Rajput (Migration)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered the application of Mr. Rajput for a Skilled (Provisional) (Class VC) visa, Subclass 485, in the Graduate Work stream. The dispute centred on whether Mr. Rajput met the primary criteria for this visa, specifically those relating to a skills assessment for his nominated occupation of Computer Network and Systems Engineer.

The Tribunal was required to determine whether Mr. Rajput had satisfied the requirements of clause 485.223 of Schedule 2 to the Migration Regulations 1994, which mandates that a visa application for the Graduate Work stream must be accompanied by evidence of an application for a skills assessment by a relevant assessing authority for the nominated skilled occupation. The Tribunal also considered whether Mr. Rajput had intended to apply under the Post-Study Work Stream, as suggested by his evidence of misinterpreting the application options.

The Tribunal found that Mr. Rajput had not satisfied clause 485.223 because his online visa application was not accompanied by evidence of an application for a skills assessment with the Australian Computer Society, the relevant assessing authority for his nominated occupation. Despite his oral evidence that he had been in a panic and misinterpreted the application streams, and that he believed he did not need a skills assessment for his nominated occupation, the objective evidence of the application form itself indicated non-compliance with this criterion. However, the Tribunal accepted Mr. Rajput's evidence that he had intended to apply under the Post-Study Work Stream and found that he met the requirements of clause 485.231(1) of Schedule 2 to the Regulations.

Consequently, the Tribunal remitted the application for reconsideration by the Minister, with a direction that Mr. Rajput meets the criteria specified in clause 485.231(1), and that the Minister should consider the remaining criteria for the visa, including those pertaining to the secondary applicant.