Michaelia Cash (WA, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Immigration) Share this | Hansard source

asked the Minister representing the Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, upon notice, on 4 May 2012:

(1)   What is the current median processing time for the Dependent Child Visa (Subclass 445).

(2)   Is this category of visa subject to an annual cap; if so: (a) what is it; and (b) what is the policy rationale behind this.

(3)   How many requests for Subclass 445 visas were received in the 2010-11 and the 2011-12 (to date) financial years, including how many were: (a) onshore requests; (b) offshore requests; (c) from low risk countries; and (d) from high risk countries.

(4)   How many requests from low risk countries were: (a) granted; and (b) refused.

(5)   On what grounds were the applications refused.

(6)   How many requests from high risk countries were: (a) granted; and (b) refused.

(7)   On what grounds were the applications refused.

(8)   How many Subclass 445 visa applications have been withdrawn.

(9)   Given that the department's website states that processing times for Subclass 445 visas lodged in Australia are 7 months for low risk countries and 8 months for high risk countries and, for applications lodged outside of Australia, 3 months for low risk countries and 14 months for high risk countries: (a) why is there such a discrepancy between onshore and offshore low risk application processing times; and (b) why does it take 14 months to process an application offshore from a high risk country.