Sofat (Migration)

This matter concerned an application for a Regional Employer Nomination (Permanent) (Class RN) visa, specifically under the Subclass 187 Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme, Direct Entry stream, for the position of Cook. The applicant's nomination had been refused by the Department, but the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (the Tribunal) had subsequently set aside that decision and substituted its own decision approving the nomination. The dispute before the Tribunal was whether the nomination had been approved, a crucial step for the visa application to proceed.

The Tribunal was required to determine whether the applicant met the requirements of clause 187.233 of Schedule 2 to the Migration Regulations 1994. This clause outlines several criteria for the nominated position and the nominator, including that the position must be one that was nominated under specific regulations, that the employer is the nominator, that the nomination has been approved and not withdrawn, that there is no adverse information known to Immigration or that such information is reasonable to disregard, that the position remains available, and that the visa application was made within six months of the nomination approval.

The Tribunal reasoned that based on the evidence provided, including the previous departmental application and the Tribunal's own findings in the nomination application, the approved position was the same as that nominated and declared in the visa application. It was also satisfied that the employer was the nominator and that the nomination had been approved by the Tribunal. Consequently, the Tribunal found that the applicant met the requirements of clause 187.233.

Given these findings, the Tribunal determined that the appropriate course of action was to remit the visa application to the Minister for reconsideration of the remaining visa criteria. The Tribunal directed that the first applicant met clause 187.233 of the Regulations.