grewal (Migration)

This matter concerned an application for review before the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) concerning a Subclass 187 Regional Employer Nomination (Permanent) visa. The applicants were Mrs Grewal, Master Mander, and Mr Navtej Singh. The primary dispute involved the refusal of visa applications for these individuals.

The AAT was required to determine two key legal issues. Firstly, whether it had jurisdiction to review the visa refusal decisions in relation to Mrs Grewal and Master Mander, given their location at the time of the review application. Secondly, the Tribunal had to consider whether Mr Singh, as the husband of Mrs Grewal, met the criteria for the Subclass 187 visa, specifically whether he was a member of the family unit of a person who held such a visa, and whether he met the primary criteria for the visa himself.

The Tribunal found that Mrs Grewal and Master Mander were not in the migration zone at the relevant time, which meant their application for review was not properly made under section 347 of the Migration Act 1958 (Cth). Consequently, the Tribunal lacked jurisdiction to consider their applications. However, the Tribunal determined it had jurisdiction in relation to Mr Singh, as departmental records indicated he was in Australia holding a different visa. The Tribunal noted that Mr Singh had not applied for the Subclass 187 visa based on meeting primary criteria, nor was he identified in a relevant declaration at the time of application. Without further material to demonstrate he met the requirements of clauses 187.233 or 187.311 of Schedule 2 to the Migration Regulations 1994, the Tribunal concluded that Mr Singh did not meet the criteria for the visa.

Accordingly, the Tribunal affirmed the decision not to grant the Subclass 187 visa to Mr Navtej Singh. The Tribunal also determined it had no jurisdiction to review the decisions in relation to Mrs Grewal and Master Mander.