Khor (Migration)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered an application for a Skilled (Provisional) (Class VC) visa, Subclass 485, made by an applicant who sought to challenge a decision not to grant the visa. The central dispute revolved around whether the applicant had met the English language proficiency requirements stipulated by the relevant regulations.

The Tribunal was required to determine if the applicant satisfied clause 485.212 of Schedule 2 to the Migration Regulations. This clause mandates that a visa application must be accompanied by evidence of either holding a passport from a specified country or having undertaken an approved English language test within a specified period and achieved the required score. The Tribunal also had to consider the instrument IMMI 15/062, which details the acceptable language tests, scores, and timeframes.

The Tribunal reasoned that the applicant did not meet the alternative requirement of holding a passport from a specified country. Furthermore, the applicant had indicated in her application that she had not undertaken an English language test within the 36 months preceding her application. Although the applicant later confirmed undertaking an IELTS test on 9 March 2019, this test was taken after the visa application was lodged. As the applicant had not provided evidence of an approved English language test taken within the specified period prior to her application, she failed to satisfy clause 485.212. Consequently, the Tribunal affirmed the decision not to grant the applicant the Subclass 485 visa.