July 29 (Bloomberg) -- The Australian government said asylum seekers will be locked up only as a last resort, as it announced changes to the country's immigration detention system.

People who ``pose no danger to the community will be able to remain in the community while their visa status is resolved,'' Chris Evans, the minister for immigration and citizenship, said in a statement today.

``The department will have to justify why a person should be detained'' and will review the decision every three months, he said. Children won't be held in immigration detention centers, Evans added.

The announcement marks a further effort by the government to distance itself from the immigration policies of former Prime Minister John Howard.

Since winning office in November, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd's government has moved to dismantle a policy, known as the Pacific Solution, of detaining refugees in island camps while their claims for asylum are processed. It closed a detention center on the Pacific island of Nauru earlier this year.

Mandatory detention will remain for people who ``present unacceptable risks to the community'' or have repeatedly refused to comply with visa conditions, Evans said.

Refugees arriving by boat at Christmas Island, off Australia's northwest coast, and other areas removed by Howard's government from the country's migration zone, will also be detained for health, identity and security checks, the government said.

They will continue to be held on Christmas Island while their asylum claims are processed, though will have access to legal assistance and an independent review of unfavorable decisions, the government said.

``People who have no right to be here and those who are found not to be owed protection under Australia's international obligations will be removed,'' the government said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Ed Johnson in Sydney at ejohnson28@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: July 28, 2008 21:31 EDT