Di Prima (Migration)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (Cth) considered an appeal by an applicant for a Temporary Business Entry (Class UC) visa, subclass 457, standard business sponsor stream. The applicant sought review of a decision not to grant the visa.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the applicant met the English language proficiency requirements as stipulated by clause 457.223(4)(eb) of the Migration Regulations 1994. This clause requires an applicant, who is not exempt and does not meet certain salary thresholds, to achieve a specified score in a prescribed English language test in a single attempt within a specified timeframe.

The Tribunal reasoned that the applicant had not demonstrated they were an exempt applicant or met the salary criteria that would waive the English language requirement. Although the applicant claimed to have undertaken an IELTS test shortly before the hearing and expected results on the day, they failed to provide any evidence of this test or its results to the Tribunal by the stipulated deadline. Consequently, the Tribunal found that there was no evidence before it to establish the applicant's English language proficiency in accordance with the regulations. The Tribunal affirmed the decision not to grant the visa.