Grinham (Migration)

This matter concerned an appeal by Mr. Grinham against the cancellation of his Subclass 417 (Working Holiday) (Extension) visa. The dispute arose from incorrect answers provided by Mr. Grinham in his visa application, specifically regarding whether he had undertaken three months of specified work in a regional area while holding a previous Working Holiday visa. The Department of Home Affairs had issued a Notice of Intention to Consider Cancellation (NOITCC) based on these alleged inaccuracies, and Mr. Grinham failed to respond to this notice. The Administrative Appeals Tribunal was tasked with reviewing the delegate's decision to cancel the visa.

The primary legal issues before the Tribunal were whether Mr. Grinham had failed to comply with section 101(b) of the Migration Act 1958 by providing incorrect answers in his visa application, and if so, whether the visa should be cancelled. The Tribunal also considered the validity of the s.107 notice issued by the delegate and whether the grounds for cancellation outweighed any reasons not to cancel the visa. The Tribunal was required to determine if the decision to grant the visa was based, wholly or partly, on the incorrect information provided by Mr. Grinham.

The Tribunal found that Mr. Grinham had indeed failed to comply with section 101(b) of the Act by providing incorrect answers regarding his regional work experience. It was established that the Subclass 417 (Working Holiday) (Extension) visa was granted partly on the basis of these inaccurate statements, which were a criterion for the visa. The Tribunal noted that Mr. Grinham did not respond to the NOITCC. While Mr. Grinham later provided reasons for his non-compliance, including the impact of COVID-19, border closures, and being scammed by a third party who prepared his application, these circumstances did not negate the initial non-compliance. The Tribunal concluded that the grounds for cancelling the visa outweighed any reasons for not doing so.

Consequently, the Tribunal affirmed the decision to cancel Mr. Grinham's Subclass 417 (Working Holiday) visa.