Kakkar (Migration)

The applicant, Mr Kakkar, sought judicial review of a decision by the Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs to cancel his Student (Temporary) (Class TU) visa, subclass 500. The matter was remitted to the Federal Circuit Court for determination. The core of the dispute concerned whether Mr Kakkar had breached a condition of his visa relating to enrolment in a registered course.

The Federal Circuit Court was required to determine whether the Minister’s decision to cancel Mr Kakkar’s visa was affected by jurisdictional error. Specifically, the court had to consider whether Mr Kakkar had failed to maintain enrolment in a registered course, and if so, whether the Minister had correctly applied the relevant provisions of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth) and the *Migration Regulations 1994* (Cth) in cancelling his visa.

In reaching its decision, the court considered evidence that Mr Kakkar had ceased enrolment in his registered Higher Education courses and had not completed any of them. While acknowledging that Mr Kakkar had undertaken regular return visits to his family due to a family bereavement, the court found that these circumstances did not excuse the breach of the visa condition. The court applied the principles of administrative law, focusing on whether the Minister’s decision was open to be made on the facts before them and in accordance with the governing legislation.

The court affirmed the Minister's decision to cancel Mr Kakkar's visa.