Bath (Migration)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered the case of an applicant seeking a Student (Temporary) (Class TU) visa, Subclass 500 (Student). The core dispute revolved around whether the applicant met the criteria for genuine temporary entrant, specifically concerning their enrolment in a registered 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 reasoned that the Provider Registration and International Student Management System (PRISMS) is a reliable record of enrolments, used by the Department of Home Affairs as evidence for student visa assessments. Access to PRISMS on two separate dates revealed that the applicant did not hold a current Confirmation of Enrolment (CoE) in a registered course. Despite earlier claims of awaiting a CoE, the applicant failed to provide evidence of obtaining one and did not respond to an invitation to comment on the PRISMS record. Consequently, the Tribunal was not satisfied that the applicant met the enrolment requirement under clause 500.211.

The Tribunal affirmed the decision not to grant the applicant a Student (Temporary) (Class TU) visa.