Speaking on the 24 June edition of SBS Filipino, Department of Home Affairs officials urged Australia’s 400,000-strong Filipino diaspora to beware of unregistered agents promising ‘priority’ work or partner visas for upfront cash payments. The warning follows a 60 per cent jump in scam reports lodged with the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s Scamwatch portal in the first half of 2026. Fraudsters typically pose as migration consultants on Facebook Marketplace and Viber groups, offering guaranteed employer sponsorship for fees of A$6,000–A$15,000. Victims receive forged Departmental receipts and are told to wait offshore until a “COVID backlog” clears—only realising months later that no application was lodged. According to Home Affairs, losses average A$9,200 per case, with some families selling land in the Philippines to pay. Registered migration agents (RMAs) are regulated by the OMARA code of conduct and must display their MARN licence on advertising. Officials advised prospective migrants to cross-check details on the OMARA public register and to insist on official ImmiAccount acknowledgement emails. The government is also testing a watermark system for sponsorship letters to make fakes easier to spot. Employers that inadvertently engage scam labour hire firms face their own penalties, including a bar on hiring overseas workers for five years. Corporate mobility teams should embed due-diligence checks—such as verifying ABN, workers-compensation insurance and Fair Work compliance—into vendor selection processes. Community organisations will run free information sessions in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth during July. Filipino-language factsheets on avoiding visa fraud are available on the Home Affairs website and through Philippine consulates.
Source: SBS Filipino
