Gill (Migration)

This matter concerned an application for review of a decision regarding a Skilled (Provisional) (Class VC) visa, Subclass 485. The applicant, Ms Gill, had completed two master's degrees: a Master of Business Administration (MBA) and a Master of Professional Accounting (MPA) at the Holmes Institute. The dispute centred on whether Ms Gill satisfied the Australian study requirement for the visa, specifically the completion of at least two academic years of study. The Tribunal was required to determine if Ms Gill held qualifications of a kind specified by the Minister, if these qualifications were conferred by an educational institution specified by the Minister, and crucially, if she met the Australian study requirement.

The Tribunal considered the Australian study requirement as set out in regulation 1.15F(1) of the Migration Regulations 1994. This requirement mandates that the courses undertaken must be registered, completed in at least 16 calendar months, constitute at least two academic years of study (equating to 92 weeks), have instruction conducted in English, and be undertaken in Australia while holding a visa authorising study. Ms Gill's MBA course ran from 7 November 2016 to 31 December 2017, a duration of 78 academic weeks according to CRICOS. Her MPA course ran from 6 November 2017 to 31 March 2018, also with a CRICOS duration of 78 weeks. Due to shared subjects between the two degrees, Ms Gill could not claim the full duration of both courses, resulting in a combined study period of 104 CRICOS weeks. The Tribunal noted that Ms Gill required 92 weeks of academic study to satisfy the requirement.

The Tribunal reasoned that while Ms Gill had completed 104 CRICOS weeks of study, the calculation of "two academic years" needed careful consideration in light of the overlapping subjects. The Holmes Institute's summary indicated that Ms Gill undertook 16 subjects in total, completing the equivalent of 100 CRICOS weeks over more than 16 months. The Tribunal concluded that Ms Gill had, in fact, satisfied the criterion of completing at least two academic years of study. Consequently, the Tribunal remitted the application for reconsideration with a direction that Ms Gill met the relevant criterion for a Subclass 485 visa.