Dao (Migration)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) considered the case of Mr Dao, who sought review of a decision by the Minister for Immigration, Citizenship, Migrant Services and Multicultural Affairs to cancel his Student (Temporary) (Class TU) Subclass 573 visa. The visa was cancelled on the grounds that Mr Dao had failed to maintain enrolment in a registered course, having put his studies on hold due to health issues.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether there were "compelling reasons" for Mr Dao's failure to maintain his course enrolment, as required by the *Migration Regulations 1994* (Cth) and the conditions of his visa. The Tribunal was tasked with determining if the health issues Mr Dao experienced constituted such compelling reasons, thereby justifying his non-compliance with the visa conditions.

In its reasoning, the Tribunal acknowledged Mr Dao's evidence regarding his health issues. However, it found that the evidence did not establish that these health issues were so severe or of such a nature as to constitute "compelling reasons" for his failure to maintain enrolment. The Tribunal applied the established legal principles for assessing compelling reasons in migration matters, which generally require a high threshold of objective evidence demonstrating circumstances beyond the applicant's control that prevented compliance. The Tribunal concluded that Mr Dao had not met this threshold.

The Tribunal affirmed the delegate's decision to cancel Mr Dao's visa.