Biometric testing - immigration clearance, Scott Morrison MP

Travellers entering Australia will soon be checked to see if they have undeclared criminal convictions against a biometrics database before being allowed into Australia, Federal Minister for Immigration and Border Protection Scott Morrison announced this at the Biometrics Institute Asia Pacific conference in Sydney yrecently. Morrison told delegates that the government is investing $700 million over the next six years to modernise Australia’s border management system with specific vigilance on weeding out ex-convicts and people with links to terrorist groups.

It is expected that most travellers will sail through the immigration gates as the system aims at making processing quicker and easier for legitimate travellers. The aim is to have such travellers move through the automated immigration system in ‘less than a minute”.

The future traveller, Morrison said, would provide "border clearance information" as part of the check in process, before commencing their journey.

"The data will then be passed on to Australian agencies for assessment prior to arrival, and this data will be evaluated against security criteria and existing intelligence holdings, so that any risk to Australia's security is identified before arrival,” he said. This means the data will be evaluated against risk criteria such as criminal convictions and links to terrorist groups. A decision is thus made before the traveller arrives.

"The future traveller will then pass through streamlined, automated passport control systems that examine retained biometric data that is contained in the traveller's passport against the traveller upon physical presentation on the border,” said the Minister.

Only identities that generate an alert will need intervention from border protection officials, Morrison said.

"If the person is identified as a potential criminal or terrorist, the border protection officer will intervene and take the traveller to a separate zone for manual processing. If no risks are identified, it is anticipated that visitors will move through automated systems in less than a minute," said Morrison.

He added that e-passports and the SmartGate system, which was introduced in 2005, has “moved from strength to strength” and is now operating at all eight major Australian airports.

By 2016, more than 25 per cent of the 42.9 million passengers expected to pass through major airports in Australia will use the SmartGate system, he said.

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Potential new benefits for E-3 visa holders in the US

6 May 2014

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced a proposed rule that will provide some added benefits for E-3 visa holders.

What is an E-3 Visa?

It is a special category available only to Australian citizens. 

There are two basic requirements;  (1) job offer from a US company to work in a professional role; and (2) must hold a bachelor’s degree in a relevant field, or the work experience equivalent.

The proposed new changes to the E-3 category include:

1. E-3 visa added to the list of visa classifications that authorise classes of aliens authorised for employment status with a specific employer. The benefit of this new change would end hassles that E-3 visa holders sometimes encounter when trying to obtain US benefits such as a Social Security Number or a driver’s license

2. Add the E-3 visa to the list of work visas that are automatically granted up to 240 days of continued work authorization beyond the expiry of status while an extension request is pending.  The benefit of this change means there would be less pressure to file the extension request months before the expiry of status.

We will continue to monitor the proposed new rule and will advise of any changes once they become available from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

If you have any questions about these changes or US immigration, please contact our specialist US immigration team.

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Pub brawls, street fights, and criminal mishaps; can it effect you from entering the US?

The recent brawl witnessed in Bondi between James Packer and David Gyngell most likely was an embarrassment for those involved, but also illustrates how public altercations may effect global migration, especially to the U.S.  While no charges have been filed in this particular case, it highlights that most people might not realise there are consequences for such an incident and could make them unable to enter into the U.S.

Melissa Vincenty, a US Immigration Lawyer in Sydney and senior lawyer at Nevett Ford, notes “this would certainly strain their ability to oversee their business ventures in the U.S. or visit friends and family there. “

Certain assault charges and convictions could rise to what is known as a ‘crime involving moral turpitude’ (CIMT).  It is quite a broad term that includes crimes such as assault, drug crimes, shoplifting, check fraud or even graffiti convictions.  Merely an arrest for a CIMT could make someone ineligible to use the convenient Visa Waiver Program and a conviction may have more dire consequences. 

While this may not permanently bar someone from travels to the U.S., it could certainly cramp these jetsetter’s lifestyles which could delay travel for many months. 

For individuals who seek to travel to the US, it is strongly recommended to contact a qualified US Immigration Lawyer to discuss your visa options.

To connect to a qualified US Immigration Lawyer contact our specialist US Immigration team.

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Update: 2014-2015 Commonwealth Budget Announcement; Family and Skilled Migration

Further to the recent 2014-2015 budget announcement, more detailed figures for the 2014-15 Migration Programme have been added to the Department's website.  The composition of the programme remains stable with the overall number of visas to be granted steady at the 2013-14 level of 190,000 overall.  The percentage of skilled migration visas to family visas also remains unchanged at 67.7% and 32% respectively.  Key points: -There has been some minor rearrangement in partner, child and parent visa numbers. Numbers for other family visas which include aged dependent, carer and remaining relatives have been reduced. -Within the skilled migration streams, 1000 places have been reallocated from the skilled independent stream to the employer sponsored categories. -State and Territory nominated numbers remain unchanged. -Business visa numbers also remain the same as for the previous year. These statistics are available on the Department's website at Migration Programme Statistics. Any questions related to the announcement or Australian immigration, please contact our specialist immigration team.

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2014-15 Budget Overview: Australia's Migration Programme; Migration programme size

2014-15 Migration programme size

The 2014-15 Migration Programme remains the same at 190,000 places and maintains the composition of:

-128,550 Skilled Stream places

-60,885 Family Stream place, and 

-565 Special Eligibility Stream places.

Nevett Ford will provide more details of the Budget measures as they emerge.

For any queries related to Australian immigration, please contact our specialist immigration team. 

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DIBP and Customs become Australian Border Force effective 1/7/2015

From 1 July 2015, the Department of Immigration and Border Protection and the Australian Customs and Border Protection Service will become a single agency: Australian Border Force.

For any questions related to Australian immigration, please contact our specialist immigration team.

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Work and Holiday visa agreement between Greece and Australia

Minister Morrison has announced the signing of a reciprocal work and holiday visa agreement between Greece and Australia. Each country will eventually grant 500 visas per year.

 

Both countries are working to implement the necessary legal and administrative processes to allow the visas to come into effect. The one-year work and holiday visa differs from a working holiday visa as it requires applicants to have the support of their government, hold or be studying towards tertiary qualifications and to speak functional English.

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Ministerial Intervention - When All else Fails

 

 

In certain circumstances persons who are aggrieved with migration related decisions may be able to apply to the Minister for intervention in their case.

However, the process is not easy. As a starting point, eligibility to make application to the Minister is determined by reference to a number of sections within the Migration Act. Although there are six sections of the act dealing with referrals to the Minister, by far the most common situations where a referral arise are those where a visa applicant who is onshore has been refused a visa by the Department of Immigration and then either the Migration Review Tribunal or the Refugee Review Tribunal.

The Minister has indicated that applications for intervention must be able to demonstrate that unique or exceptional circumstances exist, and has published a set of guidelines indicating the types of situations that he would be prepared to consider under his public interest powers. In brief, these are:

- Circumstances that may bring Australia’s obligations as a party to the Convention on the Rights of the Child into consideration,

- Strong compassionate circumstances such that failure to recognise them would result in irreparable harm and continuing hardship to an Australian citizen or permanent resident should the visa applicant leave the country,

- Exceptional economic, scientific, cultural or other benefit to Australia,

- Compassionate circumstances regarding the applicant’s age and/or health and/or psychological state such that failure to recognise them would result in irreparable harm and continuing hardship to the applicant,

- Length of time the applicant has been present in Australia and the level of integration into the Australian community,

- Circumstances that the legislation does not anticipate or clearly unintended consequences of legislation or the application of relevant legislation leads to unfair or unreasonable results,

- The applicant is unable, through circumstances outside his or her control, to return to the country of citizenship or usual residence,

- Where the applicant’s circumstances have been assessed as engaging Australia’s non-return obligations but the applicant was excluded from the grant of a PV or had a substantive visa cancelled or refused on character grounds.

It should be remembered that the Minister is under no obligation to intervene in a case and generally will only do so if an applicant can demonstrate that any of the guidelines referred to above can be met. This means that anyone considering making an application to the Minister needs to think carefully about the guidelines and be able to demonstrate which of them apply to their situation.  All claims for intervention need to be presented in clear and concise terms and should be accompanied by relevant supporting documentation. If it is not possible to provide supporting documents, reasons should be given for not being able to do so.

The Minister will generally only consider requests from persons who are on valid bridging visas. If an applicant has allowed his or her visa to lapse, it is important to contact the department and arrange for a bridging visa to be granted as a matter of urgency.

Because the Minister is under no obligation to consider an application, and because the guidelines are tightly prescribed, it is of utmost importance that great care be taken in preparing submissions for the attention of the Minister, and if an applicant has any doubt about the ability to convey a clear and concise summary of his or her circumstances, professional assistance should be obtained.

 

 

 

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Transferring Personnel to the Land Down Under

Nevett Ford is pleased to present 'Transferring Personnel to the Land Down Under' article authored by Senior Lawyer Noah Klug.

Please contact Noah Klug and our immigration team for any immigration questions and follow Nevett Ford LinkedIn page for up to date immigration and other legal related topics and issues.

Media enquiries, please contact Anna Huurdeman, Marketing Mananger, ahuurdeman@nevettford.com.au

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