Lin's Flooring Pty Ltd (Migration)

This matter concerned an appeal by Lin's Flooring Pty Ltd against a decision to refuse the approval of its nomination for a Subclass 457 visa. The applicant nominated a position as an Accountant (General) (ANZSCO 221111). The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) was required to determine whether the applicant met the criteria for the approval of the nomination under the Migration Regulations 1994.

The primary legal issues before the Tribunal were whether the nominated occupation was subject to any inapplicability conditions and, if so, whether the applicant's proposed position satisfied those conditions. Specifically, the Tribunal considered the conditions attached to the Accountant (General) occupation, which included that the position must not be a clerical, bookkeeper, or accounting clerk position, and that the business must have an annual turnover of at least AUD 1,000,000 and employ fewer than 5 employees.

The Tribunal affirmed the decision not to approve the nomination. It found that the nominated occupation of Accountant (General) was subject to inapplicability conditions, including a minimum annual turnover requirement of AUD 1,000,000. While the applicant's representative provided evidence of a recent quote for work that, if accepted, would suggest a turnover exceeding this threshold, the quote had not yet been accepted. Furthermore, the Tribunal noted that the applicant's nominated accountant was hired due to a personal friendship with the director, raising questions about the genuineness of the position and the applicant's ability to meet the criteria for the nomination. Consequently, the Tribunal was not satisfied that the applicant met the applicable criteria for the nomination to be approved.