Lau (Migration)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal affirmed a decision to refuse a Subclass 500 (Student) visa to the applicant, a 33-year-old Malaysian national. The applicant had arrived in Australia on a visitor visa and applied for the student visa shortly before his visitor visa expired. The Tribunal was required to determine whether the applicant met the criteria for a genuine temporary entrant, as stipulated by clause 500.212 of Schedule 2 to the Migration Regulations 1994.

In assessing the applicant's eligibility, the Tribunal considered Direction No. 69, which provides guidance on evaluating the genuine temporary entrant criterion. This Direction requires decision-makers to consider various factors, including the applicant's circumstances in their home country and potential circumstances in Australia, the value of the proposed course to the applicant's future, and the applicant's immigration history. The Tribunal noted that the applicant had previously undertaken a course in Australia which he did not complete, and had subsequently enrolled in a different course.

The Tribunal found that the applicant had not satisfied the genuine temporary entrant criterion. While the specific reasons for this finding are not detailed in the provided text, the decision to affirm the refusal indicates that the Tribunal was not satisfied that the applicant genuinely intended to stay in Australia temporarily for the purpose of study. Consequently, the Tribunal affirmed the original decision to refuse the visa.