Raj Bharat (Migration)

This matter concerned an application for review by Mr. Raj Bharat of a decision by the Department of Home Affairs to refuse his application for a Subclass 190 Skilled Nominated (Permanent) visa. The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) was tasked with reviewing the Department's decision.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether Mr. Bharat satisfied the requirements for the Subclass 190 visa, specifically clause 190.214(2) of Schedule 2 to the Migration Regulations 1994, which related to achieving a qualifying score of 60 points. A further issue arose regarding the Tribunal's jurisdiction to consider the applications of Mr. Bharat's wife and children.

The Tribunal found that Mr. Bharat did satisfy the requirement of achieving 60 points, contrary to the Department's assessment which had found his score to be 45 points. However, the Tribunal determined that it lacked jurisdiction to review the visa applications of Mr. Bharat's wife and children because they were not physically present in the migration zone at the time the primary decision was made or when the application for review was lodged, as required by section 347(2) of the Migration Act 1958. Consequently, the Tribunal remitted Mr. Bharat's application back to the Department for reconsideration, with a direction that he satisfied the points requirement, but made no decision in relation to his wife and children.