Manzanares (Migration)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered an application for review concerning a Subclass 445 (Dependant Child) visa. The applicant was a minor born in May 2012, whose mother, Tara Cyril Manzanares, was the visa-holding parent, and Richard Sultana was the sponsor. The delegate had refused to grant the visa due to concerns that the sponsor and the visa-holding parent had not provided sufficient evidence regarding any registrable offences, leading to a lack of satisfaction that there was no compelling reason to believe the visa grant would not be in the applicant's best interests.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the applicant satisfied Public Interest Criterion (PIC) 4018, which requires the Minister to be satisfied that there is no compelling reason to believe that the grant of the visa would not be in the best interests of the applicant. The Tribunal also considered PIC 4017, which relates to the applicant's custody and the law of their home country permitting their removal.

The Tribunal found that the applicant satisfied PIC 4017, noting the applicant's birth certificate, the mother's sole custody, and a Travel Clearance Certificate for a Minor from the applicant's home country. However, regarding PIC 4018, the Tribunal referred to the Department's policy, which mandates police checks from Australia and any other country where the sponsor or their partner has spent 12 months or more since turning 16. The Tribunal noted that the sponsor, Richard Sultana, lived in the Philippines for an extended period, and the applicant's mother, Tara Manzanares, had arrived in Australia in August 2014. The delegate's concern stemmed from the lack of these required police checks.

Consequently, the Tribunal remitted the application for reconsideration by the Minister. The Tribunal directed that the applicant met the criteria under clause 445.226 of Schedule 2 to the Regulations, but the remaining criteria, particularly those related to PIC 4018, required further assessment.