Australian immigration law is extremely complex, constantly changing, and often intersects with various areas of family, corporations and employment law. The Australian immigration legal framework consists of legislation, regulations, policy and various legislative instruments. Navigating the immigration process without appropriate advice and representation can be a daunting experience.
澳大利亚移民法极为复杂不断变化，并常与家庭法公司法和劳动雇佣法的各个领域相互交错。澳大利亚移民法框架由法条，法规，政策和各种立法文书组成。在没有正确的法律建议和移民代理的情况下贸然启动移民程序可能会产生对您不利的结果。
Both Immigration Lawyers and Migration Agents can provide immigration advice and assistance and both are required to be registered with the Office of the Migration Agents Registration Authority (‘OMARA’). In deciding whether to engage the services of a Migration Agent or Immigration Lawyer, it is important to understand the distinctions between an Agent and a Lawyer.
移民中介还是移民律师都可以提供移民建议和帮助，并且两者都必须在澳洲移民代理注册管理局（OMARA）进行注册。在决定是否雇用移民中介或移民律师的服务时，了解中介与律师之间的区别非常重要。
There are 4 main distinctions between Migration Agents and Immigration Lawyers which is summarised below:
移民中介与移民律师之间有4个主要区别，总结如下：
1. Qualifications and Registration
To become an Immigration Lawyer, one needs to obtain the following qualifications and registrations:
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- Complete Bachelors of Laws/Juris Doctor (minimum 3-year university degree);
- Complete Practical Legal Training/Articled Clerkship;
- Apply to the Supreme Court for admission as a Lawyer;
- Apply to the Legal Practicing Board of the relevant State/Territory for a Legal Practicing Certificate; and
- Apply to be registered with OMARA as a Registered Migration Agent.
Australian lawyers are trained to interpret, analyse, and apply legislation and case law. In addition to their university degree, after obtaining their practicing certificate they must undertake supervised legal practice under an experienced lawyer for a period of two years.
Migration Agents are required to complete the following qualifications and registrations:
- Complete a 1-year Graduate Diploma of Migration Law; and
- Apply for registration with OMARA as a Registered Migration Agent.
Once registered, a Migration Agent is free to provide immigration advice and services.
资质和注册要求
要成为移民律师，需要获得以下资质和注册要求：
· 完成法学学士/法学博士学位（至少三年大学学历）；
· 完成的法律实践培训/法律实习资格；
· 向澳洲最高法院申请律师资格；
· 向相关国家/地区的法律执业委员会申请法律执业证书；和
· 向OMARA申请注册为澳洲移民代理。
澳大利亚律师受过解释，分析和适用法条以及判例法的专业培训。除获得法学学位外，在获得执业证书后的两年，他们必须在有经验的律师的指导和监督下执业。
移民中介需要获得以下资质和注册要求
- 完成为期一年的移民法专科文凭（diploma）；和
- 向OMARA申请注册为澳洲移民代理。
注册后，移民中介可以免费提供移民建议和服务。
2. Standards of Conduct
Immigration Lawyers are subject to higher standards of conduct than Migration Agents. Immigration Lawyers are subject to the ethical and professional standards of a Legal Practitioner and an Officer of the Court. This includes standards established under the Legal Professional Act, Legal Professional Ethical and Conduct Rules, and the OMARA Code of Conduct. Immigration lawyers are subject to dual regulation i.e. the scrutiny of two regulatory bodies – the law society of their practicing State/Territory and OMARA.
Migration Agents, in contrast, are only required to comply with the OMARA Code of Conduct.
行为准则
移民律师的行为准则高于移民中介。移民律师须遵守执业律师及法律从业人员的道德及专业标准。这包括根据《法律职业法》，《法律职业道德和行为规则》以及《OMARA行为准则》建立的标准。移民律师受双重监管，即受到两个监管机构的审查，这两个监管机构分别是其执业所在州/地区的律师委员会和OMARA。
而移民中介仅要求遵守OMARA行为准则。
3. Legal Professional Privilege
All legal communications with your Immigration Lawyer will be protected under legal profession privilege. In the event that you are investigated or prosecuted, your Immigration Lawyer can claim legal professional privilege to protect the confidential legal information you have shared with your lawyer from disclosure.
A Migration Agent cannot claim legal professional privilege and if requested, may be obligated to disclose your private instructions and information.
法律专业保密特权
您与移民律师所有关于法律的沟通都将受到法律专业保密特权的保护。如果您被调查或起诉，您的移民律师可以要求法律专业保密，以保护您与律师共享的机密法律信息不被披露。
而移民中介不能要求法律专业保密特权，并且如果被要求，移民中介可能有义务披露您的私人指示和机密信息。
4. Extent of Service
Migration Agents can assist you in providing migration advice, preparing and lodging your visa application. However, if you require an appeal to the Federal or High Court to be made, a Migration Agent will not be permitted to represent you in Court. You will need to seek the higher level services of an Immigration Lawyer as their service extends to full representation at Tribunals, the Federal and High Court.
If your case is particularly complex, you may choose to engage the services of an Accredited Specialist in immigration law. Accredited Specialists are recognised by their peers as experts in their area of law, having successfully completed at least 5 years of specialised practice in immigration law matters, and further examinations administered by the State Law Societies.
It is important to keep in mind that when it comes to immigration law, sometimes it really is just a case of “you don’t know what you don’t know”. For this reason, it is best to seek professional advice regarding your eligibility and options before embarking on the arduous and expensive process of applying for a visa.
Whether you choose to engage the services of a Migration Agent or Immigration Lawyer, you must ensure they are registered with the Office of the Migration Agents Registration Authority (‘OMARA’). You can check whether a Migration Agent or Immigration Lawyer is registered by clicking here. You can search using the agent or lawyers name and you will be taken to their MARA profile if they are registered. A quick tip for determining how long an Agent or Lawyer has been registered can be gleaned from looking at their MARN – E.g. Mr Michael Kah’s MARN is 9256535, the first two numbers are the year he was registered i.e. 1992. This can be a good indicator of how much experience an Agent or Lawyer has in immigration law.
服务范围
移民中介可以协助您提供移民建议，准备和递交您的签证申请。但是，如果您要求向联邦法院或高等法院提出上诉，移民中介将不被允许代表您出庭。您将需要寻求移民律师的更高级别的服务，因为他们的服务将扩大到法庭，联邦和高等法院的完全代表权。
如果您的案子特别复杂，您可以选择聘请被移民法认可的移民专家提供服务。经过认可的专家在其法律领域是同行的公认专家，他们已成功完成至少5年的移民法事务专业实践，并通过了由州法律协会组织的进一步的考试。
重要的是要记住，在涉及移民法时，有时确实只是“您不知道自己不知道的事情”。因此，在着手进行艰巨而昂贵的签证申请程序之前，最好先寻求专业的法律建议。
无论您选择聘请移民中介或移民律师，您都必须确保他们在澳洲移民代理注册局（“OMARA”）已经注册。您可以点击这里查看移民中介或移民律师是否注册。您可以使用代理人或律师的姓名进行搜索，如果他们已注册，您将可以看到MARA个人资料。
可以通过查看其MARN来获取确定移民中介或移民律师的注册时长。 Michael Kah先生的MARN为9256535，前两个数字是他注册的年份，即1992年。这可以是很好的指标来参考移民中介或移民律师在移民法方面的经验。