Migration Agents Registration Application Charge Amendment (Rates of Charge) Regulations 2020

I, General the Honourable David Hurley AC DSC (Retd), Governor‑General of the Commonwealth of Australia, acting with the advice of the Federal Executive Council, make the following regulations.

Dated 06 August 2020

David Hurley

Governor‑General

By His Excellency’s Command

Jason Wood

Assistant Minister for Customs, Community Safety and Multicultural Affairs
Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Home Affairs

Contents

1 Name

2 Commencement

3 Authority

4 Schedules

Schedule 1—Amendments

Migration Agents Registration Application Charge Regulations 1998

1  Name

  This instrument is the Migration Agents Registration Application Charge Amendment (Rates of Charge) Regulations 2020.

2  Commencement

 (1) Each provision of this instrument specified in column 1 of the table commences, or is taken to have commenced, in accordance with column 2 of the table. Any other statement in column 2 has effect according to its terms.

Note: This table relates only to the provisions of this instrument as originally made. It will not be amended to deal with any later amendments of this instrument.

 (2) Any information in column 3 of the table is not part of this instrument. Information may be inserted in this column, or information in it may be edited, in any published version of this instrument.

3  Authority

  This instrument is made under the Migration Agents Registration Application Charge Act 1997.

4  Schedules

  Each instrument that is specified in a Schedule to this instrument is amended or repealed as set out in the applicable items in the Schedule concerned, and any other item in a Schedule to this instrument has effect according to its terms.

Schedule 1—Amendments

Migration Agents Registration Application Charge Regulations 1998

1  Subregulation 3(1)

Omit “(1) In these Regulations”, substitute “In these Regulations”.

2  Subregulation 3(1)

Insert:

repeat registration has the same meaning as in the Migration Agents Regulations 1988.

3  Subregulation 3(2)

Repeal the subregulation.

4  Part 2 (heading)

Repeal the heading, substitute:

Part 2—General charge and non‑commercial application charge

5  Regulation 4 (heading)

Repeal the heading, substitute:

4  Amount of general charge

6  Subregulation 4(2)

Omit “Act:”, substitute “Act, the amount of general charge payable is as follows:”.

7  Paragraph 4(2)(a)

Omit “charge”, substitute “general charge”.

8  Paragraph 4(2)(a)

Omit “and”.

9  Paragraph 4(2)(b)

Omit “charge”, substitute “general charge”.

10  Regulation 5 (heading)

Repeal the heading, substitute:

5  Amount of non‑commercial application charge

11  Subregulation 5(1)

Repeal the subregulation, substitute:

 (1) This regulation applies to an individual who intends to provide immigration assistance on a non‑commercial basis.

12  Subregulation 5(2)

Omit “Act:”, substitute “Act, the amount of non‑commercial application charge payable is as follows:”.

13  Paragraph 5(2)(a)

Omit “charge”, substitute “non‑commercial application charge”.

14  Paragraph 5(2)(a)

Omit “and”.

15  Paragraph 5(2)(b)

Omit “charge”, substitute “non‑commercial application charge”.

16  After regulation 5

Insert:

Part 2A—Charge on basis of status of migration agent

17  Regulation 6

Repeal the regulation, substitute:

6  Working out amount of charge

  For the purposes of the definition of begins in section 3 of the Act, and paragraph (a) of the definition of remaining period in subsection 12(1) of the Act, the first day in the current period of a registered migration agent’s registration on which the agent begins to give immigration assistance otherwise than on a non‑commercial basis is the earliest of the following days:

 (a) the first day in the period on which the agent gives a client an estimate of fees before starting work on behalf of the client;

 (b) the first day in the period on which the agent charges a client a fee for services provided;

 (c) the first day in the period on which the agent is (or becomes) a person associated with, or a member of, an organisation that gives immigration assistance on a commercial, or for‑profit, basis;

 (d) the first day in the period on which the agent is not (or is no longer) a member of, or a person associated with, an organisation that operates in Australia solely:

 (i) on a non‑commercial or non‑profit basis; and

 (ii) as a charity, or for the benefit of the Australian community.

Note: Charity has the meaning given by Part 2 of the Charities Act 2013 (see section 2B of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901).

18  In the appropriate position in Part 3

Insert:

8  Amendments made by the Migration Agents Registration Application Charge Amendment (Rates of Charge) Regulations 2020

  The amendments of these Regulations made by Schedule 1 to the Migration Agents Registration Application Charge Amendment (Rates of Charge) Regulations 2020 apply in relation to:

 (a) an amount of general charge or non‑commercial application charge in respect of a registration application made on or after the commencement of this regulation; and

 (b) an amount of charge imposed under section 10 of the Act (on the basis of the status of a migration agent) in respect of a registered migration agent’s current period of registration resulting from a registration application made on or after the commencement of this regulation.