Pongsumran (Migration)

In the matter of Pongsumran, the Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered an application for Partner (Provisional) (Class UF) visas, Subclass 309. The dispute concerned whether the applicant had provided a statement from an appropriate authority regarding their criminal history, as required by migration regulations.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was to determine if the applicant had satisfied regulation 2.03AA(2)(a) of the Migration Regulations 1994, which mandates the provision of a statement from an appropriate authority concerning a person's criminal history. This arose after the visa delegate initially refused the application due to a lack of timely response to requests for a police clearance certificate from Thailand.

The Tribunal reasoned that while the applicant did not initially provide the requested document within the specified timeframe, a document dated 18 September 2023, issued by the Special Branch of the Royal Thai Police, was subsequently received. The Tribunal found this document to be a suitable statement from an appropriate authority for the purposes of regulation 2.03AA(2)(a). Consequently, the Tribunal concluded that the first named applicant met the criteria under regulation 2.03AA(2). The Tribunal remitted the applications for Partner (Provisional) visas for reconsideration, directing that the first named applicant meets the criteria under regulation 2.03AA(2).