Abs Groundworks Pty Ltd (Migration)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered a decision by the Department of Home Affairs to refuse the nomination by Abs Groundworks Pty Ltd. The dispute centred on whether Abs Groundworks Pty Ltd met the criteria for approval of a nomination, specifically in relation to identifying a prospective visa holder.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether Abs Groundworks Pty Ltd had satisfied regulation 2.72(5) of the Migration Regulations 1994, which requires the applicant to identify the visa holder, or proposed applicant, who will work in the nominated occupation. This regulation was to be considered in light of the closure of the Subclass 457 visa program and the commencement of the Subclass 482 visa.

The Tribunal reasoned that the applicant had failed to meet the requirements of regulation 2.72(5) because the identified individual did not hold a Subclass 457 visa and had no pending application for such a visa. The Tribunal noted that the Subclass 457 visa program had been repealed and closed to new applications prior to the nomination being made, and that a Subclass 482 visa holder could not satisfy the regulation as it applied to this nomination. Attempts to contact the applicant for further information were unsuccessful, with the applicant's former representative confirming they no longer acted for the client and had no updated contact details.

Consequently, the Tribunal was not satisfied that Abs Groundworks Pty Ltd met the applicable criteria for the nomination to be approved and therefore affirmed the decision under review to refuse the nomination.