Gill (Migration)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered a decision to cancel the Student (Temporary) (Class TU) visa, subclass 573 (Higher Education Sector), held by the applicant, Mr. Gill. The dispute centred on whether the applicant had breached a condition of his visa by failing to continue to satisfy the primary and secondary criteria for its grant, specifically concerning his enrolment in a course of study.

The Tribunal was required to determine if the ground for cancellation under section 116(1)(b) of the Migration Act 1958 (Cth) was established. This involved assessing whether the applicant had complied with condition 8516 of his visa, which mandates that a visa holder must continue to meet the criteria for the visa's grant. The Tribunal also had to consider whether, having found a ground for cancellation, it should exercise its discretion to cancel the visa, taking into account all relevant circumstances.

The Tribunal reasoned that the applicant had failed to satisfy the criteria for his visa between October 2015 and November 2016, as his enrolment in a Bachelor of IT degree was cancelled in September 2015, and he did not re-enrol in a higher education course until November 2016, after receiving a notice of intention to cancel. The Tribunal noted that the applicant's explanation for his lack of enrolment, including academic difficulties and financial hardship due to his uncle's accident, was not entirely convincing, particularly as his uncle's accident occurred after his enrolment ceased. The Tribunal also found that the applicant's claimed hardship if the visa were cancelled was not sufficiently compelling, especially given the indication that he could apply for another visa offshore and that his parents were supporting him financially.

Consequently, the Tribunal affirmed the decision to cancel the applicant's visa.