ATTENTION VIETNAMESE BOAT PEOPLE
We want to help you stay safe.
Please do not endanger your lives by trying to come to Australia by boat. If you attempt to come to Australia by boat, there is no way you will make Australia home.
Australia has tough border protection policies, known as Operation Sovereign Borders (OSB). The Australian Government has said:
“Anyone who attempts to travel illegally by boat to Australia will be turned back to their country of departure.”
“Anyone who tries to come to Australia illegally by boat will not be settled in Australia.
“The rules apply to everyone – families, children, unaccompanied children, educated and skilled. There are no exceptions.
“Do not waste your money. Do not believe the lies of the people smugglers.”
Australian law requires a person to obtain a visa, which is a permit to travel to, enter and/or stay in the country. If the person does not hold a valid visa, they must be detained under Australian law.
Asylum seekers trying to reach Australia by boat from Vietnam are now intercepted at sea and undergo “enhanced screening”. This means that they are interviewed by two immigration officers about their reasons for travelling to Australia. Since 2015, no one from Vietnam has been found to engage Australia’s protection obligations and everyone has been returned to Vietnam.
In December 2016, Vietnam and Australia signed a formal agreement to return “Vietnamese nationals with no legal right to enter or remain in Australia”.
To claim asylum in Australia, a person needs to be physically present on Australian territory. A person or someone on their behalf (who may be in Vietnam or elsewhere) needs to provide the asylum seeker’s name and location or exact coordinates in Australian waters. A person seeking asylum should also make a request for legal help to explain the reason they left Vietnam. The person specifically needs to inform Australian authorities whether they fear for their safety if returned to Vietnam and provide details about why they hold that fear. Please note that whatever the outcome of a case, a person will not be able to apply for a visa to remain in Australia, except at the discretion of the Minister of Immigration.
NOTE: THE ABOVE IS NOT, AND NOT INTENDED TO BE, LEGAL ADVICE. ANY INDIVIDUAL SEEKING PROTECTION IN AUSTRALIA IS ADVISED TO OBTAIN INDEPENDENT LEGAL ADVICE FOR THEIR SPECIFIC CIRCUMSTANCES.