Akanda (Migration)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered the case of an applicant seeking review of a decision not to grant a Subclass 500 (Student) visa. The core dispute revolved around whether the applicant met the eligibility criteria for the visa, specifically concerning their enrolment in a course of study.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the applicant satisfied clause 500.211(a) of Schedule 2 to the Migration Regulations 1994, which requires an applicant to be enrolled in a course of study at the time of the decision. A "course of study" is defined as a "full-time registered course," and a "registered course" is one provided by an institution registered under the *Education Services for Overseas Students Act 2000*. The Tribunal also considered the role of the Commonwealth Register of Institutions and Courses for Overseas Students (CRICOS), managed through the Provider Registration and International Student Management System (PRISMS), as a reliable record of enrolments.

The Tribunal reasoned that PRISMS is a business record of the Department of Education, Skills and Employment, used by the Department of Home Affairs as evidence of enrolment for student visa assessments. It concluded that PRISMS is a reliable record of enrolments unless there is specific evidence to the contrary, which was not provided in this instance. The applicant had been invited to provide supporting material and comment on their enrolment status but failed to do so. The Tribunal noted uncontradicted evidence indicating the applicant was not currently enrolled in a registered course of study and had not been since 22 February 2022.

Consequently, the Tribunal was not satisfied that the applicant met the enrolment requirement under clause 500.211. Accordingly, the Tribunal affirmed the original decision not to grant the applicant a Subclass 500 (Student) visa.