Pamidi (Migration)

This matter concerned an application for a Skilled (Provisional) (Class VC) visa, Subclass 485 (Temporary Graduate) visa, brought before the Tribunal. The central dispute revolved around whether the applicant had satisfied the requirements of cl.485.216(1) of Schedule 2 to the Regulations, which mandates the satisfaction of Public Interest Criterion (PIC) 4001. The delegate had previously found that the applicant had failed to meet this criterion, leading to the current review.

The legal issue before the Tribunal was to determine whether the applicant had provided sufficient evidence to satisfy cl.485.216(1) and, by extension, Regulation 2.03AA(2)(a). This regulation requires the provision of a statement from an appropriate authority in a country of residence that evidences whether the person has a criminal history, if such documents are requested by the Minister. The delegate had determined that an AFP ‘Complete Disclosure’ certificate was required, which the applicant had not provided.

The Tribunal reasoned that Regulation 2.03AA(2)(a) does not necessitate a specific type of certificate, such as an AFP ‘Complete Disclosure’ certificate, but rather a statement from an appropriate authority providing evidence of criminal history. The Tribunal found that the AFP ‘National Police Certificate, Immigration/Citizenship-Australia Name Check Only’ provided by the applicant, dated 1 May 2021, met this requirement as it was a statement from an appropriate authority (the police force) in Australia, where the applicant resides, and it confirmed no disclosable court outcomes. Consequently, the Tribunal concluded that the applicant had satisfied cl.485.216.

Given these findings, the Tribunal remitted the visa application to the Minister for reconsideration, with the direction that the applicant meets the criteria specified in cl.485.216 of Schedule 2 to the Regulations.