TRAN (Migration)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered an application by Ms. Tran for a Skilled (Provisional) (Class VC) visa, specifically the Post-Study Work stream. The core of the dispute concerned whether Ms. Tran met the Australian study requirement as stipulated by clause 485.231 of Schedule 2 to the Migration Regulations 1994. This requirement mandates that applicants must hold a specified qualification and have satisfied the Australian study requirement in the six months immediately preceding the visa application.

The Tribunal was tasked with determining whether Ms. Tran had satisfied the Australian study requirement. This involved interpreting the definition of "Australian study requirement" under regulation 1.15F(1), which requires the completion of one or more registered courses at an Australian educational institution, undertaken while holding a study-authorising visa in Australia. The study must have been conducted in English, completed over at least 16 calendar months, and involved at least two academic years of study, with "two academic years" defined as a minimum of 92 weeks.

The Tribunal found that Ms. Tran's application indicated she was due to complete her Bachelor of Business on 30 June 2016, but her visa application was lodged prior to this date. While she provided documentation confirming her eligibility to graduate, it did not specify the exact date of course completion. Ms. Tran herself stated that she applied for the visa before her course completion, as her student visa was expiring, and that she had passed her final subject around the time of lodging the application, but confirmed it was after the application was made. The Tribunal concluded that, based on the evidence, Ms. Tran had not completed her course at the time of lodging her visa application, and therefore did not satisfy the criterion.

Consequently, the Tribunal affirmed the decision not to grant Ms. Tran a Skilled (Provisional) (Class VC) visa, as she failed to meet a necessary criterion for the visa subclass.