RAI (Migration)

This matter concerned the review of a decision to cancel the applicant's Student (Temporary) (Class TU) Subclass 572 visa. The applicant, who held a visa valid until March 2017, had been granted it in June 2015 with the original intention of studying in Australia. The visa was cancelled on the basis that the applicant had breached condition 8202 of Schedule 8 to the Migration Regulations 1994.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the applicant had complied with condition 8202, which requires a student visa holder to be enrolled in a registered course and to achieve satisfactory course progress and attendance. The applicant did not dispute that he had not been enrolled in a registered course for over 12 months, from November 2015 to November 2016, citing financial difficulties and gambling as reasons for his inability to pay course fees for a Diploma of Business. Consequently, the Tribunal found that the applicant had failed to comply with condition 8202(2).

In considering whether to exercise its discretion to cancel the visa, the Tribunal had regard to the applicant's circumstances, including his original purpose for travel, his stated intentions to return to Nepal to work in banking and finance or open a furniture business, and the hardship he claimed would result from cancellation. The Tribunal found that the applicant had not provided satisfactory reasons for undertaking an additional diploma course and did not demonstrate a compelling need to remain in Australia. While acknowledging the applicant's compliance with other visa conditions and the potential financial hardship to his family in Nepal, the Tribunal concluded that these factors did not outweigh the breach of condition 8202.

The Tribunal affirmed the decision to cancel the applicant's visa.