BHASKAR (Migration)

This matter concerned an appeal by Mr Bhaskar against the decision to refuse his application for a Skilled (Provisional) (Class VC) visa, subclass 485 (Temporary Graduate). The dispute centred on whether Mr Bhaskar had met the English language requirements as stipulated by the relevant regulations and legislative instrument. The decision was made by the Tribunal.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was to determine whether Mr Bhaskar satisfied clause 485.212 of the Migration Regulations 1994. This clause requires applicants to either provide evidence of having undertaken a specified English language test with minimum scores within a specified period, or to hold a passport from a country designated by the Minister. The relevant legislative instrument, IMMI 15/062, detailed these requirements.

The Tribunal reasoned that Mr Bhaskar did not meet the requirement under clause 485.212(b) as he did not hold a passport from the United Kingdom, United States of America, Canada, New Zealand, or the Republic of Ireland. Consequently, he was required to satisfy clause 485.212(a). While Mr Bhaskar indicated on his application form that he had undertaken a PTE Academic test on 30 January 2018, the day before his visa application, he failed to provide the required evidence of this test to the Department. Despite requests for this documentation and an extension of time, Mr Bhaskar did not submit the PTE scorecard. The delegate waited for two months before refusing the application. The Tribunal affirmed the decision not to grant the visa.