Education agents will be banned from receiving commissions for poaching students enrolled in other institutions under a federal government crackdown on the embattled international education sector.
Over the coming days, Labor will announce a host of reforms in response to a review led by former Victoria police chief commissioner Christine Nixon into the exploitation of Australia’s visa system.
The home affairs minister, Clare O’Neil, said the next steps would aim to restore integrity in Australia’s international education system and protect students from harm.
“The party is over, the rorts and loopholes that have plagued this system will be shut down,” she said.
This is the first of many announcements this week to restore integrity to international education and to our migration system.”
On Monday, the federal government announced risk indicators would be built into the international education system to better ensure private providers comply with regulations. This will include better analysis of student attendance.
The Education Services for Overseas Students Act 2000 would also be amended to strengthen the existing fit and proper provider test.
The amendment will strengthen standards needed for providers to gain and hold registration, while also cracking down on cross-ownership of businesses between education providers and agents.
In addition, agent commissions on student transfers would be prohibited to remove incentives for agents to poach of students already in Australia.
Earlier this year, a parliamentary inquiry heard Australia’s international student system had become a “Ponzi scheme” in which overseas agents were paid bonuses to lure foreign students with the promise of full-time work.
To reduce the number of people rorting the system, providers will be given greater access to agent performance data, including student completion rates and visa rejection rates.
(Theguardian)
