Xue (Migration)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) considered an appeal by an applicant, Xue, concerning the refusal of her Subclass 500 (Student) visa. The applicant, who arrived in Australia in July 2018, sought to study a Certificate IV in Human Resource Management. The delegate's decision to refuse the visa was under review.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the applicant genuinely intended to stay in Australia temporarily, as required by clause 500.212(a) of Schedule 2 to the Migration Regulations 1994, and as guided by Ministerial Direction 69. This involved assessing various factors related to the applicant's circumstances in her home country, her potential circumstances in Australia, the value of her proposed course of study to her future, and her immigration history.

The Tribunal found that the applicant had not provided sufficient evidence to satisfy the genuine temporary entrant criterion. While she had completed previous studies in Australia, her plans for her future career in China were vague, involving a "small-scale business" without clear details on earning capacity. She was also uncertain about her return date to China, citing COVID-19 as a reason for not returning in the foreseeable future, and did not clearly articulate the benefit of her Australian studies to her future career in China. The Tribunal noted that she had not returned to China since 2018 and expressed a desire to study further courses in Australia if she found her current course useful, which raised concerns about her intention to remain in Australia temporarily.

Consequently, the Tribunal affirmed the delegate's decision, concluding that the applicant had not met the criteria for the grant of a Subclass 500 (Student) visa.