FAMILIES are being torn apart as a result of low standards for migration agents, Tamworth lawyer Mark Lyden said.
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The town’s only immigration law solicitor has welcomed a federal government enquiry into regulation of registered migration agents.
“Any Tom, Dick or Harry can get a diploma, register with Office of the Migration Agent’s Registration Authority and start providing migration services,” he said.
“That’s caused a problem because these people don’t match up to the standards they should when you’re dealing with issues critical to people’s lives.”
Migration lawyers and registered agents do the same job, but lawyers must have an undergraduate degree and practice for a minimum of two years under the supervision of a senior lawyer.
It’s as simple as this, whole members of families can be permanently separated, it can be that bad.
- Mark Lyden
Lawyers have to hold a practicing certificate by the state law society, and OMARA.
More than 40 per cent of Mr Lyden’s legal work is for migrants, and he’s seen what happens when VISA applications go wrong.
“It really is a complex area of law, there’s a qualitative difference in the skill and the training compared with somebody off the street who’s got a diploma,” he said.
“It’s as simple as this, whole members of families can be permanently separated, it can be that bad.
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“I’ve seen people who have made simple mistakes in their VISA applications and have had to pack up and go home, there are terrible consequences for people who get it wrong.”
The Joint Standing Committee on Migration will look into the nature and prevalence of fraud in Australian migration agents.
Penalties for those breaking the law will be reviewed, and the investigation is designed to deliver a series of recommendations to combat unlicensed immigration agents.
Mr Lyden has been a lawyer for 17 years and said he wouldn’t advise anyone about a matter he didn’t fully understand.
“I don’t think lawyers need to be double regulated because we are inherently conservative,” he said.
“We need a strong regulator to keep control over the other aspect of the profession which is people who aren’t lawyers, and I think that’s what this enquiry is all about.”
Madeline Link
Madeline Link is a journalist at the Newcastle Herald, with a focus on Lake Macquarie City Council. To keep up with my stories, follow my Twitter @madeline_link, for tips email madeline.link@newcastleherald.com.au.
Madeline Link is a journalist at the Newcastle Herald, with a focus on Lake Macquarie City Council. To keep up with my stories, follow my Twitter @madeline_link, for tips email madeline.link@newcastleherald.com.au.
