HARPREET SINGH (Migration)

This matter concerned an application for an Employer Nomination (Permanent) (Class EN) visa, Subclass 186 (Employer Nomination Scheme), specifically under the temporary residence transition stream. The applicant, Harpreet Singh, sought review of a decision relating to the nomination of his position. The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) was tasked with determining whether the nomination criteria were met.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the nomination for the applicant's position as café or restaurant manager, made by his employer Ekush Pty Ltd, had been approved and had not been subsequently withdrawn, as required by clause 186.223(2) of Schedule 2 to the Migration Regulations. This clause also necessitates that the nomination has not been withdrawn, that there is no adverse information known to Immigration about the nominator or associated persons (or such information is reasonable to disregard), that the position remains available to the applicant, and that the visa application was made within six months of the nomination's approval.

The Tribunal found that the employer's nomination application, initially refused by the Department, was subsequently set aside by the AAT on 4 August 2021, with a substituted decision to approve the nomination. Based on this, the Tribunal concluded that clause 186.223(2) of Schedule 2 to the Regulations was met by the applicant.

Consequently, the Tribunal remitted the visa application to the Minister for reconsideration, directing that the applicant meets the criterion specified in clause 186.223(2) of Schedule 2 to the Regulations. The Minister is to consider the remaining criteria for the visa.