LML6001 Practitioner Legal Skills For Australian Migration Law Assignment Sample

Introduction: Registered Migration Agent Duties Under Australian Law

A. Key Obligations and Ethical Duties of Registered Migration Agents

According to the current Migration (Migration Agent Code of Conduct) Regulations 2021, it was evaluated that there are different obligations which the registered migration agent needs to follow. By referring to the different situations, the registered migrant agent needs to follow the different obligations and also needs to accomplish them well [1]. Subsection 314 (2) of the Migration Act outlines that a Registered Migration Agent (RMA) must work or conduct the work by the prescribed code of conduct only. It is due to the reason that when the code of conduct is not followed, then the working will not be effective and people will not be working with the registered agents. The most common obligation which the registered migrant agent has is to treat all persons appropriately without any discrimination.

Along with this, it is the obligation of the migrant agent to act ethically and honestly and not promote any unethical work. For instance, the migrant agent must not support any of the cases relating to sex trafficking, human trafficking or any other illegal activity. Rather, they must support genuine immigration cases so that effective working can be promoted with due diligence. Thereafter, when the registered migrant agent is working well and is fulfilling all the obligations, then it will be improving the working standard and all the expenses of the people will be reduced [2]. Moreover, it is the obligation of the agent that they do not make any false or misleading statements. It is necessary in case any wrong information is supplied by the agent and it impacts the person coming for a visa; then ultimately it will affect the process in a great way. Thus, resultantly, the working will be improved and eventually the duties of the registered agent will be fulfilled well.

In addition to this, it is the utmost responsibility of the migrant agent that they must not act against the code of conduct provided by Australia’s immigration system [3]. This is because of the reason that in case the guidance is provided by Australia’s immigration system, then the working will not be effective. Thus, it is the responsibility of the migrant agent that they must follow all the guidance provided and must act with due diligence. In case work with diligence is not implemented, then automatically it will affect the overall work and as a result of this, the work will be impacted. In addition to this, it is the obligation of the RMA that they maintain a proper set of skills and knowledge so that they can give effective immigration assistance [4]. The agent must possess the necessary skills and sufficient knowledge so that the proper assistance can be given to the immigrants. In case effective assistance is not provided, then it will impact the overall work and as a result, this duty of the RMA will not be fulfilled. Along with this, it is necessary for the RMA that they effectively follow all the obligations listed in the code of conduct. Moreover, with the analysis of the code of conduct, it was also analysed that there needs to be a good agent-client relationship maintained so that the work can be managed well and ultimately the objective of the RMA is fulfilled well.

B. Ethical Compliance and Penalties for Registered Migration Agents in Australia

According to both the current Migration (Migration Agents Code of Conduct) Regulations 2021 (Cth) and the Migration Act 1958 (Cth), in case the RMA practises any illegal activity or activity other than the list of obligations, then it will be greatly impacting the work. Within the extract above, the misconduct was taking place as there were fewer penalties and punishment for any misconduct [5]. Hence, the RMA thinks of using unlawful activities to earn more of the profits which is wrong. This impacts the working of the RMA to a great extent and in case they promote unlawful immigration assistance, then also they will not be punished because of this, the RMA tries to conduct illegal activities so that they can earn more profits. But according to the guidelines it is unethical and also the working will not be improved.

Thus, according to section 19 (1), it is clear the RMS must not give any immigration assistance to a client who is not good and its service will be futile [6]. For instance, the RMA knows that the purpose of immigration is modern slavery and then also they are providing the service to that person, which will create issues for the RMA. Thus, the RMA mustn't breach any of its obligations or duties. In case it is breached, then automatically the penalties will be charged and imprisonment may take place [7]. But in the Australian system, the penalties are very high, and against this, the revenue is more and because of this, the RMA tends to follow unlawful activities. Thus, in case the RMA is breaching this obligation, then they must comply with the duty of working ethically and professionally. In case effective working will be done and it will be done by the professional standard and considering all the ethical aspects, then it will improve the overall work.

Thus, when the RMA agrees to all the different obligations, then automatically the obligations will be met. Moreover, for the RMA to be successful, the obligations outlined in the Code of conduct within the act must be followed in any kind of situation. For instance, in case RMA sees any wrongdoing taking place, then they must comply with the duties and obligations listed in the act so that the overall working can be improved and their duties are fulfilled well. This will guide the RMA in implementing the duties well and also can refer to the previous examples of similar cases, which will act as guidance to the working.

C. Penalties, Licence Cancellation, and Case Law for Breaching RMA Duties

In case the person is providing some of the immigration assistance whereas they are not allowed to do it according to the law, then in such a case the penalty can be up to 10 years of imprisonment. Also, in case there is a breach of any of the duties or obligations of the RMA then the registration might also be cancelled and will be refrained from acting as the RMA. Moreover, the licence or the registration certificate for operating as the RMA will be cancelled and as a result the overall efficiency of the person will be reduced [8]. They will not be allowed to provide any immigration assistance in the future and will not interact with the client. Moreover, in case the confidentiality of the client is also breached, then the agent will be suspended from working and their licence to operate can be taken off.

Concerning this, in Amin & Migration Agents Registration Authority [2005] AATA 257, it was outlined that AAT confirmed the decision to cancel the registration of Boni Amin and also refused the application for re-registration as RMA. It was the reason that MARA was not satisfied that Boni was a fit and proper person for giving immigration assistance and as a result, he has previously breached many of the obligations and many clients even lodged complaints against him [9]. Thus, keeping in mind all these aspects, the licence to operate as the RMA was cancelled and also the re-registration did not take place.