Longer welfare wait times for migrants would affect 66,000 families

[Cerberus1]

A plan to make migrants wait four years before accessing welfare benefits would affect 66,000 families.

Tens of thousands of families would be hit by a proposal to make migrants wait four years before accessing a range of welfare benefits.

Legislation already before parliament seeks to push the welfare waiting period for newly-arrived migrants from two to three years, in a measure expected to save $1.3 billion.

The federal government is now proposing to stretch the wait times for migrants out to four years from July 1.

The extra squeeze on migrants is expected to save an additional $200 million.

The government predicts 66,000 migrant families will be forced to wait longer for tax benefits, and 47,000 people will be impacted by the freeze on access to Newstart, Youth Allowance and other payments.

Social Services Department officials say the two cohorts are not mutually exclusive, with some migrant families tapping into other welfare payments.

Department officer Shane Bennett played down concerns the proposal would prove a disincentive to migration.

"There is evidence from the OECD that reflects access to social security systems is not necessarily high on the factors people consider," Mr Bennett told a Senate estimates hearing on Thursday.

"There is also a Productivity Commission report from 2016 that shows non-humanitarian permanent migrants had effectively lower take-up rates of income support to the general population."

Migrant and community groups have pushed back hard against moves to extend welfare wait times, fearing it could force some new arrivals into destitution and poverty.

Exemptions will continue to apply for vulnerable groups and humanitarian entrants, while hardship provisions also will also remain in place.

Source: https://www.sbs.com.au/news/longer-welfare-wait-times-for-migrants-would-affect-66-000-families

 

[Toots]

Surely that is the fault of the department of immigration.  So all those migrants spend a heap of money to move here then find there are no jobs (which were/are presumably on the list) then when they arrive in Australia they discover how very hard it is to find employment and also to receive welfare benefits to tide them over.      

[Bulya]

Sounds fair.  Anybody who moves here and expects welfare is taking the piss!

[AJ]

9 hours ago, Cerberus1 said:

 

"There is evidence from the OECD that reflects access to social security systems is not necessarily high on the factors people consider," Mr Bennett told a Senate estimates hearing on Thursday.

 

 

Of course it is! One of the popular questions on migration forums and FB pages is people asking "what benefits am I entitled to!  some before they have even set foot in the country!