Widespread fraud in Australian visa applications

Australia, 4th May: Australia visa application system has been subject to widespread abuse and this has been admitted by several officials of Australian immigration department.

As per the recent reports rocking the nation, the misuse of Australian immigration system has become a common norm with applicants giving fake information in a bid to get an Australian visa.

Australian immigration system suffers from endemic fraud—The system of Australian immigration seems to be suffering from sort of endemic fraud, claims an ex-official of Australian immigration department on the condition of remaining anonymous.

The former immigration official at the Australian High Commission in Islamabad (Pakistan) said she wanted to highlight the high rate of Australian visa abuse by Pakistani nationals claiming to be Afghan asylum seekers or Afghan refugees.

Such applicants from Pakistan aspiring to get Australian visas bought ID documents before making application for an Australian visa, informed the former immigration official.

Policy problem prevents to highlight Australian visa fraud—It appears that the immigration polices framed to offer protection to the nation while ensuring transparency and efficiency are making the system prone to abuse. The former Australian visa official at Islamabad said she, like many other Australian immigration officials, was prevented from doing so due to policy problem.

The officials don’t want to be seen as racist, so they have to, somehow, compromise their nation’s integrity, adds the official who says visa fraud happens on a daily basis in Pakistan.

She stated that Australia has several foreigners living as Australian permanent residents or even as Australian citizens although, in reality, there are Pakistani citizens posing as Afghans.

Fraud through family reunification visas--According to a letter handed over by another official of Australian immigration department-DIAC (Department of Immigration and Citizenship), there are some holders of Australian visa who are offering sponsorship to family members who, in reality, don’t have any relationship with them.

And Afghans are getting help from agents and their relatives to find out ways for abusing the integrity of Australian immigration department, the letter further informs.

It highlights the cases of unlawful immigration of non-family members including children and unknown strangers through the use of fake documents. The former immigration official at the High Commission in Islamabad agrees with the issues mentioned in the letter.

There are lots of children who have been brought to Australia but who don’t have any relation with those who brought them here or offered them sponsorship, she further adds.