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Tribunal: Senior Member R Westaway (Presiding) and Member N Hossen

The AAT reviewed the decision of the Department of Home Affairs (the Department) to refuse to grant the applicant a Student visa. The Department was not satisfied that the applicant was a genuine student who genuinely intended to stay in Australia temporarily as a student.[1]

The applicant was employed as an electrician in his home country of Malaysia. However he had spent considerable time in Australia studying English and was seeking to undertake a further course in Patisserie. At the time of the review by the AAT, the applicant had been in Australia for over five years undertaking educational courses.

In its review, the AAT was concerned that granting a further student visa to the applicant would be primarily used to maintain residence in Australia and that he was proposing a short and inexpensive course for that purpose. The applicant did not have any personal or economic ties to Malaysia so he did not have a significant incentive to return to live in Malaysia after he completed his studies in Australia. Additionally, the applicant’s immediate family were all living in Australia as permanent residents, meaning his personal ties in Australia also outweighed the ones he had in Malaysia. The AAT did not accept the applicant’s reasons for wanting to undertake the Patisserie course as it was not satisfied the course was relevant or necessary for him to obtain employment in Malaysia in a high end hotel. The AAT also placed weight on the fact the applicant had applied for a Residence visa in 2015. Although that visa application had been refused, the AAT was not satisfied the applicant’s intention to reside in Australia permanently had changed.

The AAT affirmed the decision to refuse to grant the visa.

Read the full decision on AustLII.

 

[1] Clause 500.212 of Schedule 2 of the Migration Regulations 1994