Amendment of visa applications by Australian immigration

SUMMARY OF VISA CHANGES IN AUSTRALIA IN NOVEMBER
Australian immigration has undergone a number of important changes during November:

• The introduction of sponsored parent visas is postponed.
• Some Changes to the 4020 Public Interest Fraud Criteria
• New requirements for health insurance and not having a health care debt
• New conditions stipulating that temporary residents must use a unique identity when dealing with government departments and not engage in criminal conduct.

These changes will influence visa applicants.

Temporary Sponsored Parent Visa Update
The government had previously made an announcement about the introduction of sponsored parent visas in November 2017. Legislation called the Immigration Amendment – Family Violence and Other Measures – has not been approved by the Senate. It is currently on the Senate Committee for consideration. More information on this topic was expected.

Changes to the 4020 Fraud Public Interest Criteria
Changes have been initiated to Public Interest Criteria 4020. This will result in the rejection of visa applications when misleading or false information is provided. Until now, Immigration would look at the information provided in the current application to be processed; or on a visa that the applicant has withheld in the last year; or an application that has been rejected in the last 3 years, but now the changes mean that an application is liable to be rejected if misleading or false information is provided for Visas held / applied in the last 10 years. False information in a visa application affects future applications for ten years. This clause is valid and will apply to any visa application made within the last 10 years, whether the application is delivered, rejected or withdrawn.

A common problem in 4020 is the lack of a criminal record statement when submitting a visa application. The visa application form must include a statement about previous offenses. When it doesn’t complete successfully, it can initiate 4020 problems. This affects both present and future applications, for the next ten years. These changes work with the objective that misleading or false information is not provided in the visa application.

Public health debts
The Australian government is concerned about the health care costs incurred by temporary visa holders in Australia that have not been reimbursed. The 8602 visa status requires that temporary visa applicants have no outstanding public health debt. This applies to all medical costs owed to the Australian State / Territory / Federal governments. Should this happen, it could lead to the cancellation of existing visas and also make it difficult to obtain successive visas.

Clarified health insurance requirements
Temporary visas require that an applicant must have adequate medical insurance to grant them and that they must also continue to keep them in Australia on their visas. Now the “adequate additional arrangements for health insurance” are established beyond the Migration Regulations. This allows the Minister to specify the type of health insurance that meets the needs of visas. New health conditions affect people in need of medical treatment and lead to adequate health insurance.

Unique Identity Condition 8304
In an attempt to reduce the risk of identity fraud, a new 8304 visa condition has been introduced that requires all temporary visa holders to use a single identity when dealing with the Australian federal government or their state / territory; and If the visa holder changes their name, it must be notified to the relevant agencies with which they are negotiating at an early date and ensure that the change takes effect.

Condition of criminal conduct 8564 and Condition of violent / disruptive activities 8303
Condition 8564 prohibits the visa holder from engaging in criminal activities in Australia.

Condition 8303 has been expanded to prohibit activities that may put people in danger or threaten them. This will make it easier for Immigration to cancel temporary visas for people involved in criminal / dangerous activities in Australia.