Jadedragon Holding Pty Ltd (Migration)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered a decision by the Minister to refuse the approval of a nomination made by Jadedragon Holding Pty Ltd. The dispute concerned whether the terms and conditions of employment offered to a prospective visa holder were no less favourable than those provided to an Australian citizen or permanent resident performing equivalent work at the same location, as required by migration regulations.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was to determine if Jadedragon Holding Pty Ltd had satisfied the criteria under Regulation 2.72(10)(c) of the Migration Regulations 1994. This regulation mandates that the terms and conditions of employment for a nominated employee must be no less favourable than those offered to an Australian citizen or permanent resident undertaking equivalent work at the same location. The Tribunal also considered the definition of "earnings" and the requirements for determining terms and conditions where no equivalent Australian workers are employed.

The Tribunal reasoned that it lacked contemporary information regarding the applicant's employment of Australian citizens or permanent residents in equivalent roles. Consequently, it could not give weight to outdated information concerning rates of pay from August 2016. The Tribunal applied Regulation 2.72(10)(c) and the definition of "earnings" under Regulation 2.57A, concluding that without current market information, it was not satisfied that the proposed terms and conditions for the nominee were no less favourable than those that would be provided to an Australian worker.

The Tribunal affirmed the decision under review to refuse the nomination.