Terms of service

Customer Terms and Conditions

Last modified: 17 February 2023

The business trading as “Office of Immigration Australia” ACN 643 581 131 (we/us/our) provides a website where customers (you/your) may obtain information and resources relevant to a potential relocation to Australia under the skilled independent visa subclass 189 (the Platform). Customers may view resources relevant to their eligibility for this subclass of visa, information relating to government policy and changes, life in Australia and access third-party providers such as migration agents and other professionals, to assist with various aspects of relocating to Australia.

We are a private business and strictly provide a resource of information for professionals interested in the independent visa subclass. We do not provide visas of any kind, we are not a government resource and we have no affiliation with the Australian Government’s Department of Home Affairs. The official website for Australian immigration is https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/.

We do not make any representation, warranty or provide any endorsement or guarantee in respect of any professional services or organisation that is listed on the Platform or in relation to any information supplied by or in relation to a professional or organisation. You should make your own enquiries to verify information, noting that official information from the Australian Government at https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/ may change from time to time.

You agree to assess the suitability of any third-party service linked to from our Platform. When you engage with a third-party professional or organisation listed on the Platform, you do so directly with that third-party professional or organisation and we are not in any way involved with, or a party to, that engagement.  You are responsible for meeting the terms of that engagement including the payment of any fees due to that third-party professional or organisation.

We are not migration agents. While we may provide links to migration agents from time to time from the Platform, these are third-party professionals with their own terms and conditions that you should consider and review, should you wish to engage them or another migration professional of your choosing.

You agree that you shall be bound by these terms and conditions (Agreement) in relation to your use of the Platform, our provision of the Platform and our provision of the Services as set out in this Agreement. Please read this Agreement carefully as it contains important information about your rights and responsibilities when using the Platform and accessing our Services.

Without limiting the way in which you may become bound by this Agreement, you will be deemed to have accepted and will be bound by the terms and conditions of this Agreement by checking the “I agree to the Terms and Conditions” checkbox, clicking a “Sign Up” or “Submit” or similar button on your computer screen to electronically indicate your acceptance of this Agreement, or by proceeding with using our Services.

1.DEFINITIONS

Account means an account registered with our Platform which provides access to set up and complete an individual profile.

Australian Consumer Law means Schedule 2 to the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth).

Intellectual Property Rights means all intellectual property rights of any kind whatsoever throughout the world, including all present, future, registered and unregistered rights which subsist in copyright, trademarks, patents, designs and circuit layouts.

Lifetime Membership means the licence terms offered to you to access the Services pursuant to clause 2.3.

Platform means the Office of Immigration Australia website at https://www.immigrationsaustralia.com.au/ which delivers the Services to you.

Services means the services we provide from time-to-time on the Platform, being information and resources relevant to eligibility for the independent visa subclass, life in Australia, immigration news and connections to third-party professionals such as migration agents to provide relevant services to you.

Taxes means all sales-based taxes including without limitation, GST, VAT and sales tax, which are levied on the supply of goods or services by a party or in respect of any payments from one party to another.

2.THE SERVICES
  • 2.1
    Subject to the terms and conditions of this Agreement, the provision of the Services constitute our only obligation to you.
  • 2.2
    You agree that we may modify the Services at any time and discontinue the Services (or part thereof) at any time. We may also restrict your use of some or all Services.
  • 2.3
    You acknowledge that a Lifetime Membership is a non-transferable licence to you personally to use our Services for the duration of your natural life or the duration of our business or Services, whichever ends soonest.
  • 2.4

    You acknowledge and agree that:

    • (a)We do not guarantee that the Platform and Services will always be accurate, reliable, or error-free; and
    • (b)all Intellectual Property Rights which subsist in the Platform, including any data, material, or information created by or on behalf of us and displayed or made available via the Platform, together with any adaptations, enhancements or new versions of the same (Intellectual Property Rights) are our exclusive property.
3.CREATING AN ACCOUNT WITH US
  • 3.1
    You are required to create an online account on the Platform (Account) in order to use some or all of the Services.
  • 3.2

    When you create an Account with us you agree:

    • (a)that the Account will be created using our online sign up process, or any other method specified by us from time to time;
    • (b)to keep confidential and secure any password used to access your Account;
    • (c)all information provided by you to us in the setup of the Account is true and correct in every detail; and
    • (d)you will only use the Account for the purposes of using the Services personally, and for no other purpose.
  • 3.3
    During the registration process, you may be asked to select a password for your account. You agree to keep your password confidential at all times and must not disclose it to any third parties. You agree to be fully responsible for activities that relate to your account or your password. If you have reason to believe that your password has been obtained by someone else without your consent, you must inform us immediately to disable your account. If a third party accesses your account because your credentials are compromised, we are not liable to you in any way. If you become aware of your credentials being compromised or a third party accessing your account with us for any reason, you must advise us immediately. We reserve the right to suspend or terminate your registration with us in that instance.
  • 3.4

    If you are under the age of 16 years, or otherwise considered a minor under the laws of your jurisdiction, then you may only create an Account if:

    • (a)you have informed your parent or legal guardian;
    • (b)you have the prior consent of your parent or legal guardian; and
    • (c)your parent or legal guardian enter into this Agreement on your behalf. When this occurs, both you and your parent or legal guardian will be bound under this Agreement and this Agreement will be enforceable against both of you. Your parent or legal guardian will be responsible for your acts and omissions under this Agreement. Your acts or omissions under or in relation to this Agreement shall also be considered the acts and omissions of your parent or legal guardian.
  • 3.5
    You acknowledge that we may place restrictions on the minimum age for a person who may be on our Platform and may cancel your Account and usage of the Platform if you are not of that minimum age. We may modify that minimum age at any time with or without notice to you.

4.PLATFORM AND SERVICES

  • 4.1
    We grant to you a non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable licence (Licence) to access and use the Platform subject to the terms of this Agreement.
  • 4.2
    Notwithstanding clause 4.1, we may refuse to grant a Licence to any person, for any reason whatsoever, in our sole discretion.
  • 4.3
    If you are granted a Licence, then you acknowledge and agree that the Licence is personal to you. You may not sublicense, deliver, transfer or assign the Licence to any other person. If you use the Licence in breach of this clause we may, at our sole discretion, suspend your access to the Platform for a period of time or terminate your access to the Platform. We will not be liable to you in anyway if we exercise our rights under this clause.
  • 4.4
    Unless expressly specified to the contrary, all amounts payable by you under this Agreement, have been expressed to be inclusive of Taxes and fees.
  • 4.5
    If you provide consent (whether expressly or implied) to us to use your customer feedback as a testimonial for the Platform and/or Services, you grant us an exclusive, transferable, free, worldwide and irrevocable licence to use that testimonial for the purposes of promoting us, or our Platform or Services (Customer Testimonial). We assert our Intellectual Property Rights in relation to any content created by us using a Customer Testimonial. By providing consent (expressly or implied) to us to use your Customer Testimonial, you acknowledge that you are not eligible for compensation of any kind and you agree to waive any past, present or future rights that you may have in relation to any Customer Testimonial or any derivation of it.
5.SUSPENSION AND TERMINATION
  • 5.1

    Term of this Agreement

    • This Agreement commences at the earlier of:
    • (a)your acceptance of the terms of this Agreement; or
    • (b)your first use of the Services,
    • and will continue until terminated under this clause 5 (Term).
  • 5.2

    Termination by us

    • We may terminate this Agreement at any time, and for any reason, including:
    • (a)if you are no longer accessing our website from outside of Australia;
    • (b)if you have migrated to Australia;
    • (c)the provision of written notice to you (which may include notice via the Platform); or
    • (d)permanently disabling or deactivating your access to the Platform
  • 5.3

    Suspension by us

    • We may suspend your use of the Platform and the Services, or any part thereof, at any time, and for any reason. We will however provide you with written notice (which may include notice provided via the Platform) if we suspend your use of the Platform or Services (or part thereof), and will advise you subsequently if and when such suspension is lifted.
  • 5.4

    Termination by you

    • You may terminate this Agreement at any time, and for any reason, upon the provision of written notice to us, or by cancelling your Account.
  • 5.5

    Obligations on termination

    • Upon the termination of this Agreement by you or by us in accordance with this clause 5:
    • (a)your access to Services will cease;
    • (b)you will be deactivated from using the Platform; and
    • (c)you must cease all use of the Platform.
6.PROHIBITED USES
  • 6.1
    All content and information on the Platform, including, but not limited to, messages, data, information, text, music, sound, photos, graphics, video, maps, icons, software, code or other material, as well as the infrastructure used to provide such content and information, is owned by us or our third-party licensors. You agree not to modify, copy, distribute, transmit, display, perform, reproduce, publish, license, create derivative works from, transfer, or sell or re-sell any information, software, code, products, or Services obtained from or through the Platform. Additionally, you agree not to:
    • (a)use the Platform or its contents for any commercial purpose;
    • (b)use another person’s name, account, identity or password without permission, or use the Platform while impersonating another person;
    • (c) access, monitor or copy any content or information of the Platform using any robot, spider, scraper or other automated means or any manual process for any purpose without our express written permission;
    • (d) violate the restrictions in any robot exclusion headers on the Platform or bypass or circumvent other measures employed to prevent or limit access to the Platform;
    • (e)take any action that imposes, or may impose, in our discretion, an unreasonable or disproportionately large load on our server infrastructure;
    • (f)introduce or upload viruses or other malicious code to the Platform;
    • (g) deep-link to any portion of the Platform for any purpose apart from where expressly permitted by this Agreement; or
    • (h) attempt to modify, translate, adapt, edit, decompile, disassemble, or reverse engineer any software programs used by us in connection with the Platform or the Services (except to the extent specifically permitted by law).
7.CONFIDENTIALITY & PRIVACY
  • 7.1
    You must keep all of our content and processes that form the Platform confidential.
  • 7.2
    By using the Platform or the Services, you agree to the terms of our privacy policy. A copy of our privacy policy may be viewed on our website.

DSA Resolution Options: We comply with the DSA Resolution Options, and you have the right to contest decisions made by us to remove your content or restrict your accounts. More information on the DSA Resolution Options website. To submit a complaint or appeal to an out-of-court dispute settlement body, please contact us at support@immigrationsaustralia.com.au. We will cooperate with out-of-court dispute settlement bodies where required by law.

8.SUPPORT
9.REFUNDS AND CONSUMER GUARANTEES
  • 9.1
    When you complete and pay for “Eligibility Assessment Results” you shall be subscribed to a 14-day trial pass to the “Australian Immigration Bulletin” which becomes a paid month-on-month subscription following the initial 14-day free period (“Free Trial”). The price of the ongoing monthly subscription fee will be notified to you during the payment process for the “Eligibility Assessment Results”.
  • 9.2
    At any time and without notice, we reserve the right to (i) modify the terms and conditions of the Free Trial offer, or (ii) cancel such Free Trial offer.
  • 9.3
    You may cancel your Free Trial at any time using the “My Account” button located in your member’s area of the Platform. At the time of cancellation, you will be immediately removed from future monthly subscription payment cycles that occur after the date that you cancelled your subscription.
  • 9.4
    You are not entitled to a refund simply due to a change of mind, including in the instance that you cancel your subscription on or about the date of the next month’s subscription fee being due and do not wish to access the Services during that month.
  • 9.5

    If the consumer guarantees under the Australian Consumer Law apply to the provision of any services by us to you, then we provide the following notice to the extent required by the Australian Consumer Law:

    • Our Services come with guarantees that cannot be excluded under the Australian Consumer Law.
    • For major failures with the Service, you are entitled:
    • (a)to cancel your Service contract with us; and
    • (b)to a refund for the unused portion, or to compensation for its reduced value.
  • 9.6
    If a failure with the Service does not amount to a major failure, you are entitled to have the failure rectified in a reasonable time.
  • 9.7
    If this is not done, you are entitled to cancel the contract for the Service and obtain a refund of any unused portion. You are also entitled to be compensated for any other reasonably foreseeable loss or damage from a failure in the Service.
10.COMPLIANCE WITH THIRD PARTY LICENCES
  • 10.1
    The Platform may incorporate components licensed to us by third parties, which may be subject to their own End User Licence Agreements (Third Party Licences).
  • 10.2
    You agree that the use of the Platform, in addition to this Agreement, will be governed by any terms and conditions specified by any Third Party Licence that applies to the Platform, including but not limited to those appended to this Agreement or separately notified to you.
  • 10.3
    You agree to be bound by and observe all terms and conditions of any Third Party Licence and acknowledge that any breach of a Third Party Licence will entitle us to terminate the Licence and exercise our rights under clause 5.
11.YOUR INDEMNITY
  • 11.1

    You indemnify and keep indemnified us, our agents, employees and officers against all loss, cost, expense or damage which we, our agents, employees or officers suffer or incur, as a direct or indirect result of:

    • (a)any misuse of the Platform by you in breach of this Agreement;
    • (b)your breach of this Agreement or violation of any law or Intellectual Property Rights or other rights of a third party; or
    • (c)any legal proceedings or any claim made against us by a third party, which arises directly or indirectly from your use of the Services or Platform.
  • 11.2

    Any amount payable by you under the forgoing indemnity will be reduced to the extent that we caused or contributed to the relevant act or event giving rise to the indemnity.

12.LIABILITY AND DISCLAIMER
  • 12.1
    You acknowledge and agree that we have made no warranties that the Services will be error-free or that a third-party provider linked to by us on the Platform will achieve any particular outcome for you, including but not limited to the outcome of any visa applications made by you with assistance by a migration agent linked to from our Platform.
  • 12.2
    You agree that we will not be liable or responsible for any failure in, or delay to, the provision of the Services or in us complying with our obligations under this Agreement where such failure or delay has arisen as a direct or indirect result of:
    • (a)epidemic, pandemic, fire, earthquake, storm, flood, hurricane, inclement weather or other act of God, war, terrorism, explosion, sabotage, industrial accident or an industrial strike;
    • (b)denial of service attacks, telecommunications failure, hardware failure or the failure of software provided by a third party to function in accordance with its specifications;
    • (c)a significant demand being placed on telecommunications infrastructure, or on our services, which is above the usual level of demand and which results in a failure of our software and hardware to function correctly or in a timely manner;
    • (d)the failure of any third party to fulfil any obligations to us; or
    • (e)any other circumstances or event similar to the above which is beyond our reasonable control.
  • 12.3
    You acknowledge and agree that we have no liability whatsoever to you in relation to:
    • (a)the conduct of a third party, including but not limited to delays to, the processing of, refusal of or outcome of any visa applications made or not made on your behalf by a third-party migration agent whose business is linked to from our Platform;
    • (b)any negligence of a third party or other tort committed by a third party;
    • (c)any breach or default by a third party; or
    • (d)any damage, loss or inconvenience to you caused by a third party.
  • 12.4
    In the event any terms, conditions, representations or warranties are implied by statute, common law or equity into this Agreement which cannot be lawfully excluded (Prescribed Terms), such Prescribed Terms will apply, save that our liability for breach of any such
    • Prescribed Terms will be limited, to the extent permitted by law, at our option, to any one or more of the following:
    • (a)in the case of services, the cost of supplying the services again or payment of the cost of having the services supplied again; and
    • (b)in the case of software or other goods, the cost of replacing the goods, supplying equivalent goods or having the goods repaired, or payment of the cost of replacing the goods, supplying equivalent goods or having the goods repaired.
  • 12.5
    If our liability for breach of any Prescribed Terms are capable of exclusion, they are hereby excluded to the fullest extent permitted by law.
  • 12.6
    To the extent permitted by law, and subject to clause 12.4, any conditions, warranties, guarantees, rights, remedies, liabilities and other terms implied or conferred by statute, custom or the general law that impose any liability or obligation on us are excluded under this Agreement.
  • 12.7
    Subject to clause 12.4, and to the extent permitted by law, our liability to you arising directly or indirectly under or in connection with this Agreement or otherwise in connection with or in any way relating to the Platform or any of the Services, and whether arising under any indemnity, statute, in tort (for negligence or otherwise) or on any other basis in law or equity, is limited as follows:
    • (a)we exclude all liability for loss of revenue, loss of goodwill, loss of customers, loss of capital, downtime costs, loss of profit, loss of or damage to reputation, loss under or in relation to any other contract, loss of data, loss of use of data, loss of anticipated savings or benefits, or any indirect, consequential or special loss, damage, cost or expense or other claims for consequential compensation, incurred by or awarded against you under or in any way connected with this Agreement or otherwise in connection with or in any way relating to the Platform or Services; and
    • (b)our total aggregate liability under or in any way connected with this Agreement or otherwise in connection with or in any way relating to the Platform or Services, is otherwise limited to the lesser of:
    • (i) AUD $10.00; or
    • (ii) the total fees (if any) paid by you for the Services that are the subject of the relevant claim.
     
13.AMENDMENTS
  • 13.1
    We reserve the right to revise and amend this Agreement in our discretion, as follows:
    • (a)if we consider that the change is likely to benefit you or have a neutral or minor detrimental impact on you, we may make any changes immediately without notifying you except by publishing the amended Agreement (as applicable) on the Platform; and
    • (b)if we consider that the change is likely to have a significant detrimental impact on you, we will make the change and either provide you with an updated link to the new agreement on the Platform, or display the new agreement to you when you next log into the Platform (to enable you to review and seek advice on the amendment).
  • 13.2
    Your continued use of the Platform after amendments are made will mean that you agree to any amendments. You must stop using the Platform if you do not agree to an amendment.
14.GENERAL CLAUSES
  • 14.1

    In the interpretation of this Agreement unless the context otherwise requires:

    • (a)headings and words in bold type are included for convenience only and do not affect interpretation;
    • (b)the words “includes” or “including” mean “includes without limitation” or “including without limitation”;
    • (c)a reference to a word includes the singular and the plural of the word and vice versa;
    • (d)a reference to a gender includes any gender;
    • (e)if a word or phrase is defined, then other parts of speech and grammatical forms of that word or phrase have a corresponding meaning;
    • (f)a term which refers to a person includes a person in any capacity, a body corporate, an unincorporated body (for example a society or association), a trust, a partnership, a sovereign state, a government or a government department or agency;
    • (g)a reference to a document includes a reference to that document as amended, novated, supplemented, varied or replaced;
    • (h)a reference to a recital, clause, paragraph, schedule, annexure or other part is a reference to an item of that type in this Agreement;
    • (i)a reference to a party is a reference to a party to this Agreement and includes a reference to that party’s successors, personal legal representatives and permitted assigns;
    • (j)a reference to a statute or regulation or a provision of a statute or regulation includes a reference to that statute, regulation or provision as amended or replaced, and a reference to a statute includes all regulations, proclamations, ordinances and by-laws made or issued under that statute; and
    • (k)if an individual party to this Agreement consists of two or more persons, then those persons are bound both jointly and severally.
  • 14.2

    Any notice given under this Agreement must be in writing or alternatively must be given via functionality contained in the Platform. Unless a later time is specified in a notice, the notice takes effect from the time it is received. A notice is taken to be received:

    • (a)in the case of a notice delivered by hand, when so delivered;
    • (b)in the case of a notice sent by pre-paid express post, on the third clear Business Day after the date of posting;
    • (c)in the case of a notice sent by email, at the time that the email is sent, unless the sender receives a notification that the email was delayed or not received; or
    • (d)in the case of a notice sent via functionality contained in the Platform, at the time the notice was sent,
    • but if the effect of paragraphs (a) – (d) above is that a notice is taken to have been received before 9:00am or after 5:00pm on a day which is not a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday in New South Wales, Australia (Business Day), or on a day which is not a Business Day, then the notice is taken to have been received at 9:00am of the next Business Day.
  • 14.3
    Neither party is the partner, agent, employee or representative of any other party and neither party has the power to incur any obligations on behalf of any other party.
  • 14.4
    There are no other representations, promises, warranties, covenants or undertakings between the parties and this Agreement supersedes all previous agreements in respect of its subject matter and embodies the entire agreement between the parties.
  • 14.5
    A provision of or a right created under this Agreement may not be waived except in writing signed by the party or parties to be bound by the waiver. No single or partial exercise by any party of any right, power or remedy under this Agreement will preclude any other or further exercise of that or any other right, power or remedy. The rights, powers or remedies provided in this Agreement are cumulative with and not exclusive of any rights, powers or remedies provided independently of this Agreement.
  • 14.6

    If any provision of this Agreement is judged invalid or unenforceable for any reason whatsoever by a court of competent jurisdiction, such invalidity or unenforceability (unless deletion of such provision would materially adversely affect one of the parties) will not affect the operation or interpretation of any other provision of this Agreement to the extent that the invalid or unenforceable provision will be treated as severed from this Agreement.

  • 14.7

    You must not assign or novate any of your rights or obligations under this Agreement. You agree that we may however assign or novate this Agreement at any time, with or without notice to you.

  • 14.8

    The parties acknowledge and agree that no rule of construction applies to the disadvantage of a party because that party was responsible for the preparation of this Agreement or part of it.

  • 14.9

    This Agreement will be construed in accordance with and will be governed by the laws in force in New South Wales, Australia. Each of the parties irrevocably submits to and accepts the exclusive jurisdiction of any of the courts of New South Wales, Australia.