Varinderpal Kaur (Migration)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered the application of Ms Varinderpal Kaur for a Partner (Migrant) (Class BC) visa. Ms Kaur, an Indian citizen, married Mr Sandeep Singh Dhaliwal, an Australian citizen, in India in 2014. The dispute arose when Mr Dhaliwal notified the Department of Home Affairs that the relationship had ceased in December 2015, although he later claimed reconciliation. The Department received adverse information that Mr Dhaliwal had been travelling with and sharing a residential address with his former wife since September 2016. Ms Kaur subsequently informed the Department that her husband had been conducting an extra-marital relationship with his ex-wife and claimed to have been a victim of family violence.

The Tribunal was required to determine whether Ms Kaur met the criteria for a permanent Partner visa, specifically whether the parties were in a genuine and continuing spouse relationship. This involved assessing the financial and social aspects of the relationship, the nature of their household, and their mutual commitment to each other, as outlined in section 5F of the Migration Act 1958 and regulation 1.15A of the Migration Regulations 1994. The Tribunal also considered whether Ms Kaur's claim of family violence was relevant to the assessment of the relationship's status, and whether she had attempted to secure residency under false pretences.

The Tribunal found that while the parties were validly married, the evidence regarding the financial and social aspects of their relationship, and the nature of their household, was limited. It noted that Ms Kaur had not provided evidence of the household, financial, and social aspects of the relationship, nor the nature of their commitment, to the extent required. The Tribunal also considered the sponsor's ongoing relationship with his ex-wife and Ms Kaur's knowledge of this infidelity. Crucially, the Tribunal determined that the precondition for assessing a claim of family violence was the prior existence of a genuine and continuing relationship, which it found was not established. Therefore, the claim of family violence did not need to be considered.

The Tribunal affirmed the decision not to grant Ms Kaur a Partner (Migrant) (Class BC) visa.