Last week, The Feed aired a story about individuals and businesses profiting from people who are desperate to stay in Australia. It was a months-long investigation with Fairfax Media that drew on the knowledge and contacts of SBS programs that broadcast in other languages, including Mandarin, Vietnamese, Indian and Punjabi.
These programs regularly report on cases of immigration fraud affecting their communities. In fact, the Punjabi language program received complaints from listeners about Global Skills and Business Services the moment the company went into liquidation.
Since the TV program and surrounding stories went out, other victims have come forward to share their own experiences of unscrupulous job brokers or migration agents.
Several people told SBS they had been sponsored by employers, underpaid for a long period, and then fired just before they were eligible to apply for permanent residency (PR). They say they were sacked because they refused to hand over a substantial cash payment to the employer - something that is illegal under the Migration Act. After two years of being underpaid, they were left without a job and at risk of being deported.
In another case, an international student was convinced to go into business with the owner of a cafe that she’d been working at. The owner told her this was a chance to build a future - with a job, and permanent residency. But after finalising the paperwork, the café owner ran off with her money. She’s since found out that there are others who also lost money to him after he promised to help them get PR.
The Feed also heard of situations where people have been coerced into directly paying for a visa sponsorship, and then ripped off. The government has been trying to stamp out these pay-to-stay arrangements, by increasing penalties for all parties involved in them. But apart from making it harder for those who’ve lost money to speak out, these new penalties appear to be having little effect.
The Feed was forwarded text messages and advertisements that show companies blatantly asking for money for RSMS and 457 visas. And one viewer told us: “I know a lot of agents who are charging more than 70K to get employee sponsorship, and any changes made towards the visa haven’t really changed anything”.
Queensland Police’s Fraud and Cyber Crime Group also confirmed in an email that they are investigating Global Skills and Business Services, after receiving complaints from former clients.
In a statement, the Department of Immigration told The Feed, it “currently has a number of active investigations in regards to paying for visa sponsorship”.
But many are wondering when - and if - any of these investigations will turn into prosecutions. And will they go after the dodgy brokers and agents taking the money, or the victims who paid it?
