According to a senior migration law partner, the Australian migration law profession is in need of an overhaul. Holding Redlich immigration law partner Maria Jockel said the “fleeting nature” of those that work in the migration advice industry means the industry is not well enough regulated.
The comments from Jockel are in light of a new report by the Federal Government’s Office of Migration Agents Registration Authority (OMARA), which showed that 70 percent of migration agents did not re-register after the first year. “These figures suggest there is no longevity in the industry,” said Jockle. “There is also strong evidence that many unregistered agents are working in the industry and continue to thrive and prosper.”
Jockel said for people working in an area of law covered by more than 3000 pages of legislation, 16,000 pages of policy guidelines and about 150 visa categories that are constantly changing, it is an issue that some registered agents are not qualified legal practitioners. “For an area of law which is vitally important to Australia and is extremely complex and constantly changing, it is a real concern that most migration agents are not legally qualified."
In recent times the energy and mining booms of Western Australia and Queensland have led to an increase in the need for skilled overseas foreign workers, which has had also caused a boom for migration law advice.
However, Robert Walsh, managing partner Australia and New Zealand for global immigration law firm Fragomen Global, said the figures could be a result of lawyers becoming registered agents, in order to diversify their practice, and them then finding it not as easy path as they first thought; which is why they don’t re-register. He added that given the completion of a graduate certificate is required for non-lawyers, there is room for lawyers and non-lawyers within the profession: “As a firm, which is a full service immigration law firm, we believe strongly that there is a legitimate role for both lawyers and agents in the provision of immigration advice and visa services to clients.”
However, Jockel is calling for the industry to be better regulated: “There is a real concern that the standards that the OMARA use to determine if someone is fit and proper to become a migration agent are inadequate,” she said. “There should be a complete review of the migration advice industry and the basis upon which someone becomes registered as an agent. Professional standards need to be raised.”
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