Visa delays cause concern for business, workers

A BLOWOUT in visa processing times is creating uncertainty for NT businesses who rely on skilled migrant labour

Mr Kelleher said the department was tight-lipped on the reasons behind the delays but it was not due to an increase in applications

A BLOWOUT in visa processing times is creating uncertainty for Territory businesses who rely on skilled migrant labour and workers who are left with the threat of deportation hanging over their heads.

Brian Kelleher, known as Darwin’s migration “go-to man”, said the Home Affairs Department was taking up to two years to process visa applications, double the time the procedure took two years ago.

“The processing times have blown out to such a long period that it’s becoming almost (impossible) to actually manage people’s expectations about when they’re going to get their visa,” he said.

“It does create a lot of uncertainty for the employers who are sponsoring the applicants so that’s a real cause for concern.”

Mr Kelleher said the department was tight-lipped on the reasons behind the delays but it was not due to an increase in applications.

“We can tell you right now, in places like the NT, the number of applications for employer-sponsored visas haven’t increased, in fact there’s been a decrease,” he said.

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“It’s really hard trying to convince a client that there’s nothing wrong with their application, it’s just that a case officer hasn’t even been allocated to the file.

“I believe the delays are often due to less staff working in those particular areas (and) redeployed to other areas, that’s the only explanation we can discern at this stage.”

Mr Kelleher said the lack of communication from immigration officials was adding to the frustration of his clients.

“Often you don’t get any response from the department which is even worse because you’ve got nothing to tell the client so there’ll be this shut down of information completely,” he said.

“A lot of my communication each week with clients is actually managing expectations about when they’ll actually get a case officer allocated to their file.

“When you hear about the au pair thing with the minister and how fast that worked you know there’s a real difference in how things operate depending on what your circumstances are.”

An Home Affairs spokeswoman said the department would continue to “monitor visa processing times — identifying issues in specific caseloads as well as opportunities for delivering processing efficiencies”.

“Visa processing times are driven by a range of factors including the volume of applications received, completeness of the application, how promptly applicants respond to any requests from the Department of Home Affairs and the complexity of assessments in relation to health, character and national security requirements,” she said.