Section 198AAA — Collection, use and disclosure of information to foreign countries

198AAA Collection, use and disclosure of information to foreign countries

(1) The Minister or an officer of the Department may collect, use, or disclose to the government of a foreign country, for a purpose mentioned in subsection (2), information (including personal information) about:

(a) a removal pathway non-citizen; or

(b) a former removal pathway non-citizen who does not hold a substantive visa or criminal justice visa.

Note: To avoid doubt, personal information includes criminal history information.

(2) The purposes are as follows:

(a) determining whether there is a real prospect of the removal of the non-citizen from Australia under section 198 becoming practicable in the reasonably foreseeable future;

(b) facilitating the removal of the non-citizen from Australia under that section;

(c) taking action or making payments in relation to:

(i) a third country reception arrangement (within the meaning of section 198AHB); or

(ii) the third country reception functions (within the meaning of that section) of a foreign country;

(d) doing a thing that is incidental or conducive to the taking of an action, or the making of a payment, mentioned in paragraph (c);

(e) purposes directly or indirectly connected with, or incidental to, any of the above.

Circumstances in which information must not be disclosed

(3) However, information about a non-citizen must not be disclosed to the government of a foreign country under subsection (1) if:

(a) the non-citizen has made a valid application for a protection visa that has not been finally determined; or

(b) in the case of an unlawful non-citizen—the non-citizen cannot be removed to that country because of subsection 197C(3); or

(c) in the case of a lawful non-citizen—the non-citizen could not be removed to that country because of subsection 197C(3) if the non-citizen were an unlawful non-citizen.

Certain existing prohibitions do not apply

(4) Despite Division 3 of Part VIIC of the Crimes Act 1914, any other law of the Commonwealth, or any law of a State or Territory, this section has effect in relation to information about any conviction of an individual that is spent (however described) under any of those laws.

No limitation on existing powers

(5) This section does not limit any other powers the Minister or an officer of the Department has to collect, use or disclose information under this Act, the regulations or any other law of the Commonwealth. Note: For example, the Minister or an officer of the Department may also collect, use, or disclose to a person or body, criminal history information for the purpose of informing the performance of a function or the exercise of a power under this Act or the regulations (see section 501M).

Natural justice does not apply

(5A) The rules of natural justice do not apply to an exercise of power under this section.

Definitions

(6) In this section: government of a foreign country means:

(a) the government of the foreign country or of part of the foreign country; or

(b) an agency or authority of the government of the foreign country; or

(c) an agency or authority of the government of part of the foreign country; or

(d) a local government body or regional government body of the foreign country.

Subdivision B—Regional processing