The Department of Home Affairs is working with the federal workplace safety regulator about asylum seeker deaths in custody.
Following an investigation by regulator Comcare, the department is facing charges brought by the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions over the death of a man in immigration detention.
Iraqi man Milad Abdulrahim Aljaberi, 26, took his own life inside Sydney's Villawood detention centre on March 4, 2019.
It is alleged that Home Affairs and healthcare provider International Health and Medical Services failed to provide and maintain a safe system of work at the facility as part of their health and safety duties that extend to detainees.
It is also alleged that Home Affairs and IHMS failed to provide necessary training, information and supervision to mental health staff in relation to their care for the detainee.
"The matter is still proceeding," Comcare chief executive Sue Weston told a Senate estimates hearing on Wednesday.
"In terms of the safety systems that are in place at detention centres, we continue to work with Home Affairs on that."
Neither the department nor the health provider have accepted liability since the charges were laid in March this year.
Home Affairs says it "intends to vigorously defend the charges".
Each charge carries a maximum penalty of $1.5 million.
The detention centre allegedly lacked sufficiently skilled mental health clinicians, an "on-call" psychiatric consultation and adequate staffing on weekends.
IHMS is a wholly owned subsidiary of Singapore-based healthcare provider International SOS.
It has received $2.06 billion since 2009 to provide health services in Australia's detention centres.
The next court date is August 17.
Four experts are due to be called by Comcare if the matter is set down for hearing, which could run for weeks.
Separately, sanctions are available to Comcare to force changes to reduce risks to workers in detention.
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