SHI (Migration)

This matter concerned an appeal by the applicant, Ms. Wenqin SHI, against a decision to affirm the refusal of her Partner (Provisional) (Class UF) visa, Subclass 309. The dispute centred on whether Ms. SHI met the health criteria stipulated by Public Interest Criterion (PIC) 4007, specifically concerning the potential cost to the Australian community of providing her with health or community services. The case was heard by Russell Matheson.

The primary legal issue before the court was whether the applicant satisfied PIC 4007, which requires an applicant to be free from certain diseases or conditions that could pose a threat to public health or result in significant costs to the Australian community through the provision of health or community services. The applicant had failed to satisfy PIC 4007(1)(c)(ii)(A), which relates to the likelihood of requiring health care or community services that would result in a significant cost to the Australian community.

The court considered the provisions of PIC 4007, noting that it requires an applicant to be free from conditions that would likely necessitate health care or community services, the provision of which would either result in significant cost to the Australian community or prejudice access for Australian citizens or permanent residents. While certain temporary visas may exclude specific services from this consideration, the visa subclass in question did not benefit from such exclusions. The court ultimately concluded that the decision under review should be affirmed, finding that the applicant did not meet the required health criteria.