Labor's comparison of new powers to review foreign visas with US President Donald Trump's temporary travel ban has been dismissed as a "political red herring" by the immigration minister.
Parliament's lower house on Thursday passed a bill that, in part, gives Peter Dutton the ability to require a "specified class of persons" to undergo visa revalidation checks if it's in the public interest.
The law applies to a 10-year visa offered to Chinese visitors but states the minister could identify any group based on whether they hold a particular passport, live in a particular state, province or country, may have travelled through a particular area or applied for a visa during certain dates.
The opposition fears the proposed legislation could exclude entire groups from living in or travelling to Australia based on religion or nationality but Mr Dutton said parliament would have the power to disallow the immigration minister's decisions.
"This is a political red herring," Mr Dutton told ABC's Lateline program on Thursday night.
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He said the power increase was justified on national security grounds.
"The beauty now is that we can anchor people's identity through biometrics... but if during the period of 10 years, if they pop up on movement alert lists or with character issues, we have the ability to deal effectively with that," Mr Dutton said.
The bill now goes before the Senate.
Labor will seek to have the proposed power removed from the bill in the upper house, to allow other non-controversial changes to pass without delay.
