Olawale (Migration)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered the cancellation of a Student (Temporary) (Class TU) visa, Subclass 572 (Vocational Education and Training Sector), granted to the first applicant. The dispute arose from an investigation into the circumstances of the visa's grant by the Department's post in Pretoria, South Africa, which revealed potential improper conduct by local department employees. The applicant's visa was among those identified as potentially improperly granted due to suspected corruption involving locally engaged staff and payments from an individual in Australia.

The Tribunal was required to determine whether the grounds for cancelling the visa under section 116(1)(g) of the Migration Act 1958 (Cth) were made out, specifically in relation to regulation 2.43(1)(o) of the Migration Regulations 1994. If the grounds were established, the Tribunal then had to consider whether to exercise its discretion to cancel the visa, taking into account all relevant circumstances.

The Tribunal found that the ground for cancellation was established, as the investigation indicated that departmental employees had bypassed procedures and improperly granted visas, including the applicant's, due to corrupt payments. While the applicant denied direct contact with the individual facilitating the alleged corruption, the Tribunal noted deficiencies in the applicant's visa application, particularly concerning the Genuine Temporary Entrant (GTE) requirements, and harboured serious doubts about whether the applicant satisfied these elements. In exercising its discretion, the Tribunal considered the applicant's academic progress and compliance with visa conditions, which weighed in his favour. However, it also considered the circumstances of the visa's grant and the potential hardship to the applicant and his family if the visa were cancelled. Ultimately, the Tribunal concluded that the visa should be cancelled.

The Tribunal affirmed the decision to cancel the first applicant's Subclass 572 visa. The Tribunal also stated that it had no jurisdiction concerning the other applicants.