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ARTICLE · 01 APRIL 2015

Off again, on again: Foreign workers in the offshore resources sector now require visas

Corrs Chambers Westgarth
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Non-citizens working on offshore projects fall within the operation of the Migration Act. so require visas to take part.

AustraliaImmigration
Simon Billing (Formerly With Corrs Chambers Westgarth)
Simon Billing (Formerly With Corrs Chambers Westgarth)
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The Federal Court of Australia's decision in Australian Maritime Officers' Union v Assistant Minister for Immigration and Border Protection [2015] FCAFC 45 (26 March 2015) is important for employers in the offshore oil and gas industry.

The effect of the decision is that non-citizens working on offshore projects fall within the operation of the Migration Act 1958 (Cth) (Migration Act) and, as a result, require visas to take part in such activity.

BACKGROUND

For a full history of the matter, please refer to our previous Corrs in Brief.

Basically, the decision in Allseas Construction SA v Minister for Immigration and Citizenship [2012] FCA 529 (Allseas) resulted in workers on vessels, who were mainly non-citizens, not requiring visas.

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