IMPACT – MEDIUM

What is the change? Australia’s Migration Amendment (Enhanced Integrity) Regulations took effect last week, giving effect to changes to the Migration Act outlined in the Migration and Other Legislation Amendment (Enhanced Integrity) Act 2018.

What does the change mean? The new regulations stipulate that the Department of Home Affairs can publish information on sanction actions undertaken at any time on or after March 18, 2015. This information may include the type of infraction, the sanction imposed and details of the business (including legal and trading name).

In regards to temporary and permanent skilled visas, the amendments expand the department’s ability to request an applicant’s tax file number (TFN) for the purpose of verifying a person’s identity, ensuring compliance, developing policy related to the skilled visas and for research, intelligence gathering and identifying trends or risks related to skilled visas. A data-matching program between the Department of Home Affairs and the Australian Tax Office is currently underway to monitor compliance and root out both tax and immigration fraud.

  • Implementation time frame: Dec. 13.
  • Visas/permits affected: Skilled visas.
  • Who is affected: Applicants for temporary and permanent skilled visas; Employers who faced immigration sanctions on or after March 18, 2015.
  • Business impact: The amendments extend the sanction history eligible for publication by the Department of Home Affairs, putting more employers at risk of public exposure for immigration infractions and sanctions. The expansion of the department’s ability to request TFN numbers raises the potential for identifying compliance infractions.

Analysis & Comments: The amendments are consistent with the Australian Government’s efforts in recent years to crack down on compliance infractions. All sponsors should conduct internal checks to ensure that they are in compliance with their tax obligations.

Source: Deloitte LLP. Deloitte LLP is a limited liability partnership registered in England and Wales with registered number OC303675 and its registered office at 1 New Street Square, London EC4A 3HQ, United Kingdom. with children. Please contact your immigration representative for more information.