Dang (Migration)

This matter concerned an application for review by Ms Dang of the decision to cancel her Student (Temporary) (Class TU) visa, Subclass 573 Higher Education Sector. The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) was required to determine whether Ms Dang had breached condition 8202 of Schedule 8 to the Migration Regulations 1994 and, if so, whether to exercise its discretion to cancel her visa.

The primary legal issue was whether Ms Dang had complied with condition 8202, which mandates that a visa holder be enrolled in a registered course and achieve satisfactory course progress and attendance. The Tribunal considered evidence from the Department of Immigration and Border Protection, which indicated that Ms Dang had not been enrolled in a registered course since 23 November 2015. The Tribunal found that Ms Dang had failed to comply with condition 8202(2) by not being enrolled in a registered course for a period of almost 12 months prior to the cancellation of her visa.

In considering the exercise of its discretion to cancel the visa, the Tribunal had regard to government policy guidelines and the specific circumstances of the case. While Ms Dang's stated intention was to study in Australia, the Tribunal gave this little weight given her prolonged failure to maintain enrolment. The Tribunal noted that Ms Dang had almost 12 months to rectify her non-compliance but did not do so. Furthermore, as Ms Dang did not respond to the Notice of Intention to Consider Cancellation or appear before the Tribunal, there was no information before it regarding any hardship that might be caused by the cancellation. The Tribunal concluded that the extent of Ms Dang's non-compliance was significant and supported the exercise of its discretion to cancel the visa.

The Tribunal affirmed the decision to cancel Ms Dang's visa.