Raygan and Migration Agents Registration Authority

This matter concerned an appeal by a registered migration agent against a decision by the Migration Agents Registration Authority (MARA) to cancel his registration. MARA had cancelled the agent's registration based on findings that he had failed to comply with numerous clauses of the Migration Agents Code of Conduct, and that he was not a person of integrity or otherwise a fit and proper person to provide immigration assistance. The agent had received multiple complaints from clients and the Department of Immigration and Border Protection between November 2016 and December 2017, leading to MARA issuing notices and requests for information before ultimately making the cancellation decision.

The primary legal issues before the court were whether the agent had breached the specified clauses of the Code of Conduct, and whether these breaches, or other conduct, demonstrated that he was not a person of integrity or a fit and proper person to provide immigration assistance, thereby justifying the cancellation of his registration. The court was also required to consider whether the agent's conduct in responding to allegations and complaints, including the evidence he gave before the Tribunal, was relevant to assessing his integrity and fitness to practice.

The court applied principles of statutory construction, commencing with the text of the relevant provisions of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth) and the Migration Agents Regulations 1998, and considering their context and purpose. It found that the agent had indeed failed to comply with various administrative and professional conduct clauses of the Code, including those relating to fees, record-keeping, and the provision of accurate client information. The court specifically noted that the agent's use of template responses for visa applications, which failed to address individual client circumstances, demonstrated a fundamental misunderstanding of the requirements for protection visa applications and was likely to be inaccurate and misleading. Furthermore, the court considered the agent's conduct in responding to MARA's investigations and his evidence before the Tribunal, concluding that his provision of false and inconsistent evidence directly impacted his integrity and fitness to operate as an immigration agent.

The court affirmed MARA's decision to cancel the applicant's registration as a migration agent.