Migration authority should regulate student agents, says Opposition

The federal Opposition has called for international student recruitment agents to be regulated by the body responsible for migration agents, after the government claimed to have broken up a student migration racket. But the government says such a move would be unnecessary and unfeasible. The debate surfaced last month after a Department of Immigration and Citizenship investigation led to a raid by immigration officers and Australian federal police. Three Melbourne migration agents were allegedly providing fake documentation to support permanent residency applications by student visa holders, according to immigration minister Chris Evans. “The students had applied for permanent visas based on their claimed skills in occupations including cooking, hairdressing, horticulture and mechanics,” Evans said. He said investigations were continuing into possible forgery and fraud-related offences, which carry penalties of up to 10 years imprisonment. He added that the operation highlighted the need for greater scrutiny of the migration advice profession. Shadow immigration minister Sharman Stone applauded the operation, but said overseas student recruitment also needed greater scrutiny. “Currently there are no monitoring processes for student recruiters, and they do not need registration or verification,” she said. “Given that many education agents are paid to help identify pathways to permanent migration via study and courses, they are often performing a role that is little different to that of the regulated migration agent.” Evans announced a new regulatory body for migration agents in February after a review last year uncovered dissatisfaction with the statutory self-regulation arrangements in place since 1998. From July a new Office of Migration Agents Registration Authority (MARA), which will have administrative links to the department, will replace the existing authority, which is part of the peak body for migration agents. Evans said the change would remove concerns about potential conflicts of interest. “Unethical behaviour by migration agents challenges the integrity of Australia’s visa program and brings the entire profession of more than 3700 migration agents into disrepute. As migration decisions are life-changing and involve considerable financial and emotional investments, it is important that prospective migrants have confidence in the professionalism and integrity of their migration agents.” Stone said the change provided an opportunity to extend the authority’s scope to include education agents. “That way the reputation of the sector may be better protected,” she said. But Evans’s office told Campus Review it would be impossible for Australia to regulate offshore education agents, who are subject to the laws of the countries where they operate. And any onshore agents who provide immigration advice are subject to the provisions of Australia’s Migration Act, which requires them to be registered migration agents. Evans’s office said the Education Services for Overseas Students Act also provided some coverage. The national code of practice established under the ESOS Act bars education providers from accepting students from education agents known or suspected to be providing unauthorised immigration advice. See also ‘Suspect UK colleges lose visa rights’, (CR, 06.04.09), this issue.