Section 240 — Offence to arrange marriage to obtain permanent residence
CurrentPart 2—Arrival, presence and departure of persons · Division 12—Offences etc. in relation to entry into, and remaining in, Australia · Subdivision B—Offences relating to abuse of laws allowing spouses etc. of Australian citizens or of permanent residents to become permanent residents · Migration Act 1958
C2026C00232 · Compilation No. 171As in force on 4 June 2026
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- Provision
- Section 240
- As in force on
- 4 June 2026
- Citation
- C2026C00232 · Compilation No. 171
Section 240 — Offence to arrange marriage to obtain permanent residence
240 Offence to arrange marriage to obtain permanent residence
(1) A person must not arrange a marriage between other persons with the intention of assisting one of those other persons to get a stay visa by satisfying a criterion for the visa because of the marriage. Penalty: Imprisonment for 10 years or 1,000 penalty units, or both.
(2) Subsection (1) applies whether or not the intention is achieved.
(3) It is a defence to an offence against subsection (1) if the defendant proves that, although one purpose of the marriage was to assist a person to get a stay visa, the defendant believed on reasonable grounds that the marriage would result in a genuine and continuing marital relationship. Note: A defendant bears a legal burden in relation to the matter in subsection (3) (see section 13.4 of the Criminal Code).