There are a lot of things that aren’t so fun about being a migration agent.
Firstly, there’s the paperwork. It’s no secret that immigration is a long and complicated process for even the most straightforward application, and half the reason for it is the amount of paperwork we migration agents have to deal with. Most applications we prepare consist of well over one hundred pages of detailed technical documents – and that’s just for the first submission!
Another frustrating aspect of a migration agent’s job is the ever-changing immigration rules and policy. With so many regulations to stay on top of, some days it feels like you’ve only just wrapped your head around one rule alteration when suddenly a whole other set of major policy changes are announced. Luckily, one of the benefits of working for a larger migration agency such as Migration Solutions is that there’s always someone keeping an eye on any sudden announcements. My colleagues Peng Zhang and Nam Hoang are fantastic at that sort of thing, nothing ever gets past them.
Finally, one of the toughest things about being a migration agent is when one of your applications is met with an incorrect decision from the Department. Case officers undoubtedly have a very difficult job, and everyone makes mistakes. However when an oversight, misinterpretation of the guidelines or administrative error affects your clients so significantly, it’s hard not to get a bit upset about it.
Last week though, I was reminded about one of the best parts of my job, and the reason why I love being a migration agent so much.
Nelima came to Migration Solutions around two months ago almost completely out of time, money and options. A mistake with her original application had left her family’s immigration status in an extremely precarious position, and they had already been informed by two other migration agents to be prepared to pack their bags – there was nothing more they could do.
Fortunately for Nelima and her family, through a combination of the experience of our migration agents and fortunate circumstances, we were able to help her attain a permanent residency visa.
For Mark, who met with Nelima initially, and Peng, who worked on her application, it wasn’t the most complicated case we’ve seen here at Migration Solutions, but the stakes were certainly just as high.
Nelima’s reaction when we told her the news that she and her family were going to be able to stay in Australia and start their lives over again was incredible. In those moments, all those trivial frustrations like paperwork and regulation changes all just seem to fall away.
So that’s why I love being a migration agent. It’s not always the most glamorous job in the world (I’m still waiting to find one where I can get paid to go on exotic holidays all year around), but short of that, I couldn’t see myself doing anything else.
See Vanessa’s staff profile here.
