Kasambala (Migration)

This matter concerned an appeal by an applicant for a Regional Employer Nomination (Permanent) (Class RN) visa, Subclass 187 (Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme), direct entry stream, against the decision not to grant the visa. The dispute centred on the applicant's English language proficiency at the time of the visa application.

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal was required to determine whether the applicant had demonstrated "competent English" as required by the relevant legislative instrument for the direct entry stream of the Subclass 187 visa. Specifically, the Tribunal had to consider whether the applicant's English language test results met the criteria stipulated in the regulations, which required a specified test to be undertaken and a specified score to be achieved within three years preceding the visa application.

The Tribunal found that the applicant's IELTS test result from 21 July 2012, while achieving the required score, predated the visa application in 2017 by more than three years and therefore did not satisfy the "competent English" requirement. Subsequent tests undertaken in June and September 2017 also failed to achieve the necessary scores in all components. The Tribunal noted that there was no discretion to consider compassionate or compelling circumstances in relation to this specific criterion. Consequently, the Tribunal affirmed the decision not to grant the visa, as the applicant had not met the essential requirements for the direct entry stream.