Indians have been charged up to $50,000 to jump the visa migration queue, it has been claimed. The announcement comes at a time when a major investigation has been launched into widespread migration fraud.
The Department of Immigration and Border Protection (DIBP) has confirmed it is investigating a couple who run a well-known chain of Indian restaurants. The founders of Maya Masala are being questioned over claims they have been selling access to 457 visas and jobs in their restaurants.
The couple, who are currently going through a divorce, have denied the allegations, but stand accused by a licensed migration agent and visa applicants of offering to sponsor people applying for jobs with them in return for up-front payments.
There are also claims from former Ethnic Communities Council head Suresh Rajan that visa scams are rife in Western Australia and that he has been warning the Australian government for years that a crackdown was needed, but little appeared to have been done.
This case comes after Immigration Minister Scott Morrison last week confirmed he has ordered an urgent investigation into claims that up to 90% of skilled visas may be fraudulent.
Now, DIBP Secretary Martin Bowles says that reports alleging widespread migration fraud are of great concern.
‘Serious claims have been made against the Department of Immigration and Border Protection calling into question the integrity of Australia’s migration and visa programmes. These allegations, include that migration fraud is going undetected and is not being appropriately investigated,’ he said in a statement.
‘While the department does its utmost to combat fraud and is continually strengthening its integrity processes, including through close cooperation with other Australian government and international agencies, I acknowledge this is a challenging space and, sadly, there will always be a minority of people who try to profit from vulnerable people or those who try to thwart the system and enter Australia on a fraudulent basis.’
‘Let me assure you the overwhelming majority of people who travel to, or migrate to, Australia do so lawfully. And when the department receives information suggesting otherwise, it acts on it. There is rigour in the department’s processes, but there is also always room to improve,’ he added.
He also pointed out that some of the information obtained through Freedom of Information is ‘several years old and does not reflect the work the department has done since those reports were published and is currently doing to combat fraud. In fact, significant and widespread changes have since occurred to our migration and visa programmes to bolster integrity and facilitate genuine entry to Australia,’ said Bowles.
He explained that in 2013/2014 there were more than 35 million movements across Australia’s borders with 3,121 people refused immigration clearance, an increase of almost 35% on the previous year, adding that this reflects improved targeting of people of concern.
‘At the core of these allegations is the suggestion that Australia’s visa programmes are being systematically rorted. In fact, the department has been working hard to deliver measures to ensure the integrity of our visa programmes. These include changes to the public interest criterion (PIC 4020) to ensure, if we are not satisfied of someone’s identity, or if they provide false or misleading information in their visa application, they are not granted a visa. In fact, since its introduction in April 2011, more than 5540 visas had been refused under PIC 4020,’ he continued.
‘The government is considering recommendations made by an independent integrity review of the subclass 457 visa. The department has, in recent years, implemented widespread changes to increase the integrity of the student visa programme,’ he added.