Client Engagement and Professional Conduct
The engagement relationship
A migration agent's relationship with a client is governed by the Migration Act 1958 (Cth) Part 3, the Migration Agents Regulations 1998 (Cth) and the Code of Conduct. Before accepting instructions, an agent must assess whether the matter is within their competence, identify and manage conflicts of interest, and provide a written client agreement that sets out the scope of work, fees, and the client's obligations.
Core conduct obligations
Understand the duties of honesty and candour, confidentiality, competence, diligence, and acting in the client's best interests. Agents must not mislead the Department or the review body, must not lodge applications without instructions, and must keep proper records. Fees must be disclosed and must not be contingent on a successful outcome in a way that creates improper incentives.
Traps in questions
- Assuming an agent may act for both parties in a partner visa where interests conflict.
- Believing confidentiality is absolute - it yields to the duty not to mislead the Department and to legal disclosure obligations.
- Overlooking the requirement to provide a copy of the Code of Conduct to the client.
- Treating an oral agreement as sufficient when a written agreement is required.
Rule of thumb
Apply the 'sunlight test': would you be comfortable if your conduct were reviewed by the Authority and read by the client? A worked example: if a client asks an agent to backdate a document, the agent must refuse, explain the risk of fraud, and record the refusal in the file note - the duty not to mislead overrides client instructions.