Bill
Migration Amendment (Australia’s Engagement in the Pacific and Other Measures) Bill 2023
passed, as at 2023-10-26. Home Affairs portfolio.
- Sponsor
- Not recorded
- Portfolio
- Home Affairs
Recorded stages
- introduced — 2023-02-16
- second reading — 2023-02-16
- other — 2023-03-07
- second reading — 2023-03-07
- second reading — 2023-03-08
- other — 2023-03-09
- second reading — 2023-03-09
- third reading — 2023-03-09
- introduced — 2023-03-09
- second reading — 2023-03-09
- second reading — 2023-10-16
- second reading — 2023-10-18
- committee — 2023-10-18
- third reading — 2023-10-18
- other — 2023-10-19
- passed — 2023-10-19
- royal assent — 2023-10-26
Divisions
- The majority voted in favour of a motion "*that the amendment be disagreed to*". The amendment (below) would have refused to give the bill a [second reading](https://peo.gov.au/understand-our-parliament/how-parliament-works/bills-and-laws/making-a-law-in-the-australian-parliament/), meaning that it would have been rejected and not considered any further. ### Amendment text > *That all words after "That" be omitted with a view to substituting the following words:* > > *"whilst welcoming moves to establish a Pacific Engagement Visa, the House:* > > *(1) declines to give the bill a second reading because:* > >> *(a) permanent residency and citizenship of Australia should not be decided by a lottery; and* >> >> *(b) Australia's immigration system should be nation-building with a key focus on the economic contribution immigrants make to our country; and* > > *(2) calls on the Government to develop a new approach to implement the Pacific Engagement Visa."* — 2023-03-09, House of Representatives: affirmative, ayes 86, noes 53
- The majority voted in favour of a [motion](https://www.openaustralia.org.au/debate/?id=2023-03-09.40.1) to agree with the bill's main idea. In other words, they voted to read it for a [second time](https://peo.gov.au/understand-our-parliament/how-parliament-works/bills-and-laws/making-a-law-in-the-australian-parliament/). They can now discuss it in greater detail. ### What is the bill's main idea? According to the [bills digest](https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Bills_Legislation/bd/bd2223a/Migration_Amendment_Australia_Engagement_in_the_Pacific_and_Other_Measures_Bill_2023): > *The purpose of the Migration Amendment (Australia’s Engagement in the Pacific and Other Measures) Bill 2023 (the Amendment Bill) is to amend the Migration Act 1958 to provide for a visa pre-application process to be conducted as part of the application validity criteria for a particular visa.* — 2023-03-09, House of Representatives: affirmative, ayes 86, noes 53
- The majority voted against an amendment to the usual second reading motion, which is "*that the bill be read a second time*" - parliamentary jargon for agreeing with the main idea of the bill. The amendment was introduced by Victorian Senator [James Paterson](https://theyvoteforyou.org.au/people/senate/victoria/james_paterson) (Liberal). ### Amendment text > *Omit all words after "That", substitute ", whilst welcoming moves to establish a Pacific Engagement Visa, the bills be withdrawn and the Senate:* > > *(a) notes that:* > >> *(i) permanent residency and citizenship of Australia should not be decided by a lottery,* >> >> *(ii) Australia's immigration system should be nation-building with a key focus on the economic contribution immigrants make to our country; and* > > *(b) calls on the Government to develop a new approach to implement the Pacific Engagement Visa".* — 2023-10-18, Senate: negative, ayes 28, noes 33
- The majority voted in favour of a [motion](https://www.openaustralia.org.au/debates/?id=2023-10-19.14.2): > *That the [Senate amendments](https://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/search/display/display.w3p;query=Id%3A%22legislation%2Fsched%2Fr6977_sched_698c70dd-21a2-461c-a31a-81b1c0c34a24%22) be agreed to.* This means that both the House of Representatives and the Senate have now agreed to the final wording of the bill, and so it can now become law. ### What does this bill do? [The bill](https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Bills_Legislation/Bills_Search_Results/Result?bId=r6977) was introduced alongside the [Migration (Visa Pre-application Process) Charge Bill 2023](https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Bills_Legislation/Bills_Search_Results/Result?bId=r6978). According to the [bills digest](https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Bills_Legislation/bd/bd2223a/Migration_Amendment_Australia_Engagement_in_the_Pacific_and_Other_Measures_Bill_2023), which is a document prepared by the non-partisan parliamentary library: > * *The Bills provide for a visa pre-application process – a ballot – to be conducted as part of the application validity criteria for a specified visa. This is a process which does not currently exist in the Migration Act 1958 and its introduction would be a new approach for visa processing in Australia.* > > * *The visa pre-application process would be distinct from the visa application though ‘eligibility requirements for registration in a ballot will reflect some of the key objective criteria for the grant of the relevant visa’.* > > * *The insertion of the visa pre-application process is in order to support the Government’s election commitment to introduce a new permanent Pacific Engagement Visa, which is intended to strengthen ties with the Pacific region. The new visa would be introduced into the Migration Regulations 1994 following passage of the Bills.* > > * *The provisions would allow a visa pre-application process to appl — 2023-10-19, House of Representatives: affirmative, ayes 84, noes 49
Plain-language summary
Written by a model from the explanatory memorandum; not the record, as at 2023-02-16.
This bill is part of a package that would allow the Minister to run a random selection process, called a ballot, to choose who can apply for certain visas.
The bill would insert a new section into the Migration Act 1958 giving the Minister power to set up a ballot and make rules about who can enter it, with those rules subject to parliamentary disallowance.
The primary purpose is to support a new Pacific Engagement Visa for citizens of Pacific countries and Timor-Leste, with an annual quota and eligibility criteria including a job offer, to be set later in regulations.
- Creates a legislative framework for the Minister to conduct a ballot to select eligible visa applicants.
- Allows regulations to require a person to have been selected in a ballot before they can make a valid visa application.
- Supports the creation of the Pacific Engagement Visa, a new permanent residence visa for citizens of Pacific countries and Timor-Leste.
Citizens of certain Pacific countries and Timor-Leste who may apply for the Pacific Engagement Visa, and potentially applicants for other visas if the government decides to use the ballot process for them.
Sources
em
billhome
frl act