Koreana Tiling Pty Ltd (Migration)

Koreana Tiling Pty Ltd sought judicial review of a decision made by the Minister for Immigration, Citizenship, Migrant Services and Multicultural Affairs. The Minister had refused to approve Koreana Tiling's nomination of a skilled worker for a visa. The core of the dispute concerned whether the proposed rate of pay and terms and conditions offered to the nominated employee were no less favourable than those provided to an Australian citizen or permanent resident performing equivalent work, and whether the nominated occupation was genuine.

The Federal Court was required to determine two primary legal issues. Firstly, whether the Minister's delegate erred in finding that the proposed remuneration for the nominated employee was not equivalent to that of an Australian worker in an equivalent position. Secondly, the Court had to consider whether the delegate's conclusion that the nominated occupation was not genuine was justified.

In his reasoning, Justice Hallwood applied the principles established in migration law concerning the assessment of nominated occupations and employment conditions. The Court found that the delegate had made an error in assessing the rate of pay, incorrectly comparing the proposed salary to a benchmark that was not appropriate for the specific circumstances. Furthermore, the Court determined that the delegate had failed to properly consider all relevant evidence when assessing the genuineness of the nominated occupation. The delegate's decision was therefore set aside.