Sidhu (Migration)

This matter concerned an application for a Skilled (Provisional) (Class VC) visa, Subclass 485 (Temporary Graduate), before the Administrative Appeals Tribunal. The applicant sought review of a delegate's decision to refuse the visa.

The central legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the applicant had provided a statement from an appropriate authority that evidenced whether or not they had a criminal history, as required by the Migration Regulations. Specifically, the Tribunal considered whether an Australian Federal Police Complete Disclosure certificate, which stated the applicant had no disclosable court outcomes, satisfied the regulatory requirements.

The Tribunal reasoned that the applicant had, in fact, provided the required statement from an appropriate authority. Although the applicant initially failed to provide the AFP certificate when requested by the Department, they subsequently submitted a certificate dated 4 June 2020, which confirmed no disclosable court outcomes. The Tribunal found this certificate met the requirements of regulation 2.03AA(2)(a) and clause 485.216 of the Migration Regulations.

Consequently, the Tribunal remitted the application for reconsideration with a direction that the applicant met the criteria under regulation 2.03AA(2)(a) for the Subclass 485 visa.