The New Zealand Government has proposed a new law, the Immigration (Enhances Risk Management) Amendment Bill, which aims to strengthen deportation policies and immigration compliance.
Key Features of the Proposed Deportation Law
The proposed changes to the Immigration Act are intended to provide more robust tools to respond to serious immigration breaches. The key changes include:
Extended Deportation Liability for Serious Crimes: The law will make it easier to deport non-citizens who commit a serious crime. It expands deportation liability for residence class visa holders from the current 10 years to 20 years. This means a permanent resident who commits a serious crime can be deported even if they have lived in New Zealand for up to two decades.
Broader Grounds for Deportation: The bill introduces several other grounds for deportation liability, including:
o Providing false or misleading information.
o Committing historic crimes, including those that occurred before arriving in New Zealand.
o Having a visa that was granted in error, which means the person can no longer benefit from the mistake and may be deported.
Enhanced Compliance Measures: Immigration officers will have an expanded ability to request identity information from individuals if there is good cause to suspect a visa breach or deportation liability. The bill also allows for deportation liability notices to be issued electronically if a physical address is not available.
Increased Penalties for Migrant Exploitation: The bill also proposes increasing the maximum prison sentence for migrant exploitation from seven to 10 years.
According to Immigration Minister Erica Stanford, these changes are designed to addressed gaps in the current compliance framework and ensure the immigration system can act decisively when serious breaches happen.
Sources: Strengthening deportation & immigration compliance | National Party; & The Deportation Process – Community Law
