The Migration Amendment (Strengthening Employer Compliance) Act 2024 introduced new laws targeting the exploitation of migrant workers in Australia, commencing on 1 July 2024. The laws create criminal and civil penalties for employers and others who use a migrant worker's visa status as a tool of coercion or exploitation — for example, by threatening to report a worker to the Department of Home Affairs to prevent them from asserting their workplace rights.

Critically, the protections apply to all migrant workers regardless of their visa status — including workers on current visas, workers with expired visas, and workers who are working in breach of their visa conditions. The intention is to ensure that immigration status does not create a class of workers who have no practical ability to assert their rights. For current guidance, refer to the DHA migrant worker protections page.

• Migration Amendment (Strengthening Employer Compliance) Act 2024 — the primary legislation, amending the Migration Act 1958 from 1 July 2024
• DHA: Migrant worker protections — immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/migrant-worker-protections
• DHA: Workers rights and visa reporting protections — immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/work-rights-exploitation
• DHA: Strengthening Reporting Protections Pilot — immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/reporting-protections-pilot

What the laws prohibit — exploitation using visa status

The core prohibition introduced by the 2024 Act targets the practice of using a worker's immigration status as leverage. Employers and others in the labour chain are prohibited from:

• Using, or threatening to use, a person's migration status to coerce, underpay, or otherwise exploit them
• Threatening to report a worker to DHA or otherwise threatening immigration consequences to silence complaints or prevent workers from asserting their rights
• Pressuring a migrant worker to accept working conditions they would not otherwise accept, on account of their visa situation

Specific examples of conduct that may constitute exploitation under the new laws include: underpaying a migrant worker (particularly while threatening immigration consequences if they complain), pressuring a worker to work more hours than their visa conditions permit, and requiring workers to accept inadequate living conditions as a condition of employment.

Who is covered and who can be liable

The protections cover all migrant workers, including those:

• On a current visa with work rights
• On an expired visa (unlawful non-citizens)
• Working in breach of their visa conditions (for example, working more hours than their student visa permits)

The potential liability extends beyond the direct employer to others in the labour hire chain — including labour hire intermediaries and host employers. This chain liability prevents exploitation being insulated behind intermediary corporate structures.

Penalties

The 2024 Act introduced both criminal and civil penalty tiers for exploitation offences:

• Criminal penalty: Up to 2 years' imprisonment and/or a fine of 360 penalty units (currently $118,800) per offence
• Civil penalty: 240 penalty units (currently $79,200) per contravention

Penalty unit values are periodically updated under the Crimes Act 1914 — refer to the current penalty unit rate when applying these figures.

Employer prohibition orders

Where an employer is found to have seriously, repeatedly, or deliberately exploited migrant workers, DHA may impose a prohibition order preventing that employer from hiring temporary migrant workers for a period of time. This is a significant sanction for businesses that rely on temporary migrant labour.

Reporting protections — the Pilot

A barrier to reporting exploitation is the fear that a migrant worker — particularly one working in breach of their visa conditions — will have their visa cancelled if they come forward. The Strengthening Reporting Protections Pilot provides protections that reduce this risk: temporary visa holders who report exploitation or cooperate with an investigation may receive protection against visa cancellation for the duration of the process. This allows workers to report exploitation without their visa being used as a penalty for coming forward. For current details and how to access the Pilot, refer to the DHA Pilot page.

Fair Work Act rights are separate and parallel

The migration law protections introduced by the 2024 Act are separate from — and do not replace — the protections available under the Fair Work Act 2009 and related legislation. Migrant workers have the same minimum entitlements (minimum wage, leave, superannuation) under Fair Work law as Australian citizens and permanent residents. The migration law provisions are specifically targeted at the exploitation that arises from the immigration dimension — using visa status as a coercive tool — rather than general workplace underpayment.

Migrant workers who are experiencing exploitation — including threats related to their visa status — can contact the Fair Work Ombudsman, the Department of Home Affairs through the Status Resolution Service, or the DHA through the Strengthening Reporting Protections Pilot. Workers should not be deterred from reporting by concerns about their own immigration status. For the current contact pathways and available support, refer to immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/work-rights-exploitation.