About Shoreline Migration
Shoreline Migration is an Australian migration practice in Sydney. We act for individuals, families, skilled professionals and employers, in Australia and overseas, on visas, sponsorship, review and citizenship. Every matter is assessed against the Migration Act 1958 and the Migration Regulations 1994 as they stand, before any advice is given.
The name
Why “Shoreline”
A shoreline is where one place meets another.
The name describes the work. Everyone we act for is at a boundary: one country behind them, another ahead, and a body of law between the two. Our work is to take them through that law accurately.
( What we do )
The problems we are engaged to solve
Behind every application is a decision that matters: whether a family lives together, whether a career continues here, whether a business can fill the role it cannot fill locally. These are the problems we work on, for people in Australia and overseas and for the businesses that employ them.
( Why Shoreline )
Four commitments, made in writing when you engage us
Migration is a process you cannot see into and cannot control. These are the commitments we make in writing when you engage us.
You will know where your matter stands
We report progress at each stage. If nothing has happened, we tell you that, and why it is normal.
You will be told what we think
including when the answer is that you should not apply. A well-founded “do not apply” is advice, not a failure.
You will know what it costs before we start
in writing, by block of work, before the work begins.
Nothing is lodged without your approval
You see what is to be submitted before it goes in, and nothing is changed or withdrawn without your instruction.
Every matter begins with an initial consultation, whatever the visa. That is our method rather than a rule of the Act: advice depends on the assessment behind it, and the assessment needs your history, your objectives and the law in force before any visa is named.
The consultation ends with advice on the pathway, or pathways, worth pursuing, and whether to apply at all. From there the work is scoped in blocks: advice, preparation, lodgement, what follows lodgement, and review if it comes to that. Each block is priced before it starts and confirmed in a written service agreement.
Advice and instructions are recorded when they are given, deadlines are tracked from the day they are known, and the application is checked against the law again before it is lodged. Where a matter sits outside our competence or capacity, we say so and refer you on, early.
( The method )
What good advice looks like
Listen first
We start with your circumstances, not with a visa. Work history, family and timing decide which options are open to you.
Check the rule as it stands today
Migration law changes often and without notice. We assess every matter against the legislation in force on the day, not the year before.
Say it plainly
We set out the options, costs and risks in plain terms, including the unwelcome ones. If the right advice is “not yet” or “not this way”, that is the advice you receive.
Put the plan on paper
We confirm the scope, fees, responsibilities and next steps in writing before substantive work begins, so neither side is surprised later.
Prepare it to be examined
A decision-maker will examine the application, so we build the evidence against the criteria and review the whole file before it is lodged.
Stay until it is decided
We track the deadlines, report progress and answer your questions directly, until the decision is made.
( What we hold to )
Five values
Integrity and honesty
We say what is true, to you, to the Department and to the regulator, including when it costs us the matter. Advice records the weak points of a case, not only the strong ones.
Competence and diligence
We take only work we can do properly, and then we do it on time.
Respect for every person
Clients, the other side, Departmental officers and Tribunal staff are treated the same way. Interpreter needs are arranged, not worked around.
Loyalty to the client
Once we act, your legitimate interests come before ours. We check for conflicts of interest before we act, and any interest in a referral is disclosed in writing.
Candour, including when the answer is no
Telling you not to apply is a service. Where there is no available solution, we say so, plainly, and you leave with an answer you can act on.
( Who we act for )
Who we act for
The most personal applications there are.
Partner visas, family visas, points-tested pathways, citizenship. The advice is patient and plain, and clear about risk before it is confident about anything else.
( Our people )
The person behind the practice
Shoreline Migration is led by M Hamza, its Founder and Director. His background, qualifications and registration are set out on his profile.
“Immigration is not paperwork. It is a person’s life, or a business’s next year, decided on evidence and the law. The work is to get that right, for people in Australia and overseas, and to say plainly what is possible and what is not. That is why I do this.”
Regulated work
Immigration assistance is regulated. This is what that means for you.
The words below are the Office of the Migration Agents Registration Authority’s own, from its Consumer Guide. They describe what a registered migration agent must do, and how you can check that the person advising you is registered.
Registered Migration Agent · MARN 2619597 · Office of the Migration Agents Registration Authority (OMARA)
It is unlawful for anyone to give immigration assistance in Australia unless they are a registered migration agent, an Australian legal practitioner or an exempt person. Registered migration agents must meet professional standards, follow a Code of Conduct and maintain up-to-date knowledge of migration law and procedure.
All registered migration agents have a unique Migration Agents Registration Number (MARN). You can check whether a person is registered on the OMARA website. The Office of the Migration Agents Registration Authority is part of the Department of Home Affairs and is the regulatory body for registered migration agents in Australia.
The Code of Conduct requires a registered migration agent to be honest about your chances of getting a visa; to provide correct advice and keep you informed of the progress of your application and any changes that may affect it; to act within the law and in your interests and to protect your privacy; to tell you about any conflict of interest; to give you a written statement of the services, estimated fees and other costs before starting work; to keep funds paid in advance in a separate bank account; to invoice the services completed; and to keep proper records.
Any person who helps with your immigration matter cannot guarantee you a visa. Nothing on this website is immigration assistance. We give advice after we have assessed your circumstances, not before.
Start with a conversation.
Tell us where you are and what you want to do. A consultation gives you an assessment of your options; an enquiry gets a reply by email.