Print1.4.2 Status resolution
Objectives
Obtain a substantive immigration outcome for clients in a lawful, timely, fair and reasonable manner.
Description
Status resolution entails supporting and assisting clients to resolve their immigration status in a timely and appropriate manner. Its guiding principles are:
- early and active client engagement commensurate to assessed need and level of risk
- clear identification and communication of client pathways
- provision of holistic support according to fundamental case management principles.
The department's Case Management Service is characterised by the early identification of vulnerable clients or those with exceptional circumstances and the individualised and proactive provision of services to clients through active coordination, integration and management of services drawn down from key service providers. Case management is designed around 'early intervention' – working with clients as soon as possible to ensure they understand how the immigration system works and what role they can play in resolving their status. Case managers are expected to, in respect of their clients, ensure work is undertaken by all relevant parties in a coordinated and logical way with a focus on achieving an immigration outcome for the client as quickly as reasonably possible.
Clients on Bridging E visas who have vulnerability indicators can be referred by case managers to a range of external service providers within the Community Care Pilot, if their circumstances cannot be met in the community by existing programs. This process occurs while their immigration status is being resolved. The pilot focuses on providing immigration advice, and information and counselling support to clients while addressing their health and welfare needs. It offers community assistance through the Australian Red Cross and information and counselling services from the International Organization for Migration. An immigration advice and application support service is also offered to provide clients with access to expert assistance with their visa applications.
To complement the services provided through the Community Care Pilot, the department commenced the Status Resolution Trial in July 2007. The trial focuses on the implementation of an early intervention approach to resolve the immigration status of non-case managed clients in the community who have indicated a willingness to leave Australia and do not have complex health and welfare needs. Clients are referred to the International Organization for Migration for information, counselling and voluntary return services.
Detention Review Managers
Detention Review Managers review the lawfulness and appropriateness of decisions to detain under the Migration Act. They review the initial detention decision and continue to review the cases of people in immigration detention on an ongoing basis to ensure their detention remains lawful and appropriate, and that their cases are being actively progressed.
Detention review committees
The Executive Detention Review Committee (EDRC) meets on a regular basis and is chaired by a deputy secretary. The EDRC provides a high level forum for dealing with possible systemic issues that may affect the timely resolution of outcomes for people in immigration detention.
The Detention Review Committee (DRC) meets monthly, reporting to the EDRC. The DRC brings together officers from the service delivery network with key policy and processing areas in National Office. The DRC's role is to provide a further level of assurance that people are detained lawfully and reasonably and that their cases are actively progressed, while providing an opportunity to discuss systemic detention issues arising from individual cases or from overall caseload management.
Reports to the Commonwealth Ombudsman
The department is required to report to the Commonwealth Ombudsman when a person has been detained for two years or more and at the end of each subsequent six-month period if the person remains in immigration detention.
The Ombudsman subsequently produces a report on these cases which the minister is required to table in both Houses of Parliament within 15 sitting days of receipt of the report.
Between 25 June 2005 and 30 June 2008, the department provided reports to the Ombudsman on 422 people who had been detained for two years or more. Of these 422 people, supplementary reports were provided for 194 people who remained in detention at the end of a further six-month period.
Of the 422 people the department reported on to the Ombudsman, 369 were no longer in immigration detention at 30 June 2008. Of these:
- 52 were granted temporary visas
- 222 were granted permanent visas
- 46 were removed from Australia
- 14 were granted Removal Pending Bridging visas
- 18 were granted bridging visas
- 10 were released into the community after their previously cancelled visas had been reinstated following a Full Federal Court decision
- four are now Australian citizens
- three had visas reinstated through ministerial intervention.
Of the 422 people reported on to the Commonwealth Ombudsman by the department, 53 remained in immigration detention at 30 June 2008. Of these, 24 people were in immigration detention centres, 22 were in community detention and seven were in immigration residential housing.
Of those who remain in immigration detention, the two largest nationalities represented are the People's Republic of China and Indonesia.
The Ombudsman provided 614 reports covering 387 people to the minister between 25 June 2005 and 30 June 2008. Of those reports, the minister has tabled 613 reports in parliament, covering all 387 people.
Of the 387 people reported on by the Ombudsman and tabled by the minister in parliament, 361 were no longer in immigration detention at 30 June 2008.
Of these people:
- 52 were granted temporary visas
- 222 were granted permanent visas
- 45 were removed from Australia
- 12 were granted Removal Pending Bridging visas
- 13 were granted bridging visas
- 10 were released into the community after their previously cancelled visa had been reinstated following a Full Federal Court decision
- four are now Australian citizens
- three had visas reinstated through ministerial intervention.
In reports provided to the minister, the Ombudsman has made a number of recommendations covering several areas. The most frequent recommendations were that the minister consider alternative detention arrangements, or that people be released on a visa pending the finalisation of their immigration status or removal arrangements. In other cases, the Ombudsman recommended that the minister make a decision regarding an outstanding ministerial intervention submission before the report was tabled in parliament, and on some occasions also recommended that the department consider appropriate action for ongoing management of the client's health while achieving an immigration outcome.
Performance
Table 52: Status resolution—performance information| Measures | Results |
|---|---|
| 2007–08 | |
| Quality | |
| Initial decisions to detain are reviewed by the Detention Review Manager within service standards | 95% |
| Ongoing decisions to detain are reviewed by the Detention Review Manager within service standards | 74% |
| Number of bridging visa BVE overstayers as a proportion of total BVE grants | 9.69%1 |
| Quantity | |
| Number of people entering detention as a result of compliance activities | 1 865 |
| Number of clients in the case management service as at 30 June 2008 | 933 |
- This is a projected full year outcome based on figures at 31 December 2007.
