TOURTOIS (Migration)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) considered an application for review by an applicant seeking a Subclass 500 (Student) visa. The dispute centred on whether the applicant met the criteria for the visa, specifically concerning their enrolment status in a course of study.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the applicant satisfied the criterion in cl.500.211 of Schedule 2 to the Regulations, which requires the applicant to be enrolled in a course of study at the time of the decision. The Tribunal also had to consider the definitions of "course of study" and "registered course" as provided in the Regulations and the *Education Services for Overseas Students Act 2000*.

The Tribunal reasoned that while initial documentation had been provided to satisfy a request for health insurance and a Certificate of Enrolment (CoE), a subsequent invitation to comment under s359 of the *Migration Act 1958* sought further information regarding the applicant's current enrolment status. This invitation specifically requested documentary evidence of current enrolment and confirmation of the expected completion date. The applicant did not provide this requested information, which was deemed relevant to the visa criteria. The Tribunal concluded that, in the absence of this crucial information, the applicant had not demonstrated that they met the enrolment requirements for the visa.