EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
STATUTORY RULES NO. 47 of 1989
Migration Regulations (Amendments)
Issued by the authority of the
Minister for Immigration,
Local Government and Ethnic Affairs
Subject - Migration Act 1958
Migration Regulations (Amendment)
Section 67 of the Migration Act 1958 (the Act), provides that the Governor-General may make regulations, not inconsistent with the Act, prescribing all matters required or permitted by the Act to be prescribed including the requiring of an assurance of support to be given in such circumstances as prescribed or as the Minister thinks fit and providing for their enforcement and imposition.
The amending regulations amended the Migration Regulations (the Regulations) as follows:
(a) Pursuant to regulation 21 the Minister may require an assurance of support to be given in relation to a person(s) who is seeking to enter or remain in Australia.
Paragraph 20(1)(c) of the Regulations, as currently drafted, defines “support” as including an allowance for the support of the person, paid to or in respect of that person and including a special benefit payable under Division 6 of Part VII of the Social Security Act 1947 (the Social Security Act) but not including any other benefit or allowance under that Act.
The amendments to paragraph 20(1)(c):
(i) expanded the definition of “support”, in the context of assurances of support, to include the receipt of unemployment benefits paid under section 116 of the Social Security Act. The amendment is a result of the Government’s response to the Report of the Committee to Advise on Australia’s Immigration Policies (CAAIP); and
(ii) amended the reference to “Division 6 of Part VII of the Social Security Act 1947” to read “Division 6 of Part XIII of that Act”. This amendment brings the Regulation into line with the amendments made to the Social Security Act by the Social Security Legislation Amendment Act 1988.
(b) Where support has been provided by the Commonwealth in respect of the person, the funds expended in the form of the support are a debt due and payable to the Commonwealth by the person who gave the assurance of support. Such a debt may be recovered in a court of competent jurisdication (subregulations 22(1) and (2) of the Regulations).
As a result of the 1988 Budget related amendments to the Social Security Act, which bring Assurance of Support debts within the range of debts covered by the Social Security Act the Minister for Social Security has been given the power to write off any debt due to the Commonwealth arising under the assurance of support scheme. This power is currently contained in subregulation 22(3) of the Migration Regulations.
The amendment repealed subregulation 22(3), which is unnecessary by virtue of the amendments to the Social Security Act.
(c) Subregulation 5(5) of the Regulations contained a grammatical error which related to the word “intends” in sub paragraph (a)(ii) when used in conjunction with the word “passengers” in paragraph (a). The technical amendment rectified this error.
Authority: Section 67 of the Migration Act 1958