KEY POINTS:
- Labor will scrap locally engaged employee visas from next year.
- The move impacts Afghan interpreters who helped Australians.
- More than 2,000 Afghan LEE holders and their family members had travelled to Australia.
The Albanese government is scrapping a crucial visa program for Afghans who worked for Australia, including interpreters who supported Australian soldiers.
But a military lawyer helping Afghans escape the country insists he's now "quietly confident" for his clients, after the government allowed hundreds who had previously been rejected to reapply in the interim.
The federal government announced on Thursday it will terminate the locally engaged employee visa (LEE) program from May 2024, with applications to close in November.
That move was recommended by an independent review of the program, which found neither the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade nor Defence had "adequate case management systems in place".
The program was wracked by poor record keeping, insufficient legal oversight, and delays in communication between departments, it found.
Foreign Minister Penny Wong. A military lawyer helping Afghans escape says he's now 'quietly confident' for his clients. Source: AAP / Lukas Coch
But the government said those whose visa applications were rejected, including security guards and members of the Afghan military who worked with the Australian embassy and missions, would be allowed to reapply before the November deadline.
"Applicants from these cohorts who were previously found to be ineligible will be contacted, where possible," the government said in a statement.
Glenn Kolomeitz, a military lawyer helping LEE applicants escape, described the review as "masterful" and said it would allow roughly 400 Afghans and their family members to reapply, having previously been rejected.
Dr Kolomeitz accepted the November deadline would mean a scramble to get their applications in.
"There'll be a lot of work in the short timeframe," he told SBS News.
"But just reading the general tenor of this [report] ... I certainly expect there will be a lot of cooperation from [Foreign Minister] Senator [Penny] Wong's office and from Home Affairs.
"I'm quietly confident now that we'll get this job done."
The review found inconsistencies in the way LEEs were granted visas under the former Coalition government, and warned its approach to Afghan contractors, in particular, was unclear.
It warned the program had been too narrowly applied, often excluding contractors and security guards despite them facing particular threats.
"The Taliban don't distinguish between an employee of an Australian agency or a contractor. If you worked for Australia, they're gonna kill you," Dr Kolomeitz said.
The review recommended that previously ineligible security guards be added to the scheme.
Of the 946 rejected applicants, 216 had self-identified as security guards, and 117 of that cohort were already in Australia.
DFAT first assistant secretary Andrew Walter insisted it was "reasonable to expect" that everyone eligible to apply had had an opportunity to do so, with the November deadline providing ample time to revisit newly-eligible applicants.
Mr Walter stressed anyone unable to apply before the November deadline would still be able to apply for a humanitarian visa.
As of May, there were 165,952 outstanding applications for humanitarian visas from Afghan citizens.
"In the event that they identified themselves as being a LEE, you could imagine that Home Affairs might still consider them for priority," Mr Walter said.
But the move is a blow for an unknown number of Afghan interpreters stuck in Afghanistan, who face the threat of violent reprisals under Taliban rule.
At the height of the Taliban's takeover in August 2021, several Afghans who worked for Australia were sent letters from Australian government departments saying they were rejected for the LEE visa.
They were told instead to apply for humanitarian refugee visas, which in the course of the next 18 months, would have an application list of almost 200,000.
This was further complicated after the Department of Home Affairs said it would reject refugee applications from people stuck in Afghanistan because there were no mechanisms for biometric testing needed for security clearances, as SBS News reported earlier this year.
It effectively meant that some Afghan allies who had documentary proof of their work with Australia could have their applications rejected because they could not travel to a third country, some in fear of Taliban border checks.
By December, 2,383 Afghan LEE holders and their family members had travelled to Australia.
