Julian Leeser (Berowra, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on this motion moved by the member for Bruce. Like me, the member for Bruce—as he often refers to me as the other Julian; he, in this case, is the other Julian—is a member of the Joint Standing Committee on Migration, which I chair. The member for Bruce has raised these issues of partner visas with the Department of Home Affairs when they appeared before the committee in the context of our present inquiry into working holiday-maker visas. I know that this has been an issue of concern to him for some time.

I want to say that the COVID-19 situation has meant that the ability of people to come to Australia, even Australian citizens let alone people's non-Australian partners, has been significantly curtailed as a result of international and domestic border closures both in Australia and overseas. My office, like those of many other members, has received multiple inquiries about Australians seeking to travel to see family in other countries, to return to Australia from overseas and to bring partners and family members to Australia. While there is increased attention being paid to the issue of Australians overseas, it's worth noting that since 13 March the Australian government has helped over 27,000 Australian citizens and permanent residents return to Australia on more than 345 flights, including 64 flights directly facilitated by the government. The international passenger arrival caps are putting pressure on seats and the ability for people seeking to return to Australia quickly. These caps are being reviewed every fortnight, with the next review to take place on Friday 4 September.

Australians seeking to return should remain in regular contact with their airlines and travel agents to confirm their arrangements and subscribe to our travel advice at smartraveller.gov.au. I know from my contact with consular teams in other countries, particularly the high commission in India who I spent some time with in January this year, they are doing their best to help people out.

In the partner visa context, it is right to acknowledge for those waiting for partner visas that things have become much harder because of the COVID circumstances. While visa applications are continuing to be processed, people are experiencing many uncertainties with flights cancelled, weddings uncertain, very real health risks involved in travelling and no clarity about when the situation will change. All of this is added to the stress associated with visa applications in general.

Some applicants are also finding it difficult to get checks that they need to be processed in their own home countries. Services like biometric tests may not be currently available, and this means that their visa applications cannot be progressed and finalised. It's a reality, and it's difficult and frustrating for the people there to experience. Those in these difficult situations should be aware that if they do not yet hold a partner visa they are able to apply for a temporary visa and request travel exemption. Prospective marriage visa holders can also apply for an exemption to the current travel ban if they have compelling and compassionate reasons to travel to Australia.

Family migration is an important part of our migration program. The most common visas in the family migration category are partner visas. In 2018-19 there were 39,918 people coming to Australia on partner visas. This is actually a very significant figure when you consider that there were 119,188 marriages in the same year. That means for every three couples in Australia that were married, there was a partner visa granted to someone who came to Australia and built their life with the people they love. I think that this indicates we actually have a high number of people successfully obtaining partner visas each year.

I want to make clear that, contrary to what the member for Bruce has implied, the partner visa program isn't capped. While there is a cap on the overall number of migrants who come to Australia, there's no limit on the number of partner visas that can be granted. While section 85 of the Migration Act allows for the imposition of caps on visas of a specific class, that cannot be done for partner visas because of section 87.

Partner visa applications involve a two-stage processing arrangement to protect the integrity of the visa program. An applicant must be in a genuine and continuing relationship with their sponsor at both stages in order to be granted a permanent visa. This ensures that we are looking at people who are in serious, long-term committed relationships.

The public have every right to have confidence in the system and to have confidence that those who come here come here legitimately. The truth is that partner visas have been abused in the past. In 2012 The West Australian reported a marriage scam in Queensland, with a migration agent charging $18,000 to match people to Australians for bogus marriages. In the same year the Department of Home Affairs told a Senate inquiry that around nine per cent of prospective marriage visas are refused because the genuineness of that relationship could not be satisfied in that same year. In 2018 the Herald Sun reported that, over the four years prior, nearly 1,500 applications for partner visas were thrown out due to fraud.

So there have been concerns about the partner visa process and the genuineness. It's important that those concern are addressed and that people are properly assessed. While the partner visa process is burdensome for those who legitimately want to build a life together here in Australia, it's essential that it's rigorous because experience demonstrates that it can be and will be abused.

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