Foreign nationals who have been refused a visa or had a visa cancelled, and are prevented by section 48 of the Migration Act from applying for any visa other than a prescribed visa while remaining in Australia. The operation of this bar is intended to prevent non-citizens from lodging repeat applications to delay their departure from Australia. The Migration Act does not allow for the section 48 bar to be waived in any circumstances. A person who is affected by the section 48 bar and who wishes to apply for a visa that is not a prescribed visa for this purpose must leave Australia and make any further applications for a visa for Australia from outside Australia.
Regulation 2.12 of the Migration Regulations 1994 (the Migration Regulations) prescribes a list of visas that a person subject to section 48 is permitted to apply for while remaining in Australia. This list includes protection visas, partner visas, bridging visas and a small number of other visas.
Regulation 2.12 will now prescribe the following skilled migration visas in the list of visas for which persons subject to section 48 may apply:
· Subclass 190 – Skilled Nominated (Permanent);
· Subclass 494 – Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (Provisional); and
· Subclass 491 – Skilled Work Regional (Provisional).
The immigration law amendment facilitates onshore visa lodgements by applicants who are prevented from leaving due to COVID-19 related travel restrictions, but meet all other requirements for making an application for the visa.
The new regulations commence on 13 November 2021.
Agricultural Worker Visa
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