Warnakula Arachchige (Migration)

This matter concerned an application for a Skilled (Provisional) (Class VC) visa, Subclass 485 (Temporary Graduate) visa, brought before the Administrative Appeals Tribunal. The central dispute revolved around whether the applicant had satisfied the requirements of regulation 2.03AA of the Migration Regulations 1994, which is relevant to meeting Public Interest Criterion 4001.

The legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the applicant had met the requirements of regulation 2.03AA, specifically concerning the provision of documentation relating to their criminal history. Regulation 2.03AA(2) stipulates that if requested, an applicant must provide a statement from an appropriate authority regarding their criminal history and a completed approved form 80. The Department had requested an Australian Federal Police (AFP) National Police Check, and while a copy was not initially provided, the applicant subsequently submitted an AFP complete disclosure certificate dated 8 June 2021, which confirmed no disclosable court outcomes.

The Tribunal reasoned that the AFP complete disclosure certificate satisfied the requirement under regulation 2.03AA(2)(a). Although the Department had initially requested the AFP clearance and it appeared not to have been received promptly, the Tribunal found that the provided certificate was sufficient evidence of the applicant's criminal history status. Consequently, the Tribunal remitted the matter with a direction that the applicant satisfies regulation 2.03AA, allowing a delegate of the Minister to proceed with assessing Public Interest Criterion 4001 and the remaining visa criteria.