TREATIES AND OTHER INTERNATIONAL ACTS SERIES 14-1212

________________________________________________________________________

VISAS AND IMMIGRATION

Information Exchange

Agreement Between

the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

and AUSTRALIA

Signed at Canberra August 27, 2014
 NOTE BY THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE

 Pursuant to Public Law 89—497, approved July 8, 1966

(80 Stat. 271; 1 U.S.C. 113)—

“. . .the Treaties and Other International Acts Series issued

under the authority of the Secretary of State shall be competent

evidence . . . of the treaties, international agreements other than

treaties, and proclamations by the President of such treaties and

international agreements other than treaties, as the case may be, 

therein contained, in all the courts of law and equity and of maritime

jurisdiction, and in all the tribunals and public offices of the

United States, and of the several States, without any further proof

or authentication thereof.”
 AUSTRALIA

 Visas and Immigration: Information Exchange

 Agreement signed at Canberra August 27, 2014;

 Entered into force December 12, 2014.

 
AGREEMENT BETWEEN 

THE GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 

AND 

THE GOVERNMENT OF AUSTRALIA 

FOR THE SHARING OF VISA AND IMMIGRATION 

INFORMATION 

PREAMBLE: 

The Government of the United States of America and the Government 

of Australia (hereinafter referred to individually as "the United States", 

"Australia" and "Party" or collectively as "the Parties"); 

NOTING the importance of a new approach to migration that takes 

into account the global patterns of both regular and irregular migration and 

the increasingly sophisticated methods for identity fraud and abuse of the 

Parties' immigration laws; 

RECOGNIZING that border security and border management are 

significantly enhanced by cooperation and collaboration; 

RECOGNIZING that the United States and Australia decided upon a 

biometric exchange for law enforcement purposes under the Memorandum of 

Understanding on Enhancing Cooperation in Preventing and Combating 

Crime, signed on November 16, 2011; 
EMPHASIZING that it is critically important to have timely access to 

current and accurate information to inform inadmissibility assessments or 

other immigration related determinations that are vital to the common security 

of the United States and Australia; 

CONSIDERING that the effective administration and enforcement of 

the immigration laws of the United States and Australia is important to 

protect the health and safety of their populations, to maintain the security of 

their societies, and to promote security by denying access to their territories to 

persons who are criminals or security risks; 

CONVINCED that greater cooperation through the exchange of 

information can make their actions in achieving these objectives more 

effective; 

HAVE AGREED as follows: 

ARTICLE! 

DEFINITIONS 

For purposes of this Agreement, 

A. "National of a Third Country" means a person who is neither an 

Australian citizen nor a U.S. citizen or national, and includes a person not 

having a country of nationality. 

B. "Information" means data collected, maintained, or generated on 

Nationals of a Third Country, and Nationals, including citizens, of the Parties 

pursuant to the provisions of Article 2(C) and 2(D), seeking authorization to 

travel to, work in, or live in Australia or the United States, and other 
immigration-related data, including data pertaining to visa, admissibility, or 

immigration compliance actions and/or decisions rendered in accordance with 

or relevant to the immigration laws of the respective Parties. Information 

may include personal data, statistical data, or both. 

ARTICLE2 

SCOPE AND PURPOSE 

A. The scope of this Agreement is to specify the terms, relationships, 

responsibilities, and conditions for the regular sharing of Information as 

defined in Article l(B) between the Parties and pursuant to the purpose 

identified in Article 2(B). 

B. The purpose of this Agreement is to assist in the administration and 

enforcement of the respective immigration laws of the Parties by: 

(i) Using Information in order to enforce or administer the respective 

immigration laws of the Parties; 

(ii) Furthering the prevention, detection, or investigation of acts that would 

constitute a crime rendering an individual inadmissible or removable under 

the laws of the Party providing the Information; and 

(iii) Facilitating a Party's determination of eligibility for a visa, admission, 

or other immigration benefit, or of whether there are grounds for removal. 

C. A Party to this Agreement shall only provide Information about its 

Nationals in response to a query under this Agreement, or any Implementing 

Arrangement to this Agreement, when such Information is relevant and 

necessary to support an identifiable immigration decision in the receiving 
country, and the sharing of such Information is compatible with domestic law 

and policy. 

D. A Party to this Agreement shall only provide Information about a 

National of the other Party under this Agreement or any Implementing 

Arrangement to this Agreement in response to a specific immigration matter 

in the receiving Party to which the individual is directly tied, where the 

sharing of such Information is compatible with domestic law and policy. 

E. This Agreement shall not affect any existing agreements or 

arrangements between the two Parties. No provision in this Agreement shall 

be interpreted in a manner that would restrict practices relating to the sharing 

of Information that are already in place between the two Parties. 

F. This Agreement shall not give rise to rights, privileges or benefits on 

the part of any other party, private or public, including to obtain, suppress, or 

exclude any evidence or to impede the sharing of personal data. Rights, 

privileges or benefits existing independently of this Agreement are not 

affected. 

ARTICLE3 

EXCHANGE OF INFORMATION AND IMPLEMENTATION 

For the purposes identified in Article 2(B), the Parties shall provide each 

other with Information through processes provided for in implementing 

arrangements pursuant to Article 4, and in so far as is consistent with the 

respective domestic laws of the Parties. 
ARTICLE4 

IMPLEMENTING ARRANGEMENTS 

A. The Parties shall develop, by mutual consent, implementing 

arrangements under this Agreement consistent with their respective domestic 

laws. 

B. The implementing arrangements shall: set forth the Information to be 

exchanged, the operational procedures to be followed, and the security 

mechanisms and other safeguards to be maintained; and set out the ways that 

such exchange of the particular Information would be consistent with the 

purposes identified in Article 2(B). The exchange, storage, and retention of 

Information by the respective Parties as set forth in the implementing 

arrangements shall be subject to the obligations set forth in this Agreement. 

ARTICLES 

USE AND DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION 

A. The Parties may use and disclose Information obtained under this 

Agreement: 

(i) For the purpose of assisting in the effective administration and 

enforcement of each Party's respective immigration laws; 

(ii) For preventing immigration fraud or other exploitations of immigration 

or travel systems by Nationals of a Third Country; 

(iii) For identifying threats to national or public security related to 

immigration or travel systems; 
(iv) In its non-criminal immigration enforcement proceedings and actions 

directly related to immigration enforcement set forth in Article 5(A)(i); or 

(v) For any other purpose, only with the prior consent of the Party that 

transmitted the Information. 

B. Nothing in this Agreement or any implementing arrangement shall 

restrict a Party's authority to share Information with its respective 

appropriate domestic authorities pursuing any purpose identified in Article 

2(B) or a use listed in Article 5(A) when such authorities are carrying out 

their official duties: The Parties shall ensure that such domestic authorities 

limit their use and subsequent disclosure of Information in accordance with 

this Agreement. 

C. A Party may disclose Information received under this Agreement with 

the express consent, in writing, of the other Party providing the Information, 

consistent with the following terms: 

(i) After obtaining written consent, a Party may disclose Information it has 

received from the other Party: 

(a) To a domestic court or in a domestic judicial proceeding, for the 

purposes identified in Article 2(B); 

(b) In furtherance of verifying identity or establishing the provenance of 

identity documents, in connection with re-documentation or return of a 

National of a Third Country with the government of that third country. 

However, the Party disclosing the Information shall make best efforts to 

ensure that the disclosure of Information: 
1. Could not cause the Information to become known to any government, 

authority or person from which the subject of the Information is seeking or 

has been granted protection (a) in Australia under domestic laws or processes 

implementing Australia's obligations under the Convention relating to the 

Status of Refugees, done on 28 July 1951 (the "1951 Refugee Convention"); 

the Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees, done on 31 January 1967 (the 

"1967 Protocol"); the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman 

or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, done on 10 December 1984 (the 

"Convention against Torture"); or the International Covenant on Civil and 

Political Rights, done on 16 December 1966 (the "ICCPR").; or (b) in the 

United States under domestic laws implementing U.S. obligations under the 

1967 Protocol or the Convention against Torture. 

2. Does not occur in circumstances where, by virtue of the government, 

authority or person becoming aware of such Information, it is reasonably 

foreseeable that the subject of the Information may become eligible for the 

protections set out in paragraph (C)(i)(b)(1) above; 

3. Does not occur in circumstances where, by virtue of the government, 

authority or person becoming aware of such Information, the subject of the 

Information or their family members may be placed at risk of refoulement, or 

any other type of harm contemplated under the 1951 Refugee Convention, 

the 1967 Protocol, or the Convention against Torture. 

(c) Subject to paragraph (C)(ii), below, for such other purpose specifically 

described in the providing Party's advance written authorization: including to 

any private party, the public, a third party foreign government, or an 

international organization, or for a purpose not identified in Article 2(B), to a 

court or in a judicial proceeding. 

(ii) The providing Party may condition its consent with caveats or 

restrictions on the use of such Information, which shall not include generic 

restrictions with respect to the legal standards of the receiving Party for 

processing personal data. In such instances, the receiving Party shall be 

bound by any such conditions. 
(iii) Consent may be provided either in response to a specific request or 

through an implementing arrangement. 

D. The Parties shall not interpret this Article to preclude the use or 

disclosure of Information to the extent that there is an obligation to do so 

under the domestic law of the Party that received the Information. In these 

circumstances, the Party requiring such use or disclosure shall endeavor to 

notify the other Party in advance and provide details of that use or disclosure. 

In the exceptional case where advance notice is not practicable, the Party 

using or disclosing the Information shall notify the other Party as soon as 

possible. 

ARTICLE6 

EXEMPTIONS 

A. If a Party determines that sharing Information under this Agreement 

would be inconsistent with its domestic law, or detrimental to its national 

sovereignty, national security, public order, or other important national 

interest, the Party may decline to provide all or part of the Information, or 

offer to provide the Information in whole or in part subject to such terms and 

conditions as it may specify. 

B. This Agreement is made within the context of Australia and United 

States being parties to important treaties of the United Nations on human 

rights, including the ICCPR and the Convention against Torture. The Parties 

affirm that this Agreement shall be implemented consistent with their 

obligations under those treaties and any domestic legislation implementing 

those treaties, as applicable. 
ARTICLE7 

ACCESS, CORRECTION AND NOTATION 

A. Nothing in this Agreement shall interfere with a Party's legal 

obligations, as set forth in its respective laws, to provide data subjects with 

information as to the purposes of the processing and the identity of the data 

controller, the recipients or categories of recipients, the existence of the right 

of access to and the right to rectify the data concerning him or her and any 

further information such as the legal basis of the processing operation for 

which the data are intended, the time limits for storing the data and the right 

of recourse, in so far as such further information is necessary, having regard 

for the purposes and specific circumstances in which the data are processed, 

to guarantee fair processing with respect to data subjects. 

B. Such information may be denied in accordance with the respective laws 

of the Parties, including if providing information may jeopardize: 

(i) The purpose of the processing; 

(ii) Investigations or prosecutions conducted by the competent authorities 

in the United States or by the competent authorities in Australia; or 

(iii) The rights and freedoms maintained by third parties. 

ARTICLES 

PROTECTION OF INFORMATION 

A. The Parties shall have in place the necessary technical measures and 

organizational arrangements to protect Information against accidental or 

unlawful destruction, accidental loss, or unauthorized disclosure, alteration, 
access or any unauthorized form of processing. The Parties, in particular, 

shall take reasonable measures to ensure that only those authorized to access 

personal data can have access to such data. 

B. Implementing arrangements or other technical arrangements that 

govern the procedures for automated biographic and biometric queries under 

this Agreement shall provide: 

(i) That appropriate use is made of modern technology to ensure data 

protection, security, confidentiality, and integrity; 

(ii) That encryption and authorization procedures recognized by the 

competen.t authorities are used when having recourse to generally accessible 

networks; and 

(iii) For a mechanism to ensure that only permissible queries are conducted. 

C. Each Party shall notify the other promptly, but no later than forty-eight 

( 48) hours after becoming aware of any material accidental or unauthorized 

access, use, disclosure, modification or disposal of Information received 

under this Agreement and shall furnish·all necessary details of the material 

accidental or unauthorized access, use, disclosure, modification or disposal of 

that Information as appropriate·. 

D. Each Party shall take appropriate action, including under the civil or 

criminal law or both, in the event of misuse, unauthorized alteration or 

deletion of, or unauthorized use or disclosure of, any Information shared 

under this Agreement. 

E. A· Party shall notify the other by telephone or in writing, to include 

electronic mail, promptly and in any event no later than forty-eight ( 48) 

hours, if there is a situation that disrupts the intended transfer of Information 

between them. 
F. The Parties shall use and disclose personal Information fairly and in 

accordance with their respective laws and ensure that: 

(i) Personal data provided are adequate and relevant in relation to the 

specific purpose of the transfer; and 

(ii) Possibly inaccurate personal data are brought to the attention of the 

receiving Party in a timely manner in order that appropriate corrective action 

is taken. 

ARTICLE9 

RETENTION, ARCHIVING AND DISPOSAL 

A. Each Party shall retain personal data received under this Agreement in 

an orderly and secure system, only for as long as is necessary for the specific 

purpose for which the data were provided or further processed in accordance 

with this Agreement, and in accordance with applicable domestic law. 

B. A Party shall destroy, as soon as practicable, any data received under 

this Agreement that it determines are not relevant to the intended query or that 

are erroneously provided. 

C. Each Party shall operate a system of database and document control 

that provides for the orderly and secure archiving and destruction of 

Information that has been received under this Agreement, in accordance with 

the relevant Party's domestic law. 
ARTICLE 10 

FINANCIAL ARRANGEMENTS 

Subject to applicable laws and regulations, each Party shall bear the expenses 

incurred by its authorities in implementing this Agreement. In special cases, 

the Parties may agree to different arrangements, where authorised under 

domestic laws or processes. 

ARTICLE 11 

REVIEW AND CONSULTATION 

A. The Parties shall consult each other regul"-rlY on the implementation of 

provisions of this Agreement. 

B. Each Party shall be responsible for notifying the other Party as to any 

substantive or material change to its laws that would fundamentally alter its 

ability to comply with this Agreement within fourteen (14) days. 

C. In the event of any dispute regarding the interpretation or application of 

this Agreement or any implementing arrangement, the Parties shall consult 

each other in order to facilitate its resolution. 

D. The Parties shall jointly determine in advance the modalities and terms 

of the consultation. 

ARTICLE 12 

SETTLEMENT OF DISPUTES 

A. The Parties shall at all times endeavour to agree on the interpretation 

and annlication of this Al!reement and shall make everv attemnt to arrive at a 
mutually satisfactory resolution of any matter that might affect its 

implementation or administration. 

B. If the Parties cannot, through consultations, come to a mutually 

satisfactory resolution of a dispute regarding the interpretation or application 

of this Agreement, they shall address the dispute through diplomatic channels. 

ARTICLE 13 

AMENDMENT AND TERMINATION 

A. The Parties may amend this Agreement by mutual agreement, in 

writing. 

B. A Party may terminate this Agreement at any time by giving notice in 

writing to the other Party. The termination shall be effective 90 days after the 

date of the notice, except that the provisions of Articles 5, 7, 8 and 9 shall 

continue to apply to Information exchanged pursuant to this Agreement, even 

after the Agreement is terminated. 

ARTICLE 14 

ENTRY INTO FORCE 

This Agreement shall enter into force on the date of the last note of an 

exchange of diplomatic notes in which the Parties notify each other of the 

completion of their respective internal procedures necessary for the entry into 

force of this Agreement. 
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned, being duly authorized by their 

respective governments, have signed this Agreement: 

DONE at QA!VBER.RA 

in duplicate, in the English language. 

FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF 

THE UNITED STATES OF 

AMERICA: 

, this 2-=T+h day of AU&uST, 201'j, 

FOR THE GOVERNMENT 

OF AUSTRALIA: