Thipirisetty (Migration)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered the case of Thipirisetty, concerning applications for Employer Nomination (Permanent) (Class EN) visas, Subclass 186, under the Temporary Residence Transition stream. The primary dispute revolved around the refusal of the visa applications, which stemmed from the nomination for the position of ICT Sales Representative not being approved. The applicant sought review of the decision to affirm the refusal of the nomination.

The central legal issue before the Tribunal was whether an approved nomination existed in relation to the applicant's Subclass 186 visa application. This required the Tribunal to determine if the applicant met the requirements of regulation 186.223(1) of the Migration Regulations 1994, specifically whether the Minister had approved the nomination and if that nomination had subsequently been withdrawn. The applicant also raised several arguments concerning alleged errors in the original nomination assessment, including the consideration of irrelevant factors and the validity of certain certificates.

The Tribunal reasoned that its role was to determine whether the applicant met the requirements for the Subclass 186 visa, which included the prerequisite of an approved nomination. It noted that the applicant's submissions largely addressed issues pertaining to the nomination application itself, rather than the visa application under review. Crucially, the Tribunal found that as the related nomination decision had been affirmed on review, there was no approved nomination as required by regulation 186.223(2). Consequently, the Tribunal could not reopen the assessment of the nomination application.

The Tribunal affirmed the decisions not to grant the applicants Employer Nomination (Permanent) (Class EN) visas. It noted that the applicants could still make a request directly to the Minister.