Thornton Immigration is a specialist legal practice providing Australian immigration, residency, visa and citizenship advice and services to clients around the world. CT is one of Australia's most experienced migration practices.

Andrew Cope LL.B, M.A., DipI.M.(Lib), FMIA

Solicitor

Partner—Immigration Law

Registered Migration Agent No 9255143

Professional experience

With strong experience in all areas of migration his practice focuses on economic migration to corporate, business skills, retirees and skilled migration clients.

Andrew’s practice covers the following immigration services:

• Corporate temporary visas including short and long stay business visas, occupational training
• Corporate permanent visas both onshore and offshore
• Electronic lodgment of temporary visas, sponsorship and nominations for companies
• Monitoring issues for both companies and business skill visa holders
• Presentations and Educational services to business on compliance and processing issues
• Business Skills applications for temporary and permanent residence including senior executive, business owner, business talent and Established Business in Australia
• Bridging visas
• Distinguished Talent applications
• Family migration applications, particularly spouse and parents
• Skilled migrant applications onshore, both for Australian-based overseas students and other temporary visa holders such as 457 visa holders
• Skilled migrant applications – for people offshore, intending to migrate to Australia
• Retirement visa applications

Andrew has a detailed knowledge and experience of the appeal processes for Australia’s Administrative Appeals and Migration Review Tribunals in these above areas.

Professional recognition

• Barrister and Solicitor – Admitted to practice Supreme Court of Victoria, Australia
• Accredited by the Law Institute of Victoria as an Immigration Law Specialist
• Solicitor on the Roll of the High Court of Australia
• Andrew completed a Masters degree in Migration Studies at Macquarie University
• 2002-Awarded the inaugural Henry Giblett Award by the Migration Institute of Australia for services to Education on behalf of the Institute and the Migration Advice Profession
• Fellow - Migration Institute of Australia
• Past National Vice President - Migration Institute of Australia
• Former Victorian President – Migration Institute of Australia
• Past Board Member, Australian Migration Agents’ Registration Authority (MARA)
• Member, Law Institute of Victoria

Major projects

Andrew has written submissions to, and appeared before a number of Parliamentary inquiries dealing with migration issues. This includes inquiries on regional migration and spouse migration.

Andrew played a key role in the development and establishment of the Migration Institute of Australia’s 16 week distance education course “Immigration Law for Migration Agents”, which ran from 1995 to 2003 in partnership with Deakin University.

Andrew was the Exam Convenor for the Migration Institute of Australia from 1994 to 2003.

Andrew has given a number of presentations on migration law issues in Victoria, New South Wales, Canberra, Queensland, South Australia and Western Australia

As a Board member of the Migration Institute of Australia, Andrew worked on the Australian Department of Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs task force to develop the code of conduct now regulating the Australian immigration services industry. He was an inaugural member of the Board of the Migration Agents Registration Authority.

Clients include major international and Australian companies operating in the manufacturing, banking and finance, IT and other industries and the Victorian Government.

Andrew’s prior work experience includes the Supreme Court of Victoria as a Court Recorder and as Special Assistant to the Leader of the House, the (then) Attorney General Terry Sheahan in the NSW Parliament