Adobor (Migration)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered an application for a Partner (Temporary) (Class UK) visa (Subclass 820) made by a male applicant from Ghana. The applicant's sponsorship was withdrawn by his Australian citizen partner, and the Tribunal received information to this effect under section 359AA of the Migration Act 1958 (Cth). The applicant confirmed he was no longer in a relationship with the sponsor and had not been aware of the withdrawal of sponsorship until the hearing.

The primary legal issues before the Tribunal were whether the applicant continued to be sponsored by the individual who lodged the application, and whether the applicant was still in a genuine and ongoing spousal relationship with the sponsor at the time of the decision. Clause 820.211 of the Migration Regulations 1994 (Cth) requires that at the time of application, the applicant be sponsored, and at the time of decision, the sponsorship must remain in force.

The Tribunal reasoned that the applicant had confirmed he was no longer in a relationship with the sponsor and that the sponsor had withdrawn her sponsorship. The applicant stated he had not seen the sponsor since October 2017 and was unaware of her decision to withdraw sponsorship until the hearing. Given these admissions, the Tribunal concluded that the applicant did not satisfy the criteria for the grant of the visa, as the sponsorship was no longer valid and the parties were no longer in a genuine and ongoing relationship.

Consequently, the Tribunal affirmed the decision not to grant the applicant a Partner (Temporary) (Class UK) visa.