Labor fears proposed new laws could exclude entire groups of people from living in or travelling to Australia based on their religion or nationality in a Trump-like ban.
But Immigration Minister Peter Dutton says they're designed to be used in extreme cases - such as an ebola or bird flu crisis - to protect Australia's national interest.
He has criticised Labor for raising concerns only in the past day and not during a Senate inquiry last year or when his opposition counterpart rang him on Sunday.
"I've seen some mendacious acts in my 15 years in parliament - this would be one of the most mendacious acts by a shadow minister desperate for attention," he told ABC radio on Thursday.
Labor has likened the amendments to US President Donald Trump's temporary immigration ban.
A section of the bill gives Mr Dutton the power to require a "specified class of persons" to undergo visa revalidation checks if it's in the public interest.
The law applies to a 10-year visa offered to Chinese visitors but it states the minister could identify a group based on whether they hold a particular passport, live in a particular state, province or country, may have travelled through a particular area or applied for a visa during certain dates.
Labor MP and counter-terrorism expert Anne Aly told parliament's lower house on Wednesday night it was not smart, prudent or effective to grant the minister "disproportionate" powers to execute what was effectively travel bans to a group of visa holders without necessary parliamentary oversight.
Opposition immigration spokesman Shayne Neumann bluntly laid out his party's position: "Ultimately Labor cannot give Trump-like powers to a minister who has such a high desire to see a divided Australia."
Mr Dutton said the bill was apparently supported by Labor up to the point it was debated in parliament on Wednesday.
The government wanted the ability to re-examine people's visas during the 10 years, such as in cases where they committed a crime or were put on a terrorist watch list.
Another part of the powers relates to actions to protect the national interest.
"If there was an ebola crisis, a bird flu crisis, if there was another Tiananmen Square, for example, and we saw people that started to come in mass numbers, then there is the ability ... for us to put in place a suspension until we can conduct an orderly migration process," Mr Dutton said.
"That is perfectly reasonable in the national interest."
Labor on Thursday flagged it would seek to have the proposed power removed from the bill in the Senate, to allow other non-controversial changes pass without delay.
One of those relates to the expansion of the contactless SmartGate immigration clearance system at airports.
