Migration Amendment (Combatting Migrant Exploitation) Bill 2025

Approved work sponsors, including standard business sponsors and accredited sponsors that have made nominations under subsection 140GB(1), are directly affected because their names, ABNs, postcodes, nomination counts and covered occupations may appear on the public register once regulations are made. The Secretary of the Department gains the power to publish this information. Skilled workers who are the subject of nominations are indirectly affected, as details of the occupations and volume of nominations become visible, though individual worker identities remain protected by the ban on personal identifiers. Employers considering sponsorship or already using the system will be able to review the register to understand patterns of nomination activity by competitors or peers. Accountants, migration agents and lawyers advising sponsors gain a new source of public data for compliance and business planning. Journalists, researchers and advocacy groups can access the published information without needing to lodge freedom-of-information requests. The general public obtains a new window into which businesses are active in the skilled migration programme. No new obligations fall on visa applicants or workers themselves under the text of the Act.

People will want to know exactly which data fields regulations will ultimately require the Secretary to publish and whether the register will be updated in real time or at set intervals. They will ask how soon after royal assent the regulations will be made and whether sponsors will receive advance notice before their details appear. Practical questions include whether the register will allow searches by postcode, occupation or number of nominations, and whether historical data will be included or only current sponsors. Users will want clarity on how to correct errors if published information is inaccurate and whether sponsors can request removal in prescribed circumstances under subsection 140GD(4). Another common question is whether the register will include only sponsors who have nominated workers in the previous twelve months or all approved sponsors regardless of recent activity. People will also seek guidance on how the published information interacts with existing sponsor obligations, such as the requirement to pay market salary rates, and whether the register will link to other Departmental compliance data. Finally, users will ask whether accessing the register is free and whether bulk downloads or application programming interfaces will be provided for analysis.

The bill was introduced and read a first time in the House of Representatives on 6 November 2025. Second reading debate occurred on 26 and 27 November 2025, with the second and third readings agreed to on 27 November 2025. The bill moved to the Senate on 27 November 2025, where the second reading was agreed to on 1 April 2026 and the third reading on the same day. It finally passed both Houses on 1 April 2026 and received royal assent on 8 April 2026 as Act No. 39 of 2026. No proposed amendments were circulated during its passage. The next steps are the drafting and registration of regulations that prescribe the precise information for publication and any circumstances in which publication must not occur. The Department must also establish the technical capacity to host the register on its website. Commencement will take place on a day fixed by proclamation or automatically on the day after the end of the six-month period that began on 8 April 2026. Once commenced, the Secretary may begin publishing information as soon as the regulations are in force. No further parliamentary proceedings are required unless the government later seeks to amend the new section 140GD.

Section 140GD(1) creates a discretionary power for the Secretary to publish prescribed information about approved work sponsors on the Department’s website. This power expressly extends to personal information and is supported by an authorisation under the Privacy Act 1988. Subsection 140GD(2) does not create new powers but illustrates the scope regulations may cover, such as nomination numbers and occupation types. Subsection 140GD(3) imposes a limit by prohibiting regulations from prescribing personal identifiers. Subsection 140GD(4) creates a further power for regulations to define circumstances in which the Secretary must not publish information, effectively allowing the creation of exemptions. The Act does not impose any duty on the Secretary to publish; the word “may” preserves discretion. No new rights are granted to sponsors to prevent publication, although the regulation-making power in subsection 140GD(4) could be used to create such protections. Existing rights of review under the Migration Act for sponsor approval decisions remain unchanged. The insertion of the ABN definition in subsection 5(1) supports the accurate identification of sponsors but does not create standalone rights or duties.

The Act contains no provisions for fees, charges, penalties or enforcement mechanisms. Subsection 140GD(1) uses permissive language, so there is no obligation that could attract a penalty for non-publication. No offences are created for sponsors who fail to update ABN details or for incorrect publication by the Department. The existing penalty framework in the Migration Act for sponsor breaches, such as those relating to nomination obligations under subsection 140GB(1), is not amended or extended by this Act. No appropriation or funding allocation is mentioned. Enforcement of any future register will rely on the Department’s administrative processes rather than new statutory sanctions. If regulations later prescribe mandatory publication in certain cases, any enforcement would still need to draw on existing provisions of the Migration Act or the Legislative Instruments Act rather than powers created here. The absence of financial or penalty clauses means the practical effect of the register will depend on voluntary compliance by the Department and the content of subordinate legislation.

The official materials does not record any parliamentary controversy or stakeholder submissions. The provisions nevertheless present clear legal and policy trade-offs. Publishing nomination volumes and occupation details under subsection 140GD(2) increases transparency around which sponsors are most active, yet it may expose commercially sensitive business patterns without context on compliance history or worker outcomes. The inclusion of personal information alongside the ban on personal identifiers in subsection 140GD(3) requires careful drafting of regulations to avoid unintended identification of individuals. The discretionary wording of subsection 140GD(1) and the exemption power in subsection 140GD(4) allow flexibility but could produce uneven application if regulations are narrowly framed. Because the Act relies entirely on future regulations for substantive content, its impact cannot be assessed until those instruments are made and registered. The six-month default commencement period provides time for consultation, yet it also delays any transparency benefits the register is intended to deliver. The cross-reference to the Privacy Act authorisation addresses one compliance layer but leaves open questions about data quality, sponsor notification and correction rights that sit outside the text of section 140GD.

Passage of the Act inserts the ABN definition and section 140GD into the Migration Act 1958, creating the first statutory basis for a public register of approved work sponsors. Once regulations are made and the Act commences, the Secretary gains the ability to publish sponsor names, ABNs, postcodes, nomination counts and occupation categories on the Department’s website. This alters the previous position where detailed sponsorship activity data was not systematically released in a central, searchable format. Sponsors will operate under the knowledge that their nomination activity may become publicly visible, which may influence future nomination decisions. The Department gains a new administrative tool for transparency without any change to the underlying approval or compliance regime. Skilled migration users and observers obtain a new data source that links business identifiers with sponsorship volumes. No existing rights or obligations of visa holders or workers are modified. The change is narrow in legislative scope yet potentially broad in effect once the register is populated and maintained.

New public register will list Australian business sponsors by name and nomination activity. This post can explain that section 140GD now allows the Department to publish sponsor names, ABNs and the number of skilled worker nominations they have made. Register of approved sponsors to show which occupations are most nominated by Australian businesses. The hook highlights how regulations under subsection 140GD(2) can include occupation categories, giving the public a view of labour market demand patterns. ABN publication requirement brings tax identifiers into migration transparency framework. This angle notes the new definition in subsection 5(1) and how it enables accurate identification of sponsors on the future register. Privacy limits mean personal identifiers stay off the sponsor register despite new publication power. The post can clarify subsection 140GD(3) and the distinction between personal information and personal identifiers to reassure readers about privacy protections. Six-month commencement window gives time to prepare sponsor register regulations. This update can cover the proclamation mechanism and default start date after royal assent on 8 April 2026. No amendments proposed during passage of sponsor transparency bill. The point underscores that the bill moved through both Houses without change, leaving the framework as introduced. Discretionary publication power leaves final shape of register to regulations. This post can note the word “may” in subsection 140GD(1) and the exemption power in subsection 140GD(4), showing where further detail will come from.