Overview

The Migration Agents Regulations 1998 were enacted to regulate the activities of migration agents in Australia, ensuring that they are adequately trained and qualified. The Explanatory Statement for the F2010L00982 Notice, made under clause 3 of Schedule 1 to the Regulations, specifies activities involving Private Study of Audio, Video, or Written Material as approved for the purposes of Continuing Professional Development for registered migration agents. This Notice was introduced by the Migration Agents Registration Authority, which operates under the Migration Act 1958, to refine and update the approved activities list for professional development. The policy objective of this Notice is to maintain the competency and reliability of migration agents by ensuring they engage in relevant and updated professional development activities. The Notice revokes a previous listing of approved activities and sets out new activities, effective from 1 April 1998, to avoid disadvantaging agents who completed activities before the Notice was published.

Scope and Application

The Explanatory Statement outlines that the Migration Agents Regulations 1998 are subject to amendments through notices published by the Migration Agents Registration Authority (the 'Authority'), which specify approved activities for the purposes of Continuing Professional Development (CPD) for registered migration agents. This particular notice revises the approved activities involving Private Study of Audio, Video, or Written Material, conferring points on new activities, revoking the previous listing, and altering certain specified activities. The notice is of a minor or machinery nature, does not substantially alter existing CPD arrangements, and is effective as of 1 April 1998. The retrospective application ensures that migration agents can claim credit for CPD activities completed within 12 months prior to applying for repeat registration, without any disadvantage to the agents or the Commonwealth, as long as the activities are undertaken before the notice is registered on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments.

Key Provisions

The key operative sections of this legislation, under the Migration Agents Regulations 1998, involve the specification of approved activities for Continuing Professional Development (CPD) for registered migration agents. This is made possible under clause 3 of Schedule 1 of the Regulations, which allows the Migration Agents Registration Authority (the 'Authority') to specify approved CPD activities via a notice on its website (paragraph 2). To re-register under section 290A of the Migration Act 1958, all registered migration agents must complete approved CPD activities that have a value of at least 10 points (paragraph 2). The primary focus of this notice is to detail specific activities involving private study of audio, video, or written material that are approved for CPD purposes (paragraph 3). The obligations imposed by this Act on the parties it governs, namely registered migration agents, are primarily concerned with the completion of approved CPD activities. These activities must have a value of at least 10 points for agents to re-register under section 290A of the Migration Act 1958 (paragraph 2). The activities that meet the criteria are detailed in Schedules A and B of this notice. Agents must ensure they complete these specified activities within their CPD requirements to maintain their registration status. There are no direct offences, penalties, or civil/criminal consequences outlined in this notice for failing to comply with the specified CPD activities. However, failure to complete the required CPD activities may result in an agent being unable to re-register under section 290A of the Migration Act 1958, potentially leading to the loss of their registration and the ability to practice as a migration agent. The notice ensures that agents are not disadvantaged by the changes by allowing them to claim credit for activities completed within the 12 months prior to applying for repeat registration (paragraph 9). This retrospective approach ensures fairness, as agents can still claim activities that have been withdrawn by this instrument, provided they were undertaken before the instrument was registered on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments (paragraph 10).