Ang (Migration)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered a decision concerning an application for a Subclass 186 Employer Nomination (Permanent) (Class EN) visa, Temporary Residence Transition stream. The applicant sought to satisfy the visa requirements, which included demonstrating English language proficiency.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the applicant met the English language proficiency criteria as stipulated by the Migration Regulations 1994. Specifically, the Tribunal had to determine if the applicant qualified for an exemption under legislative instrument IMMI 18/045, which requires a minimum of five years of full-time study in a secondary or higher education institution where all tuition was delivered in English.

The Tribunal found that the applicant did not provide evidence of meeting the standard 'competent English' requirement through a language test or by holding a specified passport. Therefore, the applicant had to fall within the exemption provided by IMMI 18/045. While the applicant demonstrated completion of five years of secondary schooling in Singapore, the Tribunal found that not all tuition was delivered in English. The applicant had studied subjects such as Buddhist studies and Chinese language, which were not taught in English. Despite evidence that other subjects, including elective ones, were taught in English at the school that still exists, the presence of non-English tuition for specific subjects meant the exemption criteria were not fully met.

Consequently, the Tribunal affirmed the decision not to grant the applicant the Subclass 186 visa.