1601724 (Migration)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered an application for a Student (Temporary) (Class TU) visa made by an applicant in Australia. The dispute centred on whether the applicant satisfied criterion cl.573.211, which sets out requirements for visa applications made onshore. The applicant contended that he held a Bridging Visa E at the time of his application, which he asserted was a substantive visa.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was to determine whether the applicant met the requirements of cl.573.211, specifically whether his last substantive visa was of a specified type and whether his application was made within the prescribed timeframe after that visa ceased to be in effect. A further issue was whether a Bridging Visa E constitutes a "substantive visa" for the purposes of the Migration Act 1958 (Cth).

The Tribunal reasoned that, according to section 5 of the Migration Act 1958 (Cth), a substantive visa is defined as any visa other than a bridging visa, a criminal justice visa, or an enforcement visa. Consequently, a bridging visa is not a substantive visa. The Tribunal found that the applicant did not hold a specified substantive visa at the time of his application and that his last substantive visa was not of a type listed in cl.573.211(3)(b). Therefore, the applicant failed to satisfy cl.573.211.

The Tribunal affirmed the decision not to grant the applicant a Student (Temporary) (Class TU) visa.