Tang (Migration)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered an application for review of a decision not to grant a Subclass 500 (Student) visa to the applicant, and by extension, a visa to a secondary applicant. The core of the dispute centred on whether the primary applicant met the criteria for the visa, specifically the requirement of being enrolled in a registered course of study at the time of the decision.

The Tribunal was required to determine whether the applicant satisfied the primary criteria for a Subclass 500 (Student) visa, as set out in clause 500.211 of Schedule 2 to the Regulations. This clause mandates that at the time of the decision, the applicant must be enrolled in a "full-time registered course". A "registered course" is defined as one provided by an institution registered under the *Education Services for Overseas Students Act 2000* to provide such courses to overseas students.

Despite the applicant's assertions of enrolment in a translation course at the National Institute of Education and Technology, Tasmania, the Tribunal found that no documentary evidence had been provided to corroborate this claim. As the applicant did not rely on any alternative criteria, and the Tribunal was not satisfied that the applicant was enrolled in a registered course of study at the time of the decision, clause 500.211 was not met. Consequently, the Tribunal affirmed the decision not to grant the visa to the primary applicant, which also meant the secondary applicant's application would fail.