Dennaoui (Migration)

This matter concerned an appeal by an applicant for a Partner (Provisional) (Class UF) visa, subclass 309, against a decision to refuse the visa. The central dispute revolved around whether the applicant was the spouse of the sponsor as defined by section 5F of the Migration Act 1958 (Cth). The Tribunal was presented with the Department's file, its own file, and a copy of the Department's decision.

The legal issues before the Tribunal were whether the applicant and sponsor were in a genuine and ongoing relationship, and whether the applicant met the criteria for a Subclass 309 visa. A significant aspect of the proceedings involved information contained within a section 376 certificate, which the Tribunal deemed valid and relevant to allegations of a contrived marriage. The Tribunal considered this information, which suggested the sponsor had been paid to enter into a marriage for visa purposes, and put it to the sponsor for comment.

The Tribunal reasoned that while the information subject to the section 376 certificate was relevant and suggested a contrived marriage, the sponsor denied this and asserted a genuine and continuing spousal relationship. The Tribunal also noted the birth of a child to the couple in November 2019, and the parties' plans to purchase a home, which were indicative of a committed relationship. However, due to the unresolved allegations and the need to consider all criteria for the visa, the Tribunal concluded that the matter should be remitted.

Consequently, the Tribunal remitted the application for a Partner (Provisional) (Class UF) visa for reconsideration. The Tribunal directed that the visa applicant met specific criteria, namely cl.309.211, cl.309.212, cl.309.213, and cl.309.221 of Schedule 2 to the Migration Regulations 1994.