Cómo comprobar que un agente de migración es real, en unos noventa segundos
Un MARN tiene siete dígitos y el registro es público y gratuito. Aquí se explica exactamente cómo buscar a alguien, qué le dice la entrada y las cuatro cosas que deberían hacerle detenerse antes de pagar a nadie.
Esta es información publicada sobre cómo funciona el sistema. No es immigration assistance ni asesoramiento legal, no puede tener en cuenta sus circunstancias, y puede quedar desactualizada en el momento en que cambie un arancel o una norma. Solo un agente de migración registrado (registered migration agent) o abogado australiano habilitado (Australian legal practitioner) puede asesorarle sobre su propia solicitud. Describa su caso y varios de ellos responderán por escrito, gratis.
There is one check that removes most of the risk in this market, it is free, it takes about ninety seconds, and almost nobody does it before they hand over money.
La verificación#
- Ask for the person's MARN - Migration Agents Registration Number. It is seven digits, for example
0532463. Every registered agent has one and must display it on their advertising. - Vaya a OMARA Register of Migration Agents. It is the government's own register and it is public.
- Search the number, or the person's name.
- Read the entry. Check it is actual, that the name matches the person you are talking to, and that there is no disciplinary history you were not told about.
That is it. If the number does not return a current registration, stop.
A company cannot be a registered migration agent. Only an individual person can be. "ABC Migration Services" being on a register somewhere means nothing - ASIC registers companies, and registering a company takes twenty minutes and a few hundred dollars. Ask which persona individual will be giving the assistance, and check that person.
What the register entry tells you#
A current entry gives you:
- Del agente nombre y MARN (número de registro)
- Whether the registration is actual, and when it expires
- Su dirección comercial and contact details as notified to the Authority
- Cualquiera decisiones disciplinarias - cautions, suspensions, bars
Registration is annual. It lapses. An agent whose registration has expired is not permitted to give immigration assistance, and an agent whose registration was cancelled is emphatically not. This is why checking once at the start is not quite enough for a two-year matter, and why re-checking before each payment is a reasonable habit.
The other legitimate credential: a lawyer#
Desde 22 March 2021, Australian legal practitioners with an unrestricted practising certificate no longer register with OMARA. They are regulated by their state or territory legal services commissioner instead. So a lawyer will not have a MARN, and the absence of one is not a red flag si they really are a practising lawyer.
Check a lawyer the same way, on a different register:
- NSW / Victoria: el Legal Services Board and Commissioner register and the NSW Law Society register
- Queensland: the Queensland Law Society register
- Otros estados: the relevant law society or legal practice board
You are looking for the same three things: current, unrestricted, and no undisclosed discipline.
There is no third category. Somebody who is neither a registered migration agent nor an Australian legal practitioner may not lawfully charge you for immigration assistance in Australia, full stop.
The four things that should stop you#
1. They will not give you a number#
An agent who dodges the question, gives you a company number instead, says "we work with a registered agent" without naming them, or sends a screenshot rather than a number you can search yourself, has told you the answer.
2. The number does not match the person#
This one is common and it is the reason to search the register yourself rather than accept a screenshot. Some operators quote a real MARN belonging to a real agent who is not involved. Under section 283 of the Migration Act it is an offence to falsely represent yourself as a registered agent.
3. The registration exists but the work is done by someone else#
An unregistered person doing the actual work while a registered agent's number sits on the letterhead is a serious problem for both of them, and for you: it means the person handling your file is not accountable to any regulator and cannot lawfully be paid for it.
Pregunte directamente: "Who will prepare and lodge my application, and what is their registration number?"
4. They ask for money before you have signed anything#
Menor de sección 51 of the Migration Agents Code of Conduct, an agent must not ask for or receive money from a client before a written services agreement is in place. Not a deposit, not a "consultation fee to get started", not a holding payment.
If someone asks for money before you have been given the consumer guide and signed an agreement, they are either not registered or not complying. Neither is a good sign.
What "verified" means on this site#
Every provider on VisaBid is checked against the OMARA register or their state legal register before they can quote, and their registration number is printed beside their name on every page they appear on. Registrations are re-checked, and an agent whose registration lapses cannot quote and cannot continue an existing engagement.
Dicho esto: check it yourself anyway. We are not the regulator, the register is public, and ninety seconds of your own verification is worth more than any badge on any website, including ours.
Preguntas que hace la gente#
What does a MARN look like?#
Seven digits, usually written with a leading zero, such as 0532463. The first two digits are the year the agent first registered - so 05 means 2005, 21 means 2021, 96 means 1996. A "MARN" with the wrong number of digits, or letters in it, is not a MARN.
Is a migration agent overseas allowed to charge me?#
If they are giving immigration assistance in relation to an Australian visa and they are not registered with OMARA or an Australian legal practitioner, then charging you a fee is an offence under section 281 of the Migration Act - and that offence reaches offshore conduct in ways many overseas operators do not expect. Registration is not limited to people in Australia: agents in India, the Philippines, the UK and elsewhere hold MARNs. Ask for the number.
Can I check whether an agent has ever been disciplined?#
Yes. Disciplinary decisions appear on the register entry, and OMARA publishes decisions separately. An agent with a caution years ago is not necessarily a problem; an agent who did not mention it when asked directly is a different question.
What if my agent's registration expires in the middle of my application?#
Registration is renewed annually and most renewals are routine. What matters is that it is renewed. If it lapses, your agent cannot lawfully continue to give you immigration assistance, and you would need to be transferred to someone who can. Ask when their registration expires before you engage them - it is a fair question and any competent agent will answer it without blinking.
They quoted me a great price but they are not registered. Can I use them anyway?#
You would be paying someone to commit a criminal offence, and you would have no regulator to complain to, no Code of Conduct, no professional indemnity insurance behind them, and no obligation on them to hold your money properly or return your documents. The saving is not a saving. Publicar su caso and compare registered agents instead - it is free, and the difference in price is usually far smaller than people expect.
Leer sobre ello es la mitad lenta
Describir su caso toma unos diez minutos y no cuesta nada. Agentes registrados y abogados de inmigración responden con presupuestos escritos desglosados — sus honorarios y el cargo del gobierno mostrados por separado — y su nombre no se revela a ninguno de ellos hasta que usted elija uno.