The Australian government has not granted a single humanitarian visa out of the initial 3,000 promised to Afghans fleeing the Taliban, a Senate inquiry has heard.
There has been an overwhelming demand for Australia’s humanitarian offer with an estimated 150,000 people now awaiting a visa outcome across 32,000 applications received by the federal government in the last three months. At its peak, the government received 10,000 applications in just one week.
Thousands of Afghans have already arrived in Australia since the fall of Afghanistan's capital Kabul in August, but are currently residing on temporary visas.
Department of Home Affairs first assistant secretary David Wilden said none of the program's permanent humanitarian spots had been issued.
“We haven’t granted protection visas to anyone who's just arrived, we are not at that point yet,” he told the hearing.
The Senate inquiry is examining Australia’s engagement with Afghanistan as well as efforts to provide humanitarian assistance to those seeking protection.
It was also revealed that Afghans granted emergency three-month temporary visas to enter Australia - but have not been able to flee Afghanistan - will not be offered an extension.
They will instead be forced to join the growing backlog of applicants applying for the 3,000 humanitarian places initially offered by the government to enter Australia.
Department of Home Affairs deputy secretary Cheryl-anne Moy said there had been no policy decision to extend the offshore 449 visas.
“The application you would need to put in would be a humanitarian claim versus relying on the 449 from that point on once it expires,” she said.
Applicants who are able to make contact with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) or Department of Home Affairs could have this assessed on a “case by case basis”.
There are concerns that many Afghans may not be able to contact Australian authorities, as they’re either still hiding from the Taliban, living in remote areas without access to communications or unable to get the correct contact line.
The Department of Home Affairs has previously said the cohort would be contacted about “next steps” in their visa process.
But Greens Senator Janet Rice said she remained “deeply concerned” about the uncertainty facing these applicants.
“We’ve basically put on hold anybody being able to get out of the country. If they are in the process of applying for a visa that they may or may not get,” she told the hearing.
In contrast, Afghan nationals who were evacuated to Australia have been granted a 12-month extension to the temporary visa while their application is being assessed.
There have been 5,636 emergency temporary visas granted to Afghan nationals to allow them to secure flights to Australia, as part of the evacuation mission.
Only 3,568 have made their way to Australia, meaning more than 2,000 either remain in Afghanistan or are located elsewhere offshore.
The federal government has described its initial offer of 3,000 humanitarian places for the financial year as a floor and not a ceiling.
But several humanitarian organisations have pressed the government to commit to an intake of at least 20,000 in line with the United Kingdom, while Canada has said it will accept up to 40,000 refugees.
Mr Wilden said officials were working "overtime" to assess the validity of applications before they are prioritised.
"We do anticipate there will be more places announced," he said.
The number of these applications continues to rise steeply, there were 26,000 lodged by last month, now rising to 32,000.
Many claims are for multiple family members, so the real number is of visa hopefuls could be more than 150,000 Afghan people.
Options to leave Afghanistan remain limited
Almost 87 Australian citizens and 82 permanent residents remain in Afghanistan with limited evacuation options to leave the country.
But the number of evacuees has now risen from 4,100 to around 5,150 since Australia’s evacuation mission ceased in August, the Senate hearing was told.
DFAT’s acting deputy secretary Simon Newnham said progress had been aided by three evacuation flights from Kabul sponsored by the Qatari government.
This facilitated the evacuation of 103 Australian citizens, permanent citizens and their family members.
"We are very much focused on international flights out of Kabul,” Mr Newnham said.
“As that becomes a more commercial [and] viable option, we expect to see increases in the numbers departing via those flights."
Meanwhile, some people are continuing to present at land borders against the recommendation of Australian officials.
Just under 900 people crossed the Pakistan border with small numbers also reported in Iran, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.
About 80 Australian citizens, permanent residents and visa holders have made their way to capital cities across Europe and the Middle East.
DFAT’s special representative on Afghanistan Daniel Sloper said while the Taliban had made a broad commitment to allow safe passage out of the country, there still remained a level of risk.
He said this included evidence of some individuals facing harassment as well as physical intimidation at border checkpoints.
“Our travel advice remains for people to make their own judgement," he said.
"Movement across the country can be quite difficult and volatile."
Mr Sloper said the Australian government continued to make representations with the Taliban’s leadership.
“There is very clear understanding of the expectations of the broader international community,” he said.
