responsibilities;
• A safe and secure Australia;
• Shared vision for the future;
• Encouraging economic and social participation of new arrivals;
• Harnessing the advantages of our diversity and shared national interest; and
• Continuing to build harmonious and socially cohesive communities.

The statement reaffirmed the government’s ‘commitment to a multicultural Australia, in which racism and discrimination have no place’ and as being ‘the foundation on which we can further build our multicultural society’.[126]

4.100Multicultural affairs began in 1979 as statutory body, the Australian Institute of Multicultural Affairs; it was largely replaced by the Office of Multicultural Affairs in the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet in 1987; before being absorbed by the then Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs in 1996. Since then, it has mainly been administered by that department and its successor agencies, apart from five years between 2013 and 2018 when responsibility was vested in the Department of Social Services.[127]

4.101In 2023, responsibility for multicultural affairs (along with citizenship) returned to the immigration group at the Department of Home Affairs, having previously been part of the group that also encompassed the ‘coordination of Australia’s counter-terrorism and counter foreign interference arrangements’.[128] Under its remit, the Department has ‘lead responsibility’ to coordinate the Multicultural Access and Equity Policy. It also has charge of administering the websites of initiatives such as Harmony Week and Australian Values, alongside managing grant programs.[129] It maintains a connection with diaspora communities including through the ministerial appointed Australian Multicultural Council established to provide ‘independent and robust advice to Government on multicultural affairs, social cohesion and integration policy and programs’.[130]

4.102In respect to the Multicultural Access and Equity Policy, the Department assists federal government departments and agencies to implement the policy and meet their obligation to ensure that their programs and services address the needs of all Australians. The 2018 policy guide adds that the Department is also responsible for coordinating reporting by those departments in the form of an annual snapshot presented to the Australian Multicultural Council (AMC) and, on a triennial basis, to consult with the AMC and prepare a whole-of-government report on the progress made in implementing the policy.[131] The Department did not publish a triennial report in 2020, the most recent report was prepared by the Department of Social Services (then responsible for multicultural affairs) reported on the period 2013 to 2015 and tabled in 2017. In early 2023, the Australian National Audit Office reported that there was an opportunity for the Department to improve its performance by fulfilling its reporting commitments under the Multicultural Access and Equity Policy.[132]

4.103Since 2019, the twentieth anniversary of Harmony Day, the Department has led extended national festivities across Harmony Week.[133] The website explaining that Harmony week is ‘a time to celebrate Australian multiculturalism, and the successful integration of migrants into our community’. It facilitates the bringing together of events across the nation via a calendar; consistent branding through the provision of templates—such as for posters—as well as event planning and promotion kits; and a portal for groups and individuals to upload an account of their activities.[134]

4.104The original Harmony Day (21 March) was criticised for adopting a celebratory style on the United Nations International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, which in turn marked the day that 69 peaceful apartheid protestors were killed by police at Sharpeville in South Africa.[135] In 2023 the then Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs, The Hon Andrew Giles MP, acknowledged that Harmony Week culminated in the observance of the UN International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. He pointed to the dual purpose of the week, as an opportunity to mark Australia’s multicultural achievements and to reflect on how we ‘can do more to help stamp out racism in our communities’.[136]

4.105The Australian Values Program was launched in 2021. It is managed by the Department and aligned with the citizenship program. The program was intended to ‘promote Australia’s shared values and inclusive national identity’ by focusing on ‘[r]eal stories’ presented on digital platforms (a website and associated social media sites) to ‘break down barriers and encourage Australians to embrace the nation’s core values’.[137] The website for the program comprises:

• a list of the values that appear on the Australian Values Statement;
• videos interviews with successful migrants and community groups that illustrate aspects of those values, as well as features connected with related events such as Anzac Day and Harmony Week; and
• links to government webpages mainly focused on scams and misinformation.

The text is available in Chinese (simplified or traditional), Vietnamese and Arabic.[138]

4.106The Department also administers a series of multicultural grant programs, a financial investment that is intended to ‘recognise and support the contributions of multicultural communities’. There are currently three grant programs:

• Community Language Schools Grants—assistance to not-for-profit community language schools to enable more Australian children to learn a second language;
• Fostering Integration Grants—a scheme for not-for-profit organisations to undertake activities and events that aid migrant integration and support the social cohesion and resilience of multicultural communities;
• Local Multicultural Projects Program—under this scheme 61 multicultural infrastructure projects have received funding in 2023. The projects are intended to support the integration or capacity building of migrants and their communities via events, festivals and upgrading of community facilities.[139]
  107. The Translating and Interpreting Service (TIS National) is a further service offered by the Department to support multicultural access and equity. The service helps to ensure that migrant communities can access programs and services. Since late 2022, the TIS has been available to eligible allied health professionals, assisting in the delivery of care to their patients.[140] Phone interpreting is available 24 hours a day and is generally free to non-English speakers, with the organisation being contacted usually being charged for the service. Some permanent residents and temporary visa holders can also access the Free Translating service to translate up to ten personal documents.[141]
  108. As noted in Chapter 1, the Government announced the Multicultural Framework Review in June 2023. The Department was tasked to provide the secretariat to the review panel.[142] This wide-ranging review is likely to reshape the direction of multicultural policies and programs administered by the Department. Among other things, the review is intended to assess and make recommendations in respect to the existing institutional, legislative and policy framework, particularly with consideration to Australia’s expanding diversity, the systemic barriers presented by racism and discrimination, learning from the pandemic about supporting and working with diverse communities in times of crisis, and reviewing whether institutional settings established almost a generation prior and the 2016 Multicultural Access and Equity Policy remain fit for purpose.[143] While the multicultural statement is not explicitly mentioned in the review’s terms of reference or associated information, it may also be restyled in light of recommendations made in the final report.[144]

Settlement

4.109The Department notes of its work in settlement services that it endeavours to ‘improve the lifetime wellbeing of migrants and refugees settling in Australia’. ‘We do this by responding to their specific needs and encouraging their independence and participation in the Australian community.’[145] These activities operate in concert (and often overlap) with the Department’s work in connection with multiculturalism, citizenship and social cohesion that also contribute to broader settlement of migrants. In 2020, the Department reported that the government spends approximately $500 million annually to provide settlement support via its Humanitarian Settlement, Australian Cultural Orientation (AUSCO), and Settlement Engagement and Transition Support programs.[146]

4.110These services are grounded by the 2016 National Settlement Framework which outlines nine priority areas for the three tiers of government:

• Education and training;
• Employment;
• Health and wellbeing;
• Housing;
• Language services;
• Transport;
• Civic participation;
• Family and social support; and
• Justice

The framework is intended to aid the collaborative planning and delivery of services across and amongst these tiers.[147]

4.111The provision of settlement services for Refugee and Special Humanitarian Program entrants (over the age of five) can begin prior to arrival in Australia. The Australian Cultural Orientation (AUSCO) program was established in 2003 and provides practical advice about the journey to Australia and what to expect after arrival with the aim of ‘ensuring a successful start’ to settlement. Courses are delivered on behalf of the Department by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) at permanent and mobile sites, mainly in Sub-Saharan African, South Asian, Southeast Asian, Central and South American, Middle Eastern and North African regions. In the year ending June 2023, 554 sessions were delivered to 10,922 invited clients.[148]

4.112The Department’s Humanitarian Settlement Program (HSP) offers ‘immediate settlement support’ to refugee and humanitarian entrants. It endeavours to help new arrivals to ‘build the skills and knowledge they need to become self-reliant and active members of the community’. The program provides practical support through tailored case management that recognises existing skills, immediate needs, and the goals of clients. Among other things, this assistance encompasses access to essential services such as accommodation, employment, school enrolment, and English language training. Depending on individual needs, assistance is usually provided for six to eighteen months.[149] On referral, Specialised and Intensive Services are provided to those who have multiple and more complex needs (for example disability, domestic violence, financial hardship, mental health issues). The timeframe for accessing SIS is generally within five years of either arrival or the grant of a relevant visa. Duration of assistance is dependent on need but is typically up to six months.[150]

4.113The Department recognises the significance of English language ‘as a unifying element for social cohesion’ enabling migrants to better participate and settle in Australian society.[151] Migrants and humanitarian entrants with no or low English who hold (or previously held) a permanent visa or one of several specified temporary visas, are eligible for free English classes under the Adult Migrant English Program (AMEP). Since 1948 the AMEP has provided free lessons to more than two million migrants, with a longitudinal study showing that participation in the program was likely to improve employment prospects, reducing the need for income support. Tuition is supported to enable migrants to achieve vocational English. The program is delivered at about 300 locations as well as by distance education and via AMEPOnline. In 2022-23, more than 64,000 students were enrolled in the program.[152] From 2025, the Government has committed to deliver a new AMEP business model that will ‘provide greater flexibility and enhanced client supports to further improve English language, employment and settlement outcomes’.[153]

4.114Beyond this support, the Department oversees a number of grant and pilot programs that receive funding to provide settlement assistance. These include:

• Settlement Engagement and Transition Support (SETS)—A grant program that complements the HSP and AMEP by providing programs to eligible permanent migrant and refugees to enhance their social and economic participation and connection to community. SETS focuses on two elements of client services (a needs-based service providing advice, advocacy and facilitating access) and community capacity building (to support positive collective outcomes within community organisations and groups).[154]
• Community Refugee Integration and Settlement Pilot (CRISP)—A pilot settlement program (December 2021 to June 2025) that aims to harness community goodwill and support for refugees. Under the pilot community groups are trained to deliver assistance to refugee visa holders settling locally. It is intended that 1,500 refugees will be resettled under the pilot.[155]
• Youth Transition Support (YTS) services—The YTS program assists young refugees and vulnerable migrants (aged 15 to 25) to continue study and transition to employment. The program is delivered by six providers in areas with high numbers in the target group. Providers partner with other complementary organisations to deliver projects and activities to foster connections between participants and employment and educational opportunities. A further $9.1 million was announced in the 2023–24 Budget to continue the program until 30 June 2024.[156]
• Economic Pathways to Refugee Integration—A competitive grant program to enable social enterprises to deliver projects that increase the rate of economic participation amongst refugees and humanitarian entrants. In the initial round $17.7 million was allocated across 20 projects.[157]
• National Community Hubs Program—located in primary schools, the hubs focus on assisting migrant women with young families to access government services, learn English, develop skills, and find work.[158]

Under the 2023–24 Budget the existing five-year maximum duration that migrants are eligible for services provided under the SETS, YTS and National Community Hubs programs will be removed allowing these programs to provide continued support for those with unresolved settlement needs.[159]

4.115While the main focus is the provision of settlement services to refugee and humanitarian entrants, the Department also provides general settlement advice. The Department’s website, for example, includes advice on many of the settlement topics outlined in the framework (above), accompanied by links to relevant government organisations, information on free interpreting and translating services, and links to download the Migration Council Australia’s MyAus App.[160]

4.116Further, settlement activities are supported and promoted through the Department’s network of Community Liaison Officers. These officers create and maintain relationships with cultural, religious, and ethnic communities and organisations. The CLOs act as a conduit between government and community, informing the latter of official information and programs, and, in turn, listen to community concerns and priorities. In 2022–23 it was reported that they undertook more than 9,100 engagements with stakeholders [161]

4.117The Department also notes that it works in collaboration with other agencies and communities. Between 2018 and 2023, for example, funding was provided to the Federation of Ethnic Communities Councils of Australia to undertake projects with culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) Australians. The Department also partnered with the Scanlon Foundation Research Institute to create the Australian Cohesion Index. Published every two years (2021 and 2023), the index draws on a range of data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics, Scanlon’s Mapping Social Cohesion survey and other sources, to bring ‘greater depth and context to the picture of social cohesion in Australia’ and inform ‘debate and decision-making’.[162]

4.118Since the 2019 independent Review into Integration, Employment and Settlement Outcomes for Refugees and Humanitarian Entrants (known as the Shergold Review) there have been endeavours to reform settlement services. In the wake of that review, the role of Commonwealth Coordinator-General for Migrant Services was created (the position ceased on 30 June 2022) to provide leadership and collaborative endeavours, improve settlement outcomes, and promote the positive contributions of refugees and humanitarian entrants.[163] Two years later, the Co-ordinator-General released a discussion paper ‘Next steps to improve Australia’s settlement and integration of refugees’. Some 65 submissions were received, roundtable meetings and focus groups were held with settlement organisations and former refugees and humanitarian entrants, alongside an online survey.[164]

4.119In May 2023, the then Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs, Hon Andrew Giles MP announced the establishment of the Settlement Advisory Council (the Council). The Council is tasked with providing advice and recommendations to government on:

• policies, programs and services that support positive settlement and integration outcomes;
• more effective use of demographic data and relevant social policy research;
• strengthening partnerships and collaboration, and promoting positive integration outcomes across government civil society and the corporate sector; and
• strategies to actively promote a positive conversation on Australia’s role in providing resettlement including the contribution of refugees and humanitarian entrants to Australia.

The core of the Council comprises seven members, the majority of whom have lived refugee experience to ‘provide advice on all aspects of Australia’s settlement programs’. The council performs a similar role to previous ministerially appointed bodies such as the Refugee and Migrant Services Advisory Council.[165]

4.120In October 2023, the Australian Government released the Refugee and Humanitarian Entrant Settlement and Integration Outcomes Framework which sets out ‘Australia’s vision of successful refugee settlement and integration’.[166] The framework is noted as a central element in the Department’s ‘new settlement services model’.[167] It is intended to act as guide for government, improve the services they offer, and enhance positive outcomes. The framework is grounded by the principles of self-agency and self-efficiency and highlights eleven interrelated areas that were considered ‘critical to successful settlement and integration’ organised in three areas:

• Facilitating factors

• Economic participation;
• Health and wellbeing;
• Language and digital literacy;
• Education;
• Housing and Transport; and
• Understanding host culture

• Social factors

• Social connections;
• Community; and
• Access to institutions

• Personal factors

• Belonging; and
• Safety and security.

Overlaps with the broader 2016 framework are noted, as well as the added emphasis on digital literacy.[168]

4.121Revision and improvement of settlement services is timely. It was noted that while the Department of Home Affairs provides a vast amount of information to assist the settlement of new arrivals in Australia on its website, several linked documents and other materials date from the period in which the Department of Social Services was responsible for multicultural affairs (2013 to 2017) remain accessible (as of August 2024) and in some cases provide out-of-date information and broken links. They include a flyer (Figure 4.1) illustrating the settlement journey undertaken by refugees that notes limits on the Adult Migrant English Program and the provision of settlement services after five years, limits that have now been removed.[169].

Source: Department of Home Affairs, ‘Helping Refugees’, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/settling-in-australia/helping-refugees/media-hub, viewed 13 August 2024.

4.122The Committee heard that reform of settlement services is ongoing. At the public hearing held with the Department in June 2023, Ms Foster (then Associate Secretary, Immigration, now Secretary) related that there was ‘a very significant review underway at the moment on the way in which settlement services are provided in Australia’. She noted that while existing services are praised, there remained room for improvement, particularly in tailoring services to individuals, as well as better supporting their transition into study and into work at levels that match their skills. And, recognising the limitations of existing settlement services, she added that the Department was ‘very conscious that there are cohorts within our permanent and skilled programs which would also benefit from more settlement assistance’.[170]

4.123In December 2023, the Migration Strategy announced a new commitment to ‘plan migration over a longer-term horizon’. One of the benefits of this ‘extended outlook’, the report contends, is that it will align government investments in ‘infrastructure, service delivery and housing to support strong settlement outcomes’.[171]

Footnotes

[1]Department of Home Affairs, Annual Report 2022-23, pp. 2, 9. Apart from the Department itself, the broader Home Affairs portfolio encompasses: the ABF, the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO), and the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA).

[2]Department of Home Affairs, Annual Report 2022-23, pp. 5-7.

[3]Department of Home Affairs, Annual Report 2022-23, pp. 4, 16, 24.

[4]Department of Home Affairs, 2023-24: Corporate Plan, 2023, p. 2; It was reported that the citizenship and multicultural affairs function had been reintegrated within the Immigration Group of the department from 1 May 2023: Department of Home Affairs, ‘The Administration of the Immigration and Citizenship Programs’, 11th Edition, p. 9.

[5]See Department of Home Affairs ‘A Migration System for Australia’s Future’, https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/reports-and-publications/reviews-and-inquiries/departmental-reviews/migration-system-for-australias-future, viewed 9 October 2023.

[6]Mr Michael Pezzullo AO, Secretary, Immigration, Department of Home Affairs, Committee Hansard, Canberra, 14 June 2023, pp. 12-13.

[7]Department of Home Affairs, 2023-24: Corporate Plan, 2023, p. 2.

[8]Department of Home Affairs, Organisational Structure, October 2023, https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/about-us-subsite/files/home-affairs-org-structure.pdf, viewed 9 October 2023.

[9]See Department of Home Affairs, Annual Report 2022-23, pp. 3, 11; Department of Home Affairs, 2023-24: Corporate Plan, 2023, p. 6.

[10]Hon Clare O’Neil MP, Minister for Home Affairs, ‘How Australia broke its migration system, and what we can do to fix it’, Media Release, 22 February 2023, https://minister.homeaffairs.gov.au/ClareONeil/Pages/how-australia-broke-its-migration-system.aspx, viewed 10 October 2023.

[11]Department of Home Affairs, A Migration System for a More Prosperous and Secure Australia: Outline of the Government’s Migration Strategy, April 2023.

[12]Hon Clare O’Neil MP, Minister for Home Affairs, ‘Australia’s Migration System’, National Press Club address, 27 April 2023, https://minister.homeaffairs.gov.au/ClareONeil/Pages/national-press-club-address-australias-migration-system-27042023.aspx, viewed 10 October 2023. See also Department of Home Affairs, ‘Migration Strategy’, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/what-we-do/migration-strategy/the-migration-strategy, viewed 10 October 2023.

[13]Department of Home Affairs, ‘A Migration System for Australia’s Future’, Discussion Paper, November 2022, p. 6, https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/reports-and-pubs/files/reviews-and-inquiries/discussion_paper.pdf, viewed 9 October 2023.

[14]Migration Act 1958; Migration Regulations 1994.

[15]Migration Act 1958; Department of Home Affairs, ‘Structure of the Migration Legislation’, LEGENDcom.

[16]Department of Home Affairs, ‘Structure of the Migration Legislation’, LEGENDcom. See also Department of Home Affairs, ‘Legislative developments’, 1 January 2021-30 November 2021, https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/about-us/key-achievements/the-fourth-year/legislative-developments, viewed 11 October 2023.

[17]Explanatory Memorandum to the Migration and Maritime Powers Legislation Amendment (Resolving the Asylum Legacy Caseload) Bill 2014, pp. 4 and 10.

[18]Department of Home Affairs, ‘Australia’s protection obligations’, Refugee and Humanitarian program, 21 August 2020, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-listing/protection-866/australias-protection-obligations, viewed 12 October 2023.

[19]Department of Home Affairs, ‘The Administration of the Immigration and Citizenship Programs’, 4th Edition, February 2020, p. 8; and 11th Edition, May 2023, p. 12; Susan Love, ‘Parliamentary Library Briefing Book: Key Issues for the 47th Parliament: Immigration’, June 2022, Parliamentary Library, https://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_departments/Parliamentary_Library/pubs/BriefingBook47p/Immigration, viewed 1 Jun 2023.

[20]Department of Home Affairs, ‘The Administration of the Immigration and Citizenship Programs’, 9th Edition, February 2022, p. 9; and 11th Edition, May 2023, p. 12, viewed 1 Jun 2023.

[21]Susan Love, ‘Immigration’.

[22]Australian Government, Review of the Migration System, Final Report, March 2023, pp. 2, 41-42.

[23]Department of Home Affairs, ‘Temporary Activity visa (subclass 408): Australian Government endorsed events (COVID-19 Pandemic event)’, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-listing/temporary-activity-408/australian-government-endorsed-events-covid-19,viewed 17 October 2023.

[24]Department of Home Affairs, ‘The Administration of the Immigration and Citizenship Programs’, 11th Edition, pp. 12-22.

[25]Australian Government, ‘Australian Migration Statistics’, 2021-22, https://data.gov.au/dataset/ds-dga-dba45e7c-81f4-44aa-9d82-1b9a0a121017/details?q=, viewed 1 Jun 2023.

[26]Department of Home Affairs, ‘The Administration of the Immigration and Citizenship Programs’, 9th Edition, p. 21 & 11th Edition, pp. 7, 12, 19; Department of Home Affairs, ‘Direct Pathway to Australian Citizenship for New Zealand Citizens from 1 July 2023’, Media Release, 22 Apr 2023, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/news-media/archive/article?itemId=1047, viewed 1 Jun 2023; Department of Home Affairs, ‘Permanent Residence Pathway for Temporary Skill Shortage (TSS) Subclass 482 Visa Holders with an Occupation on the Regional Occupation List’, Media Release, 13 February 2023, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/news-media/archive/article?itemId=1023, viewed 1 June 2023.

[27]Harriet Spinks, ‘Australia’s Permanent Migration Program: a quick guide’, December 2021, Parliamentary Library, p. 1, https://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_departments/Parliamentary_Library/pubs/rp/rp2122/Quick_Guides/AustraliasMigrationProgram, viewed 1 June 2023.

[28]Department of Home Affairs, ‘The Administration of the Immigration and Citizenship Programs’, 11th Edition, p. 23; Department of Home Affairs, Submission 127, pp. 4, 5; Department of Home Affairs, ‘Migration Program Planning Levels: 2023-24 permanent Migration Program’, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/what-we-do/migration-program-planning-levels, viewed 1 June 2023.

[29]Department of Home Affairs, Submission 127, p. 5.

[30]Department of Home Affairs, ‘The Administration of the Immigration and Citizenship Programs’, 11th Edition, p. 23; Susan Love, ‘Immigration’; Department of Home Affairs, ‘Migration Program Planning Levels: 2023-24 permanent Migration Program’, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/what-we-do/migration-program-planning-levels, viewed 1 June 2023.

[31]Department of Home Affairs, ‘Migration Program Planning Levels: 2023-24 permanent Migration Program’, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/what-we-do/migration-program-planning-levels, viewed 1 June 2023; Department of Home Affairs, Submission 127, p. 5.

[32]Department of Home Affairs, ‘The Administration of the Immigration and Citizenship Programs’, 11th Edition, p. 29; Susan Love, ‘Immigration’.

[33]Department of Home Affairs, ‘The Administration of the Immigration and Citizenship Programs’, 11th Edition, p. 29.

[34]Department of Home Affairs, ‘Migration Program Planning Levels: 2023-24 permanent Migration Program’, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/what-we-do/migration-program-planning-levels, viewed 18 October 2023.

[35]Department of Home Affairs, ‘Migration Program planning levels: 2023-24 permanent Migration Program’, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/what-we-do/migration-program-planning-levels, viewed 18 October 2023; Department of Home Affairs, Submission 127, p. 6.

[36]Department of Home Affairs, ‘The Administration of the Immigration and Citizenship Programs’, 9th Edition, pp. 26-27; Susan Love, ‘Immigration’.

[37]Department of Home Affairs, ‘The Administration of the Immigration and Citizenship Programs’, 11th Edition, p. 26.

[38]Susan Love, ‘Immigration’; Senator Penny Wong, ‘Pacific Engagement Visa: Strengthening Ties with the Pacific Family’, Joint Media Release, 16 February 2023, https://www.foreignminister.gov.au/minister/penny-wong/media-release/pacific-engagement-visa-strengthening-ties-pacific-family, viewed 1 June 2023.

[39]Department of Home Affairs, ‘The Administration of the Immigration and Citizenship Programs’, 11th Edition, pp. 32-33.

[40]Department of Home Affairs, ‘The Administration of the Immigration and Citizenship Programs’, 11th Edition, p. 33.

[41]Harriet Spinks, ‘‘Parliamentary Library Briefing Book: Key Issues for the 47th Parliament: Refugees and Asylum Seekers’, June 2022, Parliamentary Library, https://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_departments/Parliamentary_Library/pubs/BriefingBook47p/RefugeesAsylumSeekers, viewed 1 June 2023.

[42]Harriet Spinks, ‘Refugees and Asylum Seekers’; Suan Love, ‘Resolving the status of Temporary Protection Visa holders: a quick guide, Research Papers 2022-2023, Parliamentary Library, 16 May 2023, https://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_departments/Parliamentary_Library/pubs/rp/rp2223/Quick_Guides/ProtectionVisaHolders, 15 January 2024.

[43]Department of Home Affairs, ‘The Administration of the Immigration and Citizenship Programs’, 11th Edition, p. 36; Hon Clare O’Neil MP, Minister for Home Affairs and Hon Andrew Giles MP, Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs, ‘Delivering a permanent pathway for Temporary Protection Visa holders’, Joint media release, 13 February 2023, https://minister.homeaffairs.gov.au/AndrewGiles/Pages/permanent-pathway-for-tpv-holders.aspx, viewed 3 January 2024.

[44]Susan Love, ‘Resolving the status of Temporary Protection visa holders: a quick guide’, Research Paper Series, 2022-23, Parliamentary Library, 16 May 2023, https://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/download/library/prspub/9169435/upload_binary/9169435.pdf;fileType=application%2Fpdf#search=%22migration%22, viewed 22 May 2024.

[45]Department of Home Affairs, Annual Report: 2023-24, pp. 3, 6-7, 15.

[46]Department of Home Affairs, ‘The Administration of the Immigration and Citizenship Programs’, 11th Edition, p. 40.

[47]Department of Home Affairs, ‘The Administration of the Immigration and Citizenship Programs’, 11th Edition, p. 42.

[48]Liberal-National Coalition, The Coalition’s Operation Sovereign Borders Policy, July 2013, p. 18; see also Appendix A: Boat arrivals since 1976 by calendar year in Janet Phillips and Harriet Spinks, ‘Boat arrivals in Australia since 1976’, Research paper, Parliamentary Library, July 2013, https://www.aph.gov.au/about_parliament/parliamentary_departments/parliamentary_library/pubs/rp/rp1314/boatarrivals, viewed 11 January 2024.

[49]Operation Sovereign Borders, ‘Organisational chart: Joint Agency Task Force – Operation Sovereign Borders’, https://osb.homeaffairs.gov.au/Files/OSB-organisational-chart.pdf, viewed 10 January 2024.

[50]Department of Home Affairs, Department of Home Affairs Incoming Government Brief: Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs, June 2022, p. 48, In Department of Home Affairs, Freedom of Information request, FA22/06/00105 Document 2.

[51]Department of Home Affairs, Department of Home Affairs Incoming Government Brief: Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs, June 2022, p. 49, In Department of Home Affairs, Freedom of Information request, FA22/06/00105 Document 2; Operation Sovereign Borders, ‘Organisational chart’.

[52]Department of Home Affairs, Department of Home Affairs Incoming Government Brief: Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs, June 2022, p. 53, In Department of Home Affairs, Freedom of Information request, FA22/06/00105 Document 2; Department of Home Affairs, ‘Addendum to the eleventh edition of the Administration of the Immigration and Citizenship Programs’, 11th Edition, pp. 40-41; Department of Home Affairs, ‘The Administration of the Immigration and Citizenship Programs’, 11th Edition, pp. 48-49.

[53]Refugee Council of Australia, ‘Returns from Australia and offshore processing centres’, https://www.refugeecouncil.org.au/operation-sovereign-borders-offshore-detention-statistics/5/, viewed 10 January 2024; Department of Home Affairs, ‘Addendum to the eleventh edition of the Administration of the Immigration and Citizenship Programs’, 11th Edition, p. 40.

[54]Department of Home Affairs, Department of Home Affairs Incoming Government Brief: Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs, June 2022, p. 53, In Department of Home Affairs, Freedom of Information request, FA22/06/00105 Document 2.

[55]Refugee Council of Australia, ‘How many people has Australia sent offshore? Where are they now?’, https://www.refugeecouncil.org.au/operation-sovereign-borders-offshore-detention-statistics/2/, viewed 10 January 2024.

[56]Department of Home Affairs, ‘Addendum to the eleventh edition of the Administration of the Immigration and Citizenship Programs’, 11th Edition, pp. 40-41; Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee, Estimates, 23 October 2023, p. 50, 52.

[57]Refugee Council of Australia, ‘People transferred to Australia’, https://www.refugeecouncil.org.au/operation-sovereign-borders-offshore-detention-statistics/3/, viewed 10 January 2024.

[58]Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee, Estimates, 23 October 2023, p. 50, 78; see also Department of Home Affairs, ‘Statistics of Transitory Persons: Regional Processing Statistics – 31 October 2023’, https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/about-us-subsite/files/population-number-resettled-31-oct-2023.pdf, viewed 10 January 2024.

[59]Paul Karp, ‘Child among asylum seekers returned to country of origin after being sent from Australia to Nauru’, Guardian, 22 January 2024, https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2024/jan/22/australia-asylum-seekers-nauru-returned-home-country, viewed 22 January 2024; See also OSE23-715-Nauru-Breakdown of Recent Arrival Cohort, Home Affairs Portfolio, Department of Home Affairs, Program 2.4: UMA Offshore Management, Senate Standing Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs, Supplementary Estimates, October 2023.

[60]Hon Peter Dutton MP, Minister for Immigration and Border Protection, ‘Interview with Peter Van Onselen and Paul Kelly’, Sky Sunday Agenda, Transcript, 9 April 2017, https://web.archive.org/web/20171117173906/http://www.minister.border.gov.au/peterdutton/2017/Pages/sky-sunday-agenda-09042017.aspx, viewed 10 January 2024; Department of Home Affairs, ‘Regional processing and resettlement’, https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/about-us/what-we-do/border-protection/regional-processing-and-resettlement, viewed 10 January 2024.

[61]Department of Home Affairs, Department of Home Affairs Incoming Government Brief: Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs, June 2022, p. 52, In Department of Home Affairs, Freedom of Information request, FA22/06/00105 Document 2; OSE23-715-Nauru-Breakdown of Recent Arrival Cohort, Home Affairs Portfolio, Department of Home Affairs, Program 2.4: UMA Offshore Management, Senate Standing Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs, Supplementary Estimates, October 2023.

[62]Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, ‘Memorandum of Understanding between the Republic of Nauru and Australia on the Enduring Regional Processing Capability in Republic of Nauru’, https://www.dfat.gov.au/geo/nauru/memorandum-understanding-between-republic-nauru-and-australia-enduring-regional-processing-capability-republic-nauru, viewed 10 January 2024.

[63]Department of Home Affairs, Department of Home Affairs Incoming Government Brief: Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs, June 2022, p. 48, In Department of Home Affairs, Freedom of Information request, FA22/06/00105 Document 2.

[64]International Organization for Migration, ‘Key Migration Terms’, https://www.iom.int/key-migration-terms, viewed 11 January 2024.

[65]Migration Act 1958, section 14.

[66]Department of Home Affairs, ‘The Administration of the Immigration and Citizenship Programs’, 11th Edition, p. 44.

[67]Department of Home Affairs, ‘The Administration of the Immigration and Citizenship Programs’, 11th Edition, pp. 44-45.

[68]Department of Home Affairs, ‘The Administration of the Immigration and Citizenship Programs’, 11th Edition, pp. 47-48; Department of Home Affairs, ‘Status Resolution Service’, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/what-we-do/status-resolution-service/status-resolution-support-services, viewed 11 January 2023.

[69]Department of Home Affairs, ‘The Administration of the Immigration and Citizenship Programs’, 11th Edition, pp. 48-49.

[70]Christine Nixon, Rapid Review into the Exploitation of Australia’s Visa System, 31 March 2023, p. 7.

[71]Christine Nixon, Rapid Review into the Exploitation of Australia’s Visa System, 31 March 2023, pp. 7-9.

[72]Australian Government, ‘Government Response to the Nixon Review Recommendations’, pp. 1- 2, https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/reports-and-pubs/files/nixon-review/government-response-nixon-review.pdf, viewed 16 January 2023; Department of Home Affairs, ‘Addendum to the eleventh edition of the Administration of the Immigration and Citizenship Programs’, p. 35.

[73]Australian Government, ‘Government Response to the Nixon Review Recommendations’, pp. 1- 2; Hon Clare O’Neil MP, Minister for Home Affairs and Hon Andrew Giles MP, Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs, ‘Government response to Nixon Report on Australia’s immigration system’, Joint Press Conference, transcript, 4 October 2023, https://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/download/media/pressrel/9404597/upload_binary/9404597.pdf;fileType=application%2Fpdf, viewed 16 January 2024.

[74]Department of Home Affairs, Code of Conduct for registered migration agents, March 2022, https://www.mara.gov.au/tools-for-agents-subsite/Files/code-of-conduct-march-2022.pdf, viewed 8 January 2024; OMARA, ‘Who we are and what we do’, https://www.mara.gov.au/about-us/what-we-do, viewed 8 January 2024.

[75]Department of Home Affairs, Code of Conduct for Registered Migration Agents, 1 March 2022, p.6.

[76]Department of Home Affairs, ‘Attachment A: Chronology of Australian migration advice industry regulation’, Answers to questions on Notice, Public Hearing, 14 June 2023.

[77]OMARA, Migration Agent Activity Report, 1 January 2023 to 30 June 2023: Half-yearly report on the provision of immigration assistance in Australia, 2023, pp. 4-5, 7.

[78]OMARA, Migration Agent Activity Report, 1 January 2023 to 30 June 2023, pp. 8-11.

[79]OMARA, Migration Agent Activity Report, 1 January 2023 to 30 June 2023, p. 7.

[80]After removing the Visitor category, the number who use an RMA drops slightly to 267,229, while the number of total applications drops significantly to 948,510. So, using these figures, 28.2% use RMAs.

[81]OMARA, Migration Agent Activity Report, 1 January 2023 to 30 June 2023, p. 4. See also OMARA, ‘Transitional arrangements for Australian legal practitioners previously registered as a migration agent (22 March 2021)’, 15 March 2021, https://www.mara.gov.au/news-media/archive/article?itemId=571, viewed 8 January 2024; and Administrative Appeals Tribunal, ‘Changes to the rules about lawyers giving immigration assistance in AAT cases’, 22 March 2021, https://www.aat.gov.au/news/changes-to-the-rules-about-lawyers-giving-immigrat#, viewed 8 January 2024.

[82]Migration Agents Instruments Review, Report to the Assistant Minister for Customs, Community Safety and Multicultural Affairs, the Hon Jason Wood MP, Consultation Report, May 2021, p.12.

[83]Christine Nixon, Rapid Review into the Exploitation of Australia’s Visa System, 31 March 2023, pp. 6, 10-14.

[84]Australian Government, ‘Government Response to the Nixon Review Recommendations’, pp. 2-4, https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/reports-and-pubs/files/nixon-review/government-response-nixon-review.pdf, viewed 9 January 2023; see also Department of Home Affairs, ‘Addendum to the eleventh edition of the Administration of the Immigration and Citizenship Programs’, p. 35.

[85]Mr Michael Pezzullo AO, Secretary, Immigration, Department of Home Affairs, Committee Hansard, Canberra, 14 June 2023, p. 2.

[86]Annual Reports record a combined Immigration and Border staff of 14,200 (2015/16), 13,758 (2016/17), 13,316 (2017/18), 14,055 (2018/19), 14,008 (2019/20), 13,775 (2020/21), 13,846 (2021/22). The number of personnel, excluding Australian Border Force, is provided in the final two of these years – 7,905 (2020/21) and 7,878 (2021/22).

[87]Community and Public Sector Union, Submission 6, Attachment 1, p. [3].

[88]Department of Home Affairs, ‘The Administration of the Immigration and Citizenship Programs’, 11th Edition, p. 7.

[89]Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Reference Committee, The efficacy, fairness, timeliness and costs of the processing and granting of visa classes which provide for or allow for family and partner reunions, March 2022, p. 91.

[90]Hon Clare O’Neil MP, Minister for Home Affairs and Hon Andrew Giles MP, Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs, ‘Australia’s migration future’, Joint Media Release, 2 September 2022, https://minister.homeaffairs.gov.au/ClareONeil/Pages/australias-migration-future.aspx, viewed 1 June 2023. See also Department of Home Affairs, ‘Freedom of Information Request FA 22/11/01131’, 23 Jan 2023, https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/foi/files/2023/fa-221101131-document-released.PDF, viewed 1 June 2023; $48.1 million over twelve months to support 500 visa processing officers. Hon Clare O’Neil MP, Minister for Home Affairs and Hon Andrew Giles MP, Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs, ‘A safer and more secure future for Australia’, Joint Media Release, 9 May 2023, https://minister.homeaffairs.gov.au/ClareONeil/Pages/safer-secure-future-for-australia.aspx, viewed 23 October 2023.

[91]Department of Home Affairs, ‘2023-34 Migration Program FAQ’, p. 3, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/programs-subsite/files/faq-2023-24-migration-program.pdf, viewed 23 October 2023. Note there is some overlap between sources as to number of processing officers and funding. See $42.2 million over two years 2022-23: Budget Paper No. 2, Budget Measures: October 2022-23, p. 82; $75.8 million over two years 2023-24 for both visa processing and improving processing systems: Budget Paper No. 2, Budget Measures: October 2023-24, p. 162.

[92]Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee, Estimates, 23 October 2023, pp. 53, 65.

[93]Ms Stephanie Foster, Associate Secretary, Immigration, Department of Home Affairs, Committee Hansard, Canberra, 14 June 2023, p. 14.

[94]Department of Home Affairs, Submission 28, pp. 4-5, to the Legal and Constitutional Affairs References Committee, Inquiry into the impact of changes to service delivery models on the administration and running of Government programs, 2019, https://www.aph.gov.au/DocumentStore.ashx?id=1b3543be-1e9c-4f36-906d-93a4dc0ef932&subId=669717, viewed 19 October 2023.

[95]Legal and Constitutional Affairs References Committee, Impact of changes to service delivery models on the administration and running of Government programs, February 2020, Chapter 3: pp. 19-38; Mr Michael Pezzullo AO, Secretary, Department of Home Affairs, Committee Hansard, Canberra, 14 June 2023, pp. 14-15.

[96]Australian National Audit Office, Management of migration to Australia – Family Migration Program: Department of Home Affairs, Auditor General Report No. 16 2002-23, p. 18.

[97]Department of Immigration and Border Protection, Delivering visa services for Australia, Market Consultation Paper, June 2017, p. 27.

[98]Quoted in ANAO, Management of migration to Australia – Family Migration Program: Department of Home Affairs, Auditor General Report No. 16 2002-23, p. 18.

[99]ANAO, Management of migration to Australia – Family Migration Program: Department of Home Affairs, Auditor General Report No. 16 2002-23, p. 10.

[100]Hon Clare O’Neil MP, Minister for Home Affairs and Hon Andrew Giles MP, Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs, ‘A safer and more secure future for Australia’, Joint media release, 9 May 2023, https://minister.homeaffairs.gov.au/ClareONeil/Pages/safer-secure-future-for-australia.aspx, viewed 19 October 2023. Department of Home Affairs, Submission 127, p. 10.

[101]Explanatory Memorandum, Migration Amendment (Strengthening Biometrics Integrity) Bill 2015, p.1.

[102]Department of Home Affairs, Biometrics for Offshore Visa Processing: Procedural Instruction, p. 3. In Department of Home Affairs, Freedom of Information request, FA20/02/01375, https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/foi/files/2020/fa-200201375-document-released.PDF, viewed 14 November 2023.

[103]Department of Home Affairs, ‘Meeting our requirements: Biometrics’, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/help-support/meeting-our-requirements/biometrics, viewed 31 October 2023. For the fingerprinting, some exceptions are made for those under a certain age or unable to understand the purpose of biometrics.Special arrangements can be made for a private collection of the digital photograph by someone of the same gender to accommodate those who wear a religious head covering.

[104]Department of Home Affairs, ‘Meeting our requirements: Biometrics’, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/help-support/meeting-our-requirements/biometrics, viewed 31 October 2023.

[105]Department of Home Affairs, ‘Service Delivery Partners’, https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/help-and-support/how-to-engage-us/industry-engagement/service-delivery-partners, viewed 2 November 2023.

[106]Department of Home Affairs, ‘Offices outside Australia’, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/help-support/contact-us/offices-and-locations/offices-outside-australia, viewed 2 November 2023.

[107]Department of Home Affairs, ‘The Administration of the Immigration and Citizenship Programs’, 11th Edition, p. 41.

[108]Department of Home Affairs, ‘Meeting our requirements: Biometrics’, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/help-support/meeting-our-requirements/biometrics, viewed 31 October 2023.

[109]Department of Home Affairs, ‘Meeting our requirements: Biometrics’, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/help-support/meeting-our-requirements/biometrics, viewed 31 October 2023.

[110]Department of Home Affairs, ‘The Administration of the Immigration and Citizenship Programs’, 11th Edition, p. 41.

[111]Australian Government, ‘Government Response to the Nixon Review Recommendations’, pp. 7-8, https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/reports-and-pubs/files/nixon-review/government-response-nixon-review.pdf, viewed 9 January 2023.

[112]Department of Home Affairs, Sch4/4005-4007 – 01 - The health requirement, Procedural Instruction, PPN: VM-1027, 10 November 2023.

[113]Department of Home Affairs, ‘Health: Meeting our requirements: Health’, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/help-support/meeting-our-requirements/health, viewed 14 November 2023; Department of Home Affairs, Australian Panel Member Instructions: Immigration Medical Examinations, July 2023, p. 11.

[114]Department of Home Affairs, ‘Health: Protecting health care and community services’, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/help-support/meeting-our-requirements/health/protecting-health-care-and-community-services, viewed 21 November 2023.

[115]Department of Home Affairs, Australian Panel Member Instructions: Immigration Medical Examinations, July 2023, pp. 11-12.

[116]Department of Home Affairs, ‘Health: What health examinations you need’, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/help-support/meeting-our-requirements/health/what-health-examinations-you-need, viewed 15 November 2023.

[117]Australian Government, Review of the Migration System, Final Report, p. 168. See also Department of Home Affairs, ‘eMedical’, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/help-support/tools/emedical, viewed 16 November 2023. See also the aim that all IMEs are processed electronically: Department of Home Affairs, Australian Panel Member Instructions: Immigration Medical Examinations, July 2023, p. 10.

[118]Department of Home Affairs, Australian Panel Member Instructions: Immigration Medical Examinations, July 2023, pp. 12, 26.

[119]Department of Home Affairs, ‘Health: Arrange your health examinations’, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/help-support/meeting-our-requirements/health/arrange-your-health-examinations, viewed 16 November 2023.

[120]Department of Home Affairs, Australian Panel Member Instructions: Immigration Medical Examinations, July 2023, pp. 12, 16-17, 19.

[121]Department of Home Affairs, Australian Panel Member Instructions: Immigration Medical Examinations, July 2023, p. 8.

[122]Department of Home Affairs, Annual Report 2022-23, p. 59.

[123]Department of Home Affairs, ‘Our history – Multicultural affairs’, https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/about-us/our-portfolios/multicultural-affairs/about-multicultural-affairs/our-policy-history, viewed 23 November 2023.

[124]Hon. A. J. Grassby MP, Minister for Immigration, News Release: 61/73, 15 July 1973.

[125]Australian Government, Review of the Migration System, Final Report, p. 22.

[126]Australian Government, Multicultural Australia: United, Strong, Successful, Australia’s multicultural statement, [2017], pp. 3-4, 7, 9, 11, 13, 15.

[127]Department of Home Affairs, ‘Our history – Multicultural affairs’, https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/about-us/our-portfolios/multicultural-affairs/about-multicultural-affairs/our-policy-history, viewed 27 November 2023; Department of Home Affairs, Annual Report 2017-2018, p. iv.

[128]Department of Home Affairs, ‘The Administration of the Immigration and Citizenship Programs’, 11th Edition, p. 9; For Social Cohesion and Citizenship see previous organisational structures e.g. Department of Home Affairs, Organisational Structure, March 2021, https://web.archive.org/web/20210305210256/https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/about-us-subsite/files/home-affairs-org-structure.pdf, viewed 28 November 2023; Department of Home Affairs, Annual Report, 2021-22, p. 6.

[129]Susan Love, ‘Multicultural policy since 2010: a quick guide’, Research Paper Series, 2021-22, Parliamentary Library, September 2021, p. 6, https://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/download/library/prspub/8197355/upload_binary/8197355.pdf, viewed 14 December 2023.

[130]Department of Home Affairs, ‘Australian Multicultural Council’, https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/mca/Pages/australian-multicultural-council.aspx, viewed 20 December 2023.

[131]Department of Home Affairs, ‘Access and Equity’, https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/about-us/our-portfolios/multicultural-affairs/about-multicultural-affairs/access-and-equity, viewed 28 November 2023; Australian Government, The Multicultural Access and Equity Policy Guide: For Australian Government departments and agencies, 2018, p. 1; Australian Government, Multicultural Access and Equity in Australian Government Services Report, 2013-2015, 2017, pp. 8-9.

[132]Australian National Audit Office, Department of Home Affairs’ Management of its Public Communications and Media Activities, Auditor-General Report No. 14 2022-23, Performance Audit, pp. 63-64; Department of Home Affairs, ‘Access and Equity’, https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/about-us/our-portfolios/multicultural-affairs/about-multicultural-affairs/access-and-equity, viewed 28 November 2023; Australian Government, Multicultural Access and Equity in Australian Government Services Report, 2013-2015, 2017.

[133]Department of Home Affairs, Annual Report, 2018-2019, p. 21,; Department of Home Affairs, ‘Celebrating 20 years of Harmony celebrations’, 6 March 2019, https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/news-subsite/Pages/2019-Mar/celebrating%2020%20years%20of%20harmony%20celebrations.aspx, viewed 14 December 2023.

[134]Department of Home Affairs, ‘About’, https://www.harmony.gov.au/about, viewed 11 December 2023. See also pages on ‘Stories’, ‘Resources’ and ‘Harmony Week Events’.

[135]See for example Claudianna Blanco, ‘Is Harmony Day muzzling the reality of racism in Australia?’, SBS, https://www.sbs.com.au/language/english/en/article/is-harmony-day-muzzling-the-uncomfortable-discord-of-racism-in-australia/9ex6dom9t, viewed 18 December 2023.

[136]Hon Andrew Giles MP, Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs, ‘Harmony Week and International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination’, Media release, 21 March 2023, https://minister.homeaffairs.gov.au/AndrewGiles/Pages/harmony-week-international-day-elimination-racial-discrimination-21032023.aspx, viewed 18 December 2023.

[137]Department of Home Affairs, Annual Report, 2021-22, p. 116.

[138]Department of Home Affairs, ‘Australian Values’, https://www.australian-values.gov.au/australian-values/, viewed 18 December 2023.

[139]Department of Home Affairs, Submission 127, p. 9; Department of Home Affairs, ‘Our programs’, https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/about-us/our-portfolios/multicultural-affairs/programs, viewed 19 December 2023; Hon Andrew Giles MP, Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs, ‘Investing in NSW multicultural communities’, Media release, https://minister.homeaffairs.gov.au/AndrewGiles/Pages/investing-in-nsw-multicultural-communities.aspx, viewed 19 December 2023; Department of Home Affairs, ‘Fostering Integration Grants program’, https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/about-us/our-portfolios/multicultural-affairs/programs/fostering-integration-grants, viewed 19 December 2023.

[140]Department of Home Affairs, Annual Report, 2022-23, pp. 196-198.

[141]Department of Home Affairs /Translating and Interpreting Service, ‘Available Services’, https://www.tisnational.gov.au/en/Non-English-speakers/Available-services, viewed 19 December 2023; and ‘Free Interpreting Service’, https://www.tisnational.gov.au/Free-Interpreting-Service, viewed 19 December 2023.

[142]Department of Home Affairs, ‘Multicultural Framework Review – Terms of Reference (draft)’, https://web.archive.org/web/20230608023732/https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/reports-and-publications/submissions-and-discussion-papers/multicultural-framework-review, viewed 7 December 2023.

[143]Department of Home Affairs, ‘About the Multicultural Framework Review’, https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/about-us/our-portfolios/multicultural-framework-review/about-the-multicultural-framework-review, 7 December 2023.

[144]Department of Home Affairs, ‘Terms of Reference’, Multicultural Framework Review, https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/about-us/our-portfolios/multicultural-framework-review/terms-of-reference, viewed 7 December 2023.

[145]Department of Home Affairs, ‘Settlement services’, https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/about-us/our-portfolios/settlement-services/overview, viewed 20 December 2023.

[146]Department of Home Affairs, Submission 78, p. 15, to the Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade References Committee, Inquiry into the issues facing diaspora communities in Australia, https://www.aph.gov.au/DocumentStore.ashx?id=50e9a8b7-daf7-43df-af17-4ab576af8eb8&subId=691363, viewed 4 January 2024.

[147]Department of Social Services, The National Settlement Framework, [2016], https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/settlement-services-subsite/files/the-national-settlement-framework.pdf, viewed 21 December 2023.

[148]International Organization for Migration, ‘Australian Cultural Orientation’, https://www.iom.int/australian-cultural-orientation, viewed 3 January 2024; Department of Home Affairs, ‘Australian Cultural Orientation (AUSCO) Program’, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/settling-in-australia/ausco/about-the-program, viewed 3 January 2024; Department of Home Affairs, Annual Report: 2022-23, p. 63.

[149]Department of Home Affairs, ‘Humanitarian Settlement Program’, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/settling-in-australia/humanitarian-settlement-program/specialised-and-intensive-services, viewed 4 January 2024; Department of Home Affairs, Submission 127, p.15; Department of Home Affairs, ‘The Administration of the Immigration and Citizenship Programs’, 11th Edition, p. 34.

[150]Department of Home Affairs, ‘Humanitarian Settlement Program’, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/settling-in-australia/humanitarian-settlement-program/specialised-and-intensive-services, viewed 4 January 2024; Department of Home Affairs, Submission 127, p.15.

[151]Department of Home Affairs, Annual Report: 2022-23, p. 12.

[152]Department of Home Affairs, Annual Report: 2022-23, pp. 49-50, 60; Department of Home Affairs, ‘Addendum to the eleventh edition of the Administration of the Immigration and Citizenship Programs’, October 2023, pp. 28-29; Department of Home Affairs, ‘Adult Migrant English Program (AMEP)’, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/settling-in-australia/amep/about-the-program, viewed 4 January 2024.

[153]Department of Home Affairs, Submission 127, p.15.

[154]Department of Home Affairs, Annual Report: 2022-23, p. 63; Department of Home Affairs, ‘Settlement Engagement and Transition Support (SETS) Program’, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/settling-in-australia/sets-program, viewed 4 January 2024.

[155]Department of Home Affairs, ‘Helping Refugees’, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/settling-in-australia/helping-refugees/get-involved/community-refugee-integration-settlement, viewed 4 January 2024; Community Refugee Sponsorship Australia, ‘Community Refugee Integration and Settlement Pilot (CRISP)’, https://refugeesponsorship.org.au/what-we-do/crisp/, viewed 8 January 2024.

[156]Department of Home Affairs, ‘Youth Transition Support services’, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/settling-in-australia/support-for-young-refugees/youth-transition-support-services, viewed 4 January 2024; Department of Home Affairs, ‘The Administration of the Immigration and Citizenship Programs’, 11th Edition, p. 34; Australian Government, Budget 2023-24, Budget Measures, Budget Paper No. 2, 9 May 2023, p. 160, https://budget.gov.au/content/bp2/download/bp2_2023-24.pdf.

[157]Department of Home Affairs, ‘Employment pathways for refugees’, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/settling-in-australia/settlement-policy-and-reform/employment-pathways-for-refugees, viewed 4 January 2024; Hon Andrew Giles MP, Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs, ‘Granting employment opportunities for refugees’, Media release, 3 March 2023, https://minister.homeaffairs.gov.au/AndrewGiles/Pages/granting-employment-opportunities-for-refugees.aspx, viewed 8 January 2024.

[158]Department of Home Affairs, ‘The Administration of the Immigration and Citizenship Programs’, 11th Edition, p. 34; Community Hubs, ‘National Community Hubs Program’, https://www.communityhubs.org.au/about-community-hubs/, viewed 8 January 2024, and ‘Funding and governance’,.https://www.communityhubs.org.au/funding-and-governance/, viewed 8 January 2024.

[159]Australian Government, Budget 2023-24, Budget Measures, Budget Paper No. 2, 9 May 2023, p. 160, https://budget.gov.au/content/bp2/download/bp2_2023-24.pdf. See also Refugee Council of Australia, ‘The Federal Budget: What it means for refugees and people seeking humanitarian protection’, 24 November 2023, https://www.refugeecouncil.org.au/federal-budget-summary/, viewed 4 January 2024.

[160]Department of Home Affairs, ‘Settle in Australia’, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/settling-in-australia/settle-in-australia/overview, viewed 3 January 2024. See also the subsections ‘Beginning a Life in Australia’, ‘Language services’, and ‘Key settlement topics’.

[161]Department of Home Affairs, Annual Report: 2022-23, pp. 70, 196; Australian National Audit Office, Department of Home Affairs’ Management of its Public Communications and Media Activities, Auditor-General Report No. 14 2022-23, Performance Audit, pp. 40-42.

[162]Department of Home Affairs, Department of Home Affairs Incoming Government Brief: Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs, June 2022, pp. 160-162, In Department of Home Affairs, Freedom of Information request, FA22/06/00105 Document 2, https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/foi/files/2022/fa-220600105-document-released-part-3.PDF, viewed 2 January 2024; Scanlon Foundation Research Institute, ‘Australian Cohesion Index’, https://scanloninstitute.org.au/research/australian-cohesion-index, viewed 2 January 2024.

[163]Department of Home Affairs, ‘Settlement Policy and Reform’, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/settling-in-australia/settlement-policy-and-reform, viewed 3 January 2024; Australian Government, Investing in Refugees, Investing in Australia: The findings of a Review into Integration, Employment and Settlement Outcomes for Refugees and Humanitarian Entrants in Australia, February 2019, pp. 9, 18-22.

[164]Department of Home Affairs, ‘Next steps to improve Australia’s settlement and integration of refugees’, https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/reports-and-pubs/files/next-steps/next-steps-discussion-paper.pdf, viewed 2 January 2024; Department of Home Affairs, ‘Australia’s Humanitarian Program 2023-24’, Discussion Paper, pp. 7-8, https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/reports-and-pubs/files/australias-humanitarian-program-23-24-discussion-paper.pdf, viewed 2 January 2024.

[165]Department of Home Affairs, ‘Settlement Advisory Council’, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/settling-in-australia/settlement-policy-and-reform/settlement-advisory-council, viewed 3 January 2024; Hon Andrew Giles MP, Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs, ‘Refugee Communities Association of Australia Conference’, Media Release, 21 September 2023, https://minister.homeaffairs.gov.au/AndrewGiles/Pages/refugee-communities-assoc-aust-conf-21092023.aspx, viewed 3 January 2024; Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade References Committee, Issues facing diaspora communities in Australia, February 2021, p. 6.

[166]Hon Andrew Giles MP, Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs, ‘New framework to guide refugee settlement outcomes in Australia’, Media Release, https://minister.homeaffairs.gov.au/AndrewGiles/Pages/new-framework-guide-refugee-settlement-outcomes-australia.aspx, viewed 21 December 2023.

[167]Department of Home Affairs, Annual Report: 2022-23, p. 49.

[168]Department of Home Affairs, The Refugee and Humanitarian Entrant Settlement and Integration Outcomes Framework, [2023], https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/settlement-services-subsite/files/refugee-humanitarian-entrant-settlement-integration-outcomes-framework.pdf, viewed 21 December 2023.

[169]Department of Social Services, ‘The Settlement Journey: The path to Refugee Settlement in Australia’, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/settlement-services-subsite/files/the-settlement-journey.pdf, viewed 2 January 2024 (Note is linked to the Department of Home Affairs webpage ‘Helping Refugees’, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/settling-in-australia/helping-refugees/get-involved); Department of Home Affairs, ‘Adult Migrant English Program (AMEP)’, https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/settling-in-australia/amep/about-the-program, viewed 2 January 2024.

[170]Ms Stephanie Foster, Associate Secretary, Immigration, Department of Home Affairs, Committee Hansard, Canberra, 14 June 2023, pp. 8-9.

[171]Australian Government, Migration Strategy – Getting migration working for the nation, December 2023, p. 80.