Amandeep Singh (Migration)

This matter concerned an appeal by Amandeep Singh against a decision to cancel his Subclass 500 (Student) visa. The dispute arose from the applicant's answers to questions regarding his visa history in two previous Student visa applications. The Department of Home Affairs had identified that the applicant had failed to declare previous visa refusals for Canada in both his 2020 and 2021 applications, leading to the cancellation of his current visa. The Administrative Appeals Tribunal was tasked with determining whether the applicant had indeed failed to comply with the requirements of the Migration Act 1958 and, if so, whether the visa should be cancelled.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the applicant had provided incorrect answers in his visa applications, thereby contravening section 101(b) of the Migration Act 1958. This section mandates that visa applicants must ensure no incorrect answers are given on their application forms. The Tribunal was required to consider the applicant's admissions of having used an agent for his applications and the fact that his wife, who checked the second application, believed the question related only to her. The Tribunal also had to assess the applicant's submissions regarding inadvertent non-compliance and the potential hardship that cancellation would cause to him, his wife, and their young child, particularly in light of his wife's study and work plans and their current pregnancy.

The Tribunal found that the applicant had indeed failed to comply with section 101(b) of the Act by providing incorrect answers regarding his visa history in both his 2020 and 2021 Student visa applications. However, after considering all the relevant circumstances, including the inadvertent nature of the non-compliance, the applicant's subsequent compliance with declarations, his work and family situation in Australia, and his wife's study and work plans, the Tribunal concluded that the visa should not be cancelled. Consequently, the Tribunal set aside the decision under review and substituted a decision not to cancel the applicant’s Subclass 500 (Student) visa.