Australian migration agents use their knowledge of Australian visa and immigration law to assist individuals wanting to migrate to Australia. This assistance can be anything from the completion of applicable forms to representing individuals when dealing with the department of Immigration and Border Protection. Anybody working as a migration agent should be registered with MARA, the Migration Institute of Australia.
Migration laws and VISA categories are constantly being revised and sometime undergo drastic changes. As such, all migration agents are required to undergo continuing Professional development (CPD) each year and officially re-register. Most individuals working as Migration agents have qualifications as lawyers, chartered accountants or a graduate certificate in Australian Migration Law and Practice. A few agents registered before 2006 do not have these formal qualifications.
Migration Agent
Migration agents are expected to be ethical, honest, to work within legal parameters and always act with the best interests of their clients. The MARA will penalize or bar any agent determined to be acting outside these requirements.
The MARA office for registering and assessing the performance of migration agents is located in Sydney, but operates nationally.