O'BRIEN (Migration)

This matter concerned an application for a Regional Employer Nomination (Permanent) (Class RN) visa, specifically under the Temporary Residence Transition stream of the Subclass 187 Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme. The applicant sought review of a decision that had refused their visa application. The Tribunal was tasked with determining whether the nomination for the position of Carpenter had been approved, as this was a critical criterion for the visa.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was to assess whether the applicant met the requirements of clause 187.223 of Schedule 2 to the Migration Regulations. This clause outlines several conditions relating to the nominated position, including that the position must be nominated in an approved application, that the nominator must be the employer, that the nomination must not have been withdrawn and must be approved, that there must be no adverse information concerning the nominator or associated persons, that the position must still be available, and that the visa application must have been made within six months of the nomination approval.

The Tribunal found that the applicant satisfied clause 187.223. It relied on its previous findings from a nomination application, which had been set aside and substituted with a decision approving the appointment for the Carpenter position. The Tribunal was satisfied that the approved position was the same as that nominated and declared in the visa application. Furthermore, it found that the employer was the nominator, the nomination had not been withdrawn, and the position remained available. Crucially, the Tribunal determined that the visa application was made within the six-month timeframe following the nomination approval.

Given these findings, the Tribunal concluded that the visa applicant met the requirements of clause 187.223. Consequently, the Tribunal remitted the visa application to the Minister for reconsideration of the remaining criteria for the visa, with a specific direction that the applicant had met the requirements of clause 187.223.