US embassy cable - 05CANBERRA1253

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 CANBERRA 001253 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR CA:JARTZ, CA/PPT:MHOLLY, AND CA/VO/F/P:DLOPESDAROSA 
DHS FOR MICHAEL NIEFACHL, DANIEL E. SULLIVAN, AND MICHAEL 
HARDIN 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: CVIS, CMGT, KPAO, AS, EUN 
SUBJECT: AUSTRALIA'S LOST AND STOLEN PASSPORTS REPORTING 
PROCEDURES AND LEGISLATION UPDATE 
 
REF: STATE 125862 
 
1.  (U) Action request for CA at para 3. 
 
2.  (U) At present post does not receive information on lost 
and stolen passports (LASP) directly from the Australian 
Government.  Occasionally, post receives reports from other 
embassies advising us of LASP and we usually forward this 
information on to the U.S. Embassy in that country for action 
in order to avoid duplication of entries.  Conoff spoke to 
Department of Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous 
Affairs (DIMIA) International Border Initiatives Section 
Officer Nikki Keirven on July 14 regarding Australia's 
current procedures for reporting LASP information.  Keirven, 
who also works on the Regional Movement Alert List (RMAL), 
informed conoff that, since a LASP MOU was signed with the 
U.S. in March of this year, the GOA had given two CDs of 
Australian LASP information to the U.S.  One CD was passed to 
Deputy Assistant Secretary Frank Moss in April when he was in 
Australia for a conference; the other was passed to a DHS 
delegation in Australia for RMAL meetings in late June, 
according to Keirven.  She also noted that Ian Russell in the 
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) Passport Fraud 
Section was responsible for compiling the LASP CDs for 
distribution internally and externally. 
 
3.  (U) ACTION REQUEST:  Keirven was interested to learn how 
the U.S. had been using the Australian LASP CDs.  She also 
confirmed that, to date, no fixed process had been 
established to transmit the LASP information.  Keirven stated 
that the GOA was open to suggestions and that DIMIA officials 
could either pass the information through the Australian 
Embassy in Washington or pass the CDs through post to forward 
to the Department.  CA, please advise. 
 
4.  (U) Australian Visa Waiver Program (VWP) DFAT POC John 
Osborne has been out of the office and will not return until 
the week of July 25.  Conoff will discuss in-depth ref A 
certification procedures with Osborne and report septel. 
 
NEW AUSTRALIAN PASSPORT LEGISLATION 
----------------------------------- 
5.  (U) According to a media release from Foreign Minister 
Downer on June 24, the new "Australian Passport Act 2005" 
came into force on July 1 in a move toward combating the 
growing problem of lost and stolen passports.  The Act boosts 
penalties for passport fraud, introduces immediate and 
permanent cancellation of missing passports, and imposes an 
additional fee for replacing lost and stolen passports. 
 
6.  (U) The Act increases maximum jail terms for passport 
fraud from two to ten years and increases the maximum fines 
from A$5,000 to A$110,000.  These penalties will apply across 
all indictable offenses such as false statements in 
applications and illegal use of passports.  The new Act 
explicitly allows for passport refusal or cancellation in 
cases where Australian law enforcement agencies advise DFAT 
that an Australian is likely to engage in, is charged with, 
or has been sentenced for specified crimes including 
terrorism, child sex tourism, child abduction, or people 
smuggling.  Procedures for resolving disputes between parents 
about their children's international travel are also 
clarified.  The new Act allows for such disputes to be dealt 
with by the courts and not by passport officers. 
 
7.  (U) The Act requires Australian citizens to report a lost 
or stolen passport as soon as possible.  The passport will be 
immediately and permanently cancelled and international 
border control authorities notified.  To encourage 
Australians to protect their passports, an additional fee 
will be charged for replacing lost and stolen passports - 
A$50 for the first passport lost or stolen, A$153 for the 
second, and A$306 for the third or additional ones.  The 
validity of replacement passports will also be reduced once 
three or more passports have been lost or stolen within five 
years.  The media release stated, "Of more than one million 
passports issued each year (to Australians), over 30,000 are 
reported lost or stolen by the bearers."  Other provisions of 
the Act accommodate passport technologies such as facial 
biometrics and new forms for passport services. 
 
STANTON