Singh (Migration)

This matter concerned an application for review of a decision by a delegate of the Minister for Immigration to refuse to grant a Student (Temporary) (Class TU) visa, subclass 500, to Master Justin Singh. Master Singh, a two-year-old boy born in Australia but a citizen of India, was a secondary applicant. The primary applicant was his mother, Mrs Suniti Devi. The delegate's refusal was based on the grounds that Master Singh did not satisfy the requirements of clause 573.322(b) of Schedule 2 to the Migration Regulations, as his mother, the primary applicant, did not meet the legislative criteria for a student visa.

The legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the decision to refuse Master Singh's visa application was correct, given that his mother, the primary applicant, did not satisfy the requirements for a student visa. The Tribunal was required to consider the relationship between the primary and secondary applicant's visa eligibility and the specific provisions of the Migration Regulations concerning student visas.

The Tribunal affirmed the delegate's decision. The reasoning centred on the fact that Mrs Devi, the primary applicant, did not hold a student visa and was instead on a bridging visa. The Tribunal noted that Mrs Devi had previously been granted student visas, but her most recent one ceased on 24 September 2015. A previous application for a student visa for Mrs Devi and her spouse had been refused on 7 June 2016, and this refusal was affirmed by the Tribunal on 15 November 2017. As Master Singh was added to his mother's application as a member of the family unit, his eligibility was contingent on his mother satisfying the requirements for the primary student visa. Since Mrs Devi did not satisfy these requirements, Master Singh's application was also refused.