Bardos (Migration)

This matter concerned an application for review of a decision not to grant the applicant a Student (Temporary) (Class TU) visa, specifically a Subclass 500 (Student) visa. The applicant sought to have the decision of the Department of Home Affairs set aside and a visa granted. The Tribunal, constituted by Penelope Hunter, Member, was tasked with determining whether the applicant met the relevant visa criteria.

The central legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the applicant satisfied clause 500.211 of Schedule 2 to the Regulations, which requires that at the time of the decision, the applicant is enrolled in a "full-time registered course". The Tribunal also considered the role of the Commonwealth Register of Institutions and Courses for Overseas Students (CRICOS), managed through the PRISMS system, as evidence of enrolment for the purposes of assessing student visa applications.

The Tribunal reasoned that PRISMS, a system maintained by the Department of Education, Skills and Employment and used by the Department of Home Affairs, serves as a reliable record of enrolments for overseas students. In the absence of any evidence to the contrary, the Tribunal accepted PRISMS as a trustworthy record. As the applicant did not provide evidence to satisfy the Tribunal that they were enrolled in a full-time registered course at the time of the decision, the Tribunal concluded that clause 500.211 was not met. Consequently, the Tribunal found that the applicant did not satisfy the criteria for the grant of a Subclass 500 (Student) visa.

The Tribunal affirmed the decision under review, meaning the applicant was not granted the Student (Temporary) (Class TU) visa. The applicant did not claim to meet the criteria for a Subclass 590 (Student Guardian) visa.