Norfolk Island - transitional migration and Australian citizenship amendments

Legislative Instrument - F2016L00725 - Migration Legislation Amendment (2016 Measures No. 2) Regulation 2016. 

The Instrument above amends the Migration Regulations 1994 and the Australian Citizenship Regulations 2007 to update immigration and citizenship policy, and to transition foreign nationals who are lawfully on Norfolk Island to appropriate Australian visas that are comparable to their entry permit or residence status on Norfolk Island.

Currently, Commonwealth immigration law does not extend to Norfolk Island and is regulated by specific Norfolk Island Regulations.  These Regulations will be repealed on 1 July 2016 and be replaced by the Migration Act 1958.

On 1 July all non-citizens who hold a permit under Norfolk Island Immigration legislation will be 'deemed' to hold a comparable Australian visa, under the transitional arrangements of the Norfolk Island Legislation Amendment Act 2015.

This Amendment Act amends the Migration Regulations to: 

• create an alternative set of criteria for the grant of a Subclass 159 (Provisional Resident Return) visa and Subclass 808 (Confirmatory (Residence)) visa in Schedule 2 to the Migration Regulations for the Norfolk Island cohort; and

• extend the period that the Subclass 159 visa is in effect for this cohort. This will enable holders of this visa to meet the necessary period of residency to be eligible for grant of a Subclass 808 (Confirmatory (Residence)) visa, which is a permanent visa.

The Citizenship Regulations will also be amended to:

• allow citizenship application fees, and refund of citizenship application fees where appropriate, to be paid in foreign currencies and in foreign countries;

• ensure that subregulation 12A(7) accurately refers to the correct Instruments made under regulation 5.36 of the Migration Regulations 1994; and

• ensure that applicants are only refunded an amount equivalent to the test component charged at the time they applied for citizenship.

This Instrument will commence on 1 July 2016.

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Amendments to Migration Regulations - Migration Amendment (2015 Measures No.1) Regulation 2015

Migration Amendment (2015 Measures No.1) Regulation 2015 amends the Migration Regulations to:

• Foreign air crew: limit the number of domestic flights that foreign aircrew are permitted to work on while holding a Special Purpose visa.  The amendments provide a limit of two connecting domestic flights for foreign air crew and one connecting domestic flight for positioning foreign air crew (persons forming crew on departure).  This ensures that opportunities for Australian workers on domestic flights are protected;​

• English test validity for points tested visas: allow an English language test score to be accepted for points tested skilled visas if the test was conducted three years before the applicant was invited to apply for the visa, rather than three years before the application was lodged. This ensures that English test scores do not become invalid between the invitation to apply for the visa and the application being lodged;

• English for subclass 485 visa & subclass 476 visa: enable lower English language test scores to be specified for the Skilled Recognised Graduate and Temporary Graduate visas so that these visas can be more responsive to Australia’s labour market requirements.  The tests and scores will be specified in an instrument made by the Minister;

• Visa form and lodgement changes: provide that the visa application form, the place in which a visa application must be lodged and the manner in which a visa application must be made (for example by internet or paper) are specified in an instrument made by the Minister, rather than set out in the Migration Regulations. This enables these administrative details to be changed more rapidly, as required, to facilitate more efficient processing arrangements;

• Employer notification time extended: extend the timeframes in which an approved sponsor must notify the department of certain events relating to the sponsored person (for example, a change in work duties).  The amendment extends the timeframe from 10 working days to 28 calendar days to ensure there is sufficient time to comply with the requirement. It also reduces confusion for businesses as it would align with other comparable reporting periods that must be met by business;

• Change to 485 medical examination requirements: repeal the requirement that an applicant for a Temporary Graduate visa must provide evidence of having made arrangements for medical examinations at the time of application for the visa. The amendment removes an unnecessary burden on applicants as many applicants may not be required to have a medical examination to meet the health requirement at the time of decision for the visa;

This Select Legislative Instrument will commence on 18 April 2015.

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Skills assessment validity period - 3 years from the date of issue

Following amendments to the Migration Regulations 1994, from 1 July 2014, if a skills assessment is mandatory as part of a visa application, it will only be valid for a period of 3 years from the date of issue, unless a shorter validity period is specified on the assessment.

A skills assessment must be valid at the time of lodgement for the following visas:

• Direct Entry stream of the Employer Nominated Scheme (subclass 186) visa;
• Direct Entry stream of the Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme (subclass 187) visa; and
• Graduate Work stream of the Temporary Graduate (subclass 485) visa.

A skills assessment must be valid at the time of invitation to apply through SkillSelect for the following visas:

• Skilled—Independent (subclass 189) visa;
• Skilled—Nominated (subclass 190) visa; and
• Skilled Regional (Provisional) (subclass 489) visa.

These changes do not affect the Temporary Work (Skilled)(subclass 457) visa.

 

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