6th Dec 2018, 3:56 PM – Senate Home Affairs Legislation Amendment (Miscellaneous Measures) Bill 2018 - in Committee - Regional processing cohort

The majority voted against Government amendments, which means they failed. The amendments would have stopped a particular group of people seeking asylum in Australia from applying for an Australian visa.

What did the amendments do?

According to the relevant supplementary explanatory memorandum:

These government amendments to the Home Affairs Legislation Amendment (Miscellaneous Measures) Bill 2018, amend the Migration Act 1958 (Migration Act) and the Migration Regulations 1994 (the Migration Regulations) to prevent unauthorised maritime arrivals (UMAs) who were at least 18 years of age and were taken to a regional processing country after 19 July 2013 from making a valid application for an Australian visa.

These government amendments will also apply to transitory persons who were at least 18 years of age and were taken to a regional processing country after 19 July 2013 under Division 7 or 8 of Part 3 of the Maritime Powers Act 2013 (the Maritime Powers Act).

These groups of people will be referred to as the designated regional processing cohort.

Thee government amendments will include a personal power of the Minister to permit a member of the designated regional processing cohort, or a class of persons within the designated regional processing cohort, to make a valid application for a visa if the Minister thinks it is in the public interest to do so.

These government amendments include measures to prevent a member of the designated regional processing cohort from being deemed to have been granted a Special Purpose visa under section 33 of the Migration Act, or being deemed to have applied for particular visas under the Migration Regulations.

These government amendments will apply to a member of the designated regional processing cohort: who is currently subject to regional processing arrangements; who has left a regional processing country and is in another country; or who is taken to a regional processing country in the future.

Amendment text

See sheet JC575 for amendment text.

What does this bill do?

According to its bills digest, the purpose of the Home Affairs Legislation Amendment (Miscellaneous Measures) Bill 2018 is to:

• clarify that where the removal of a non-citizen from the migration zone to another country is unsuccessful, a visa is not required to bring the person back to Australia and they remain subject to statutory bars on subsequent visa applications, where applicable (Schedule 1)
• provide that the Minister may make documents available to a person by way of an online account (Schedule 2)
• provide that the Commonwealth may appropriate money from the Consolidated Revenue Fund to pay refunds, rebates or drawbacks of customs duty in circumstances where those payments have no other statutory basis (Schedule 3)
• specify that regulations may make provision for the charging and recovery of fees in relation to the Passenger Movement Charge (Schedule 4).