Community Engagement Team Qld. and NT – Newsletter – May 2024
Community Engagement Team Queensland and Northern Territory
May 2024 – Community Update
Dear Community Representatives,
Thank you for your ongoing support and contributions to your community. In this month’s newsletter, we have exciting news and updates to share with you and your communities.
The Pacific Engagement Visa ballot will open soon following extensive consultation processes with our Pacific Family. We acknowledge Domestic and Family Violence (DFV) Prevention Month, and highlight how the Department can assist members of our community who are impacted by DFV. Recent Budget announcements aim to deliver improved settlement outcomes for members of our refugee and migrant communities.
This has been an unsettling time in Australia. The distressing events in Bondi, Wakeley and Willetton have sent shockwaves through communities and caused the spread of misinformation. In times of crisis, we lean heavily on community leaders and representatives to both learn and disseminate accurate information and preserve our greatest strength – our socially cohesive communities. You provide a voice to community members who might otherwise not feel heard, and through you, their concerns and feedback are shared across all levels of government helping inform the future direction of Australian multiculturalism.
In this edition of our newsletter, you can find information on the following topics (you can click on the topic below for quick access to an article):
- Pacific Engagement Visa
- 2024-25 Australian Budget Measures
- Domestic and Family Violence support for Australian visa holders
- Over 90,000 kids to benefit from a boost to language schools l Minister’s announcement
- The Working for Women Program l Grant opportunity
- Changes to the financial capacity requirements for student visas l News
- The Community Engagement Team in the community
Kind regards,
Rena Fallon
Director, Community Engagement Team Qld./NT
Pacific Engagement Visa
The Pacific Engagement (Subclass 192) Visa (PEV) is a new permanent residence visa for participating Pacific countries and Timor-Leste citizens to deepen connections between Australia and the region.
The Australian Government will make available up to 3,000 PEV each year for eligible Pacific island and Timor-Leste nationals, and their partners and children, through a ballot process. Those randomly selected in the ballot process will be invited by the Australian Government to apply for the visa.
The Australian Government’s PEV for Pacific island and Timor-Leste nationals will commence on 3 June 2024.
Countries participating in the first PEV ballot will include:
- Federated States of Micronesia
- Fiji
- Nauru
- Palau
- Papua New Guinea
- Solomon Islands
- Timor-Leste
- Tonga
- Tuvalu
- Vanuatu.
Consultations continue with other Pacific countries.
For more information about The Pacific Engagement (Subclass 192) Visa, please visit our website
2024-25 Australian Budget Measures
The Australian Government announced the 2024-25 Budget on the Tuesday, 14 May 2024, which incorporated a number of proposed measures within the Home Affairs portfolio, including to:
- Migrant and Refugee Settlement Services
- Australia’s Migration Program planning levels
- Working Holiday Maker programs
The Government will provide additional funds over five years to improve sustainability of settlement services and promote better economic and social outcomes for refugees and migrants. This includes targeted funding for Youth Transition Support services, specialised support for refugee and migrant women experiencing domestic and family violence, funding to continue English classes in Community Hubs, and the extension of settlement services for the Community Refugee Integration and Settlement Pilot (CRISP). Further information is available on page 138 of the Budget
The planning levels for the 2024-25 Permanent Migration Program will be set at 185,000 places, with a focus on filling skills shortages in priority sectors, prioritising visa processing for regional Australia, and partner and family migration.
You can read more about migration planning levels here
The Government will implement a visa pre-application process (a ballot), with a $25 ballot fee, for some Working Holiday Maker (WHM) programs. The ballot aims to provide an equitable, streamlined and transparent means of selecting applicants where the number of registrations significantly exceeds the visa quote available for WHM programs in any given year.
More information about the WHM program is available to read here
Domestic and Family Violence Support for Australian visa holders
May marks Domestic and Family Violence (DFV) Prevention Month and the theme for 2024 is:
It’s in our control to end coercive control.
The Department of Home Affairs has zero tolerance for domestic and family violence against anyone, including permanent or temporary visa holders. Perpetrators of DFV cannot cancel visas, but they may have their visa refused or cancelled. The Department’s policy is to not cancel someone’s temporary (including Partner) visa solely because a relationship with the primary visa holder has ended due to DFV. The Department can consider
Further information and our role supporting victims/survivors of DFV is available here, including information in various languages.
Temporary visa holders impacted by DFV can also access financial support through the Australian Red Cross
Australian citizens, permanent residents, or holders of a protected special category visa living in Australia can apply for financial assistance through the Escaping Violence Payment facilitated by Uniting.
National and state-wide support services are available, please see
where to get help on our website.
Over 90,000 kids to benefit from a boost to language schools l Minister’s announcement
Announced on 18 April, a $15 million scheme will directly assist over 90,000 students learning 84 different languages at not-for-profit Community Language Schools in every state and territory.
This funding will help schools with the upgrades they need to teach more students whether that be through purchasing educational equipment, improving access for disadvantaged students, strengthening online delivery or setting up another school.
This investment will ensure more kids growing up in Australia can learn the language and culture of their families who have migrated here from overseas, ensuring that our diverse traditions, languages and cultures live on for generations to come.
You can read the media release by Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs, The Hon Andrew Giles MP here
The Working for Women Program l Grant opportunity
The Australian Government is inviting applications for funding to provide expert gender advice to Government and ensure women’s voices inform the implementation of Working for Women: A Strategy for Gender Equality.
This grant opportunity will establish a network of up to six civil society organisations to provide collaborative, intersectional, evidence based gender expertise and strategic advice to Government to inform ongoing progress of the Strategy’s outcomes. Advice will focus on elevating the lived experiences of women in all their diversity and bringing together the expertise of the women’s sector and expert stakeholders. Cross alliance collaboration will be a central feature of the program, to ensure advice to Government is intersectional and prioritised.
Organisations may apply to represent one or more of the following themes:
- gender-based violence
- women’s economic equality and leadership
- migrant and refugee and culturally and linguistically diverse women
- First Nations women
- women living in rural, regional and remote areas of Australia
- women with disability.
For more information and to apply, visit GrantConnect. Applications close 3 July 2024 at 5:00PM AEST.
Changes to the financial capacity requirements for student visas l News
From 10 May 2024, the amount of money that Student and Student Guardian visa applicants need to be eligible for the visa is increasing.
The financial capacity requirement has been updated to align with a proportion (75 per cent) of the national minimum wage. This will better indicate the amount of money considered reasonable to provide a minimum standard of living while studying in Australia. This proportion considers that students are out of course session for 25 per cent of the year. During this time they may return home or have access to unrestricted work.
International students who can show they meet this new financial capacity requirement are better able to make informed decisions about their future.
Please
visit our website to view the new financial capacity requirements.
The Community Engagement Team in the community
The QLD and NT Community Engagement Team has been keeping busy, with many significant events and culturally significant occasions to recognise. Below are some highlights of recent events we were privileged to attend.
From top left clockwise: Qld CLOs John and Debbie attended Nowruz and Harmony Day celebrations at Kingston East Neighbourhood Group; Qld Pasifika Liaison Officer Suli Layt with the Australian High Commissioner to Niue Katy Stuart at a meeting with the Niuean community; Qld CLO Bree joined community members to celebrate inspiring women in our community at the Women’s Power of Inspiration Fashion Gala in Logan.
Contacting Us
Thank you for your dedication to keeping Queensland and Northern Territory communities safe and informed. We value your partnership and encourage you to share this email with your community members (without any changes).
Staying connected with our multicultural communities remains a key priority for the Department of Home Affairs and the Australian Government. Your feedback is crucial to shaping government policies, decisions, and communication strategies.
We actively seek your insights on a range of topics, including:
- Community concerns: Share any issues impacting your community.
- Racism or discrimination: Let us know of any instances of racism or discrimination you encounter.
- Government messaging: How well are you receiving and understanding government communications?
- Misconceptions: Are there any common misconceptions we can help address?
- Travel restrictions: Does your community have questions or concerns about travel restrictions and associated processes?
- Misinformation/scams: Alert us to any instances of misinformation or scams targeting your community.
- Economic impacts: Are there new economic challenges impacting your community?
- Emerging issues: Are there any new or emerging pressing issues we should be aware of?
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Community Engagement Team QLD/NT, Department of Home Affairs
qld.community.engagement@homeaffairs.gov.au | nt.community.engagement@homeaffairs.gov.au