Nonthasri (Migration)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered an application for a Visitor (Class FA) visa, subclass 600, made by the applicant, Nonthasri. The dispute concerned whether the applicant had satisfied a specific visa criterion requiring the provision of police clearances from both Australian and Thai authorities.

The Tribunal was required to determine whether the applicant had provided a statement from an appropriate authority that would ascertain if she had a criminal history. This involved assessing whether the police clearances subsequently provided by the applicant met the requirements of regulation 2.03AA(2)(a) of the Migration Regulations 1994. The Tribunal also considered whether a requirement under regulation 2.03AA(2)(b) regarding an approved Form 80 applied, given the evidence presented.

The Tribunal reasoned that while the applicant had initially failed to provide the requested police clearances, she had subsequently submitted certificates from the Australian Federal Police and Thai authorities. The applicant explained that obtaining these documents and professional migration advice had been difficult due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Tribunal found that the applicant had now provided statements from appropriate authorities for both Australia and Thailand, thus satisfying regulation 2.03AA(2)(a). Furthermore, there was no evidence that the delegate had requested a completed Form 80, meaning regulation 2.03AA(2)(b) was not applicable.

Consequently, the Tribunal concluded that the applicant met the requirements of regulation 2.03AA(2). The Tribunal remitted the application for reconsideration with a direction that the applicant meets this specific criterion for the Subclass 600 visa.