Agency linked to Liberal Campbelltown candidate breached migration law

Campbelltown hopeful Gypshouna Paudel is listed as serving as director on an agency that advertised the services of an agent whose licence was suspended.

Neither Gypshouna Paudel nor her husband have ever been registered as migration agents.

The Liberal candidate in the seat of Campbelltown in Sydney’s southwest is linked to an education agency that breached migration law by advertising the services of an agent whose licence had been cancelled.

Gypshouna Paudel is listed as serving as the director of Smart Rhino alongside her husband, Binod Paudel, on company records that show she held the position from 2016 to 2020 as well as another stint from 2014 to 2015.

Mr Paudel ran as Liberal candidate in the seat of Macarthur at the 2022 federal election.

Neither Ms Paudel nor her husband have ever been registered as migration agents, according to records held by the Office of the Migration Agents Registration Authority.

Smart Rhino advertised migration services including visa applications on its website and its Facebook page as well highlighting successful examples of visa applicants.

One advertisement, which bears a photo of Mr Paudel, refers prospective clients to an agent whose licence was cancelled on October 23 in 2019.

The ad was posted on December 7 in 2019.

The migration agent was later found to have used his clients’ signatures without their consent and to have submitted false and misleading documentation and information to the department. The Administrative Appeals Tribunal later in 2022 substituted the cancellation for a suspension after the agent appealed.

Under the Migration Act, a person must not directly or indirectly advertise that another person who is not a registered migration agent gives immigration assistance.

The offence carries a possibility of two years’ imprisonment.

Mr Paudel responded to questions put to Ms Paudel via the Liberal Party.

Mr Paudel said his wife had never been involved in the company and said he had asked her to serve alongside him as a director.

“Gypshouna had no involvement in any day-to-day operation of Smart Rhino,” he said.

Mr Paudel said Smart Rhino had offered education services and referred people to registered migration agents, which was industry standard.

Mr Paudel said the Facebook post advertising the services of the deregistered agent was an inadvertent repost of an old post likely made by one of several page administrators when he’d stepped back from the business.

“The business provided an education advisory service and did not provide any migration advice, therefore it did not require MARA registration,” he said.

“Clients were referred to registered migration agents in a couple of instances if they had migration questions.

“This is a standard industry practice. The December Facebook post was an inadvertent repost of an old post.“

Mr Paudel said he and his wife were “very genuine people” who were highly involved in the local community.

Labor MP for Campbelltown Greg Warren with NSW Labor Leader Chris Minns in Leppington. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Gaye Gerard

The Smart Rhino website, which has since been removed, advertises migration services including student, parent and spousal visas as well as visa renewals and temporary and permanent residency applications.

A number of Facebook posts from the Smart Rhino‘s deactivated page show the agency advertising visa services including applications and VET course enrolment as well as declaring it the “best consultancy in Australia for study and migration purpose”.

Photos of both the Paudels have been posted at various times on the Facebook page.

Ms Paudel is running against incumbent Labor MP Greg Warren, who has held the seat since 2015.

A spokesperson for Home Affairs, which is responsible for the Office of the Migration Agents Registration Authority, said it was unable to comment on specific former or current cases.