Parents reunion visa holders to change the email address, online information should be informed to government. (picture of Australian Broadcasting Corporation)
"According to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, an Australian immigrant parent, who has a new reunion visa, is likely to be deported if the online user name or personal online information is not notified of the online user name or personal online information."
Under the rule, parents are required to notify authorities two days before making changes, which immigrants say is "almost absurd."
Federal government announced in March that it would launch a new parent reunion visa. Application channels were officially opened this month, with an annual quota ceiling of 15000.
Parents of Australian citizen or permanent residents can apply for two five-year visas and are allowed to live in Australia for up to 10 years at a cost of A $10, 000 for five years.
The visa also requires the applicant`s children to earn at least A $83000 a year to qualify. Although visa fees are not low and parents are required to have health insurance, government expects a surge in applications.
Mohammad Al-Khafaji, chief executive of alliance (Federation of Ethnic Communities Councils), the Australian National Community Council, called it an important visa for family reunion and criticized strict requirements for visa holders to change their personal data to the government circulate a notice.
"I think most Australians will agree that some of these [visa] terms are cumbersome and do not give parents room for making mistakes in visa holders. Our government should provide a sense of home for family reunion and not impose as severe penalties as deportation for minor negligence in administrative issuances. Especially should be imposed on elderly parents."
(Department of Home Affairs) speaker, the interior ministry, said the terms "simply require visa holders to notify the interior ministry of changes in their personal data and contact details."
The department did not specify which user names or changes in online personal data to which the provision applies, saying only that "user names and personal online data from Instagram or other social media platforms are not included."
Visa terms and conditions
The relevant visa terms formally require visa holders to notify government of the situation at least two working days before changing their name, address, telephone number, email address, "user name" and "holder online information".
The rules have been in place since 2013, but so far only apply to detainees on short-term bridge visas and frequent Chinese tourists to Australia. Australian Immigration Association (Migration)
Horrigan (John Hourigan), Institute of Australia) `s all-parliament chief, said no one had so far been found to have been revoked because of the clause, but he also called for a revision of the rules applicable to parents` visas, saying "the feasibility of the clause is almost absurd."
