DIMA Annual Report 1996-97

Sub-program 1.3: Entry

Objective

To ensure the fast entry and exit of genuine travellers consistent with effective border integrity.

Description

The sub-program, in conjunction with the Australian Customs Service (Customs), provides for timely processing of passengers, through immigration processes, at points of entry to and departure from Australia.

It assists in detecting passengers of concern, particularly those using inappropriate or fraudulent documents.

In the lead-up to the 2000 Olympic and Paralympic Games, it is developing a range of strategies designed to ensure streamlined entry of officials, participants and spectators.

The sub-program also provides systems for the comprehensive collection, storage and retrieval of all movement records.

Policy and procedures for the sub-program are formulated and monitored by Entry Branch, in Central Office.

The sub-program is delivered in the States and Territories by local staff within the framework of the Australian Client Services Division and of the Australian Customs Service.

Overseas interdiction activities are carried out by officers of the Department on posting or on short-term missions.

Financial and staffing resources summary

	1996-97 Budget and AEs $'000s	1996-97 Actual $'000s	1995-96 Actual $'000s
Budgetary (cash) basis
Components of appropriations
Annual appropriations
Running costs	17 570	16 731	19 464
Other program costs	-	-	-
Total appropriations	17 570	16 731	19 464
Less adjustments	-	-	-
Total outlays	17 570	16 731	19 464
Total revenue	13 923	14 626	4 379
Staffing
Staff years (actual)	203	189	219

Performance information

Outcomes are measured by the extent to which:

1. passenger-processing delays are minimised, at points of entry;
2. passengers of concern are detected;
3. planning for the entry of Olympic visitors and competitors, leading to the year 2000, is effective; and
4. effective movement records are maintained.

Performance outcomes

(i) Passenger processing

In conjunction with Customs, clearance times at international airport primary lines were maintained with 95.8 per cent (95.9 per cent in 1995-96) of passengers cleared within 30 minutes of their arrival.

Average individual processing time in immigration clearance remained at the 1995-96 level of 52 seconds.

Chart 3: Passengers processed within 30 minutes (as a percentage of total)

Chart 4: Average passenger processing time (in seconds)

There was an increase of eight per cent in passenger traffic to 14.5 million (13.4 million in 1995-96).

Passengers processed per Average Staff Year (ASY) increased to more than 166 000 (144 445 in 1995-96). Even though the volume of passengers has increased, there was no increase in processing times due to the introduction of new systems and procedures. (see charts 3 and 4).

The improvement in processing can be attributed to increased productivity, training and new passenger processing technology, including the expansion of the Advance Passenger Clearance (APC) system.

Immigration attention to an arriving traveller may result from codings in a person's computerised record, when Customs officers believe there may be improper or inadequate documents or find the passenger's name on a computerised alert list, or from other events arousing suspicions.

In these cases, the traveller is referred to an Immigration inspector for further attention.

The combination of checks performed at visa application/grant and on arrival provides a two staged approach to controlling the entry of non-citizens and minimises the chance of undesirables entering the country.

Since the implementation of the Electronic Travel Authority (ETA) in September 1996 the number of travellers referred to Immigration inspectors for attention has risen as a result of problems with the quality of data input by travel agents accessing the system. Strategies are being developed to address and overcome this problem.

At 30 June 1997, 18 per cent of passengers arriving at Sydney airport were processed under APC arrangements.

An integrated APC/ETA system is being developed, using industry standards that will allow all airlines to use the system. APC is a key strategy to control and facilitate passengers through airports.

By 2000, when Sydney hosts the Olympic and Paralympic Games, more than 60 per cent of passengers are targeted to be processed through the APC system.

The Department and Customs cooperate effectively and coordinate activities. For example, the Department will be participating in a Customs survey to assess client attitudes to airport processes.

(ii) Passengers of concern

While passengers continued to enjoy a more streamlined clearance process, the integrity of our borders was maintained:

• 436 travellers not eligible for admission to Australia (302 in 1995-96) were intercepted offshore by airline liaison officers and airline staff; and
• 1 350 (663 in 1995-96) passengers were refused entry at Australian arrival points as non-bona fide visitors or due to irregularities with their travel documentation.

Table 2: Number of persons refused immigration clearance

Reasons	Number of persons
No passport or visa Photo-substituted passport Transposed visa Imposter Bogus passport Forged visa Stolen blank passport or visa Other document fraud Non-bona fide Other reasons Total	516 184 31 24 23 20 11 16 364 161 1 350

Work continued on initiatives to prevent the entry of people of concern to the Australian community. These included:

• the use of airline liaison officers and specialist overseas compliance officers at airports and Australian missions overseas;
• the ongoing development of the Movement Alert List (MAL);
• participation in multinational airport interdiction exercises in Manila and Colombo to identify immigration malpractice (particularly people smuggling), methods used and travel routes;
• collaboration with a number of overseas posts, including Jakarta, Colombo, Manila, Seoul, New Delhi and Moscow to analyse patterns of immigration malpractice (including people smuggling) and the development of profiles to assist in fraud assessment by posts;
• fraud assessments for Jakarta, Colombo, Moscow, Nairobi, Cairo, and Belgrade. Beijing developed a database of bogus letters of support for use by all posts in China; and
• enhanced caseload analysis is now being undertaken in Australia on a larger range of countries.

(iii) 2000 Games

The Department has responsibility for the entry of athletes, officials and others who will travel to Australia for the Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2000.

Since the initial planning for the Olympic bid in 1993, the Department has been actively involved in planning for this event.

A planning committee was established in 1995 and has developed a range of strategic and operational plans. An Olympics Section was established within Entry Branch.

(iv) Movement records

Some 14.5 million records of movements were processed, an increase of eight per cent on 1995-96.

The Department provides the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) with statistical information concerning people arriving in and departing from Australia.

These statistics are processed by the ABS for uses including updating Census information and calculating the effects of population flows.

Some 39 285 inquiries from the Department, law enforcement agencies, Commonwealth and State authorities and individuals seeking confirmation of personal records were attended to.

This was a 19 per cent increase on 1995-96. The responses included 910 court statements, a two per cent decrease on 1995-96.

Table 3: Agency inquiries to the international movements data base

Agency	Subject checks
Law enforcement Department of Social Security (DSS) DIMA Australian Taxation Office (ATO) Other Total	5 616 9 773 13 341 7 024 3 531 39 285

The records of movements helped Commonwealth departments to ensure that ineligible persons did not receive benefits. The ABS also used the statistics for research into, and predictions about, patterns of movement and their economic and demographic effects.

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