Lee (Migration)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered an application by Ms Lee for review of a decision to refuse her Partner (Temporary) (Class UK) visa (Subclass 820). The primary issue before the Tribunal was whether Ms Lee had satisfied the character requirements of the visa, specifically whether she had provided a statement from an appropriate authority regarding her criminal history.

The Tribunal was required to determine if Ms Lee had provided a statement from an appropriate authority that evidenced whether or not she had a criminal history, as requested by the Department. The Department had initially requested a Malaysian police certificate on 18 October 2021, with further requests and extensions granted due to difficulties in obtaining the document, exacerbated by COVID-19 restrictions. Ms Lee's sponsor communicated these difficulties to the Department, noting that a certificate had been obtained but collection was problematic. Despite these communications, the visa was refused on 19 September 2022 due to a lack of responsiveness.

The Tribunal found that Ms Lee had subsequently provided a certificate of good conduct issued by the High Commission of Malaysia in Canberra on 11 February 2022. The Tribunal was satisfied that this certificate constituted a statement from an appropriate authority, thereby meeting the requirements of regulation 2.03AA(2)(a) of the Migration Regulations. Consequently, the Tribunal remitted the application for reconsideration, directing that Ms Lee met the criteria under regulation 2.03AA(2) for the Subclass 820 visa.