Dhaliwal v Minister for Immigration

In *Dhaliwal v Minister for Immigration*, the applicant sought judicial review of a decision by the Migration Review Tribunal (Tribunal) which affirmed the refusal to grant her a student visa. The refusal was based on the applicant's failure to meet the English language proficiency requirements, specifically by not achieving the necessary score in the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) test.

The central legal issue before the court was whether the Tribunal's decision was affected by jurisdictional error. This allegation of error arose from the applicant's contention that the Tribunal failed to consider all relevant facts and applicable law pertaining to her visa application.

Justice Smith found that the Tribunal had indeed failed to consider crucial evidence regarding the applicant's English language proficiency. Specifically, the Tribunal overlooked a subsequent IELTS test result that demonstrated the applicant had met the required standard. By failing to consider this material evidence, the Tribunal committed a jurisdictional error, rendering its decision invalid. The court therefore quashed the Tribunal's decision.