Having your Visa cancelled can be the most distressing and stressful experience. But what is behind a visa cancellation?
For a visa to be cancelled, only the Minister or a delegate of the Minister can grant, refuse or cancel a visa which can be discretionary, mandatory or by operation of law. In some circumstances, you can ask the Department to cancel your visa! However, cancelling any visa is at the discretion of the Department. Unfortunately, if your visa is cancelled, the Department may also cancel the visas held by any of your family members.
Your employer, a sponsor or family member cannot cancel your visa. However, a person with parental responsibility can request us to cancel the visa of a person under 18 years old.
There are many reasons why your visa may be cancelled. Some reasons can be if:
- you were non-compliant with visa conditions
- you did not meet our character requirements
- you provided false information on your visa application
Did you know, that the Minister has the power to refuse or cancel your visa if you do not pass our character test? If you have had a visa refused or cancelled on character grounds since you last arrived in Australia the only visa you can apply for is a Protection visa. If you are removed from Australia on character grounds, you may have difficulty satisfying the character test when applying for another visa to re-enter Australia. In cases where you appear to fail the character requirements, you will be given an opportunity to put forward reasons why your visa should not be cancelled before the Department cancels your visa.
Your visa might also be cancelled if you are involved in paying for visa sponsorship. This means if you initiated or were complicit in the paying for sponsorship or your intent in coming forward (whistle-blower, actively providing us with information) for such a matter.
Your student visa can also be subject to cancellation if you are no longer enrolled in a registered course. Your enrollment ends when you complete the course, even if this is earlier than the end date on your Confirmation of Enrollment. What you must do after you complete your course depends on your enrollment arrangement. If you complete the course for which your visa was granted, you will have 3 months to depart Australia or apply for another visa. So it’s important to always keep on track of things!
Other reasons why your student visa may be cancelled include:
- you complete the course for which we granted your student visa and you do not leave Australia or apply for a new visa within 3 months.
- you have changed courses since we granted your student visa and your new Confirmation of Enrolment for your principal course has an earlier end date and you do not leave Australia or apply for a new visa within 28 days of completing the course.
- you are studying more than one course on your visa (course packaging) and you finish a course early and have a gap between courses of more than 2 months (except if this gap occurs between the end of an academic year and the beginning of a new academic year).
Another reason why your visa can be cancelled is if you contravene Bio security Laws. It is important to declare certain food, plant material and animal items from overseas as these items may:
- introduce serious pests and diseases into Australia
- devastate our valuable agriculture and tourism industries and our unique environment
The Minister has the power to cancel your visitor visa in immigration clearance if you:
- fail to meet the requirements to answer questions about goods
- do not follow directions given by a Bio security officer in relation to goods or baggage
- provide false or misleading information or documents to a Bio security officer
The Minister has the power to cancel a temporary visa if you import objectionable goods and materials without permission.
If your visa is cancelled and you attempt to make another visa application while you are in Australia, you may be granted a Bridging Visa A (BVA) or other Bridging visa. The bridging visa comes in to effect when your current visa ceases. You need to comply with the conditions of your current visa until the bridging visa comes into effect. Cancelling your visa will cause your Bridging Visa A to cease at the same time.
If your current visa is cancelled, you will need to apply for is a Bridging Visa E. This will not affect your current visa application, however, you will have limited visa options if your current visa application is not granted.
However, if the Department refuse or cancel your visa, you might be able to request a review of the decision. You cannot appeal a decision if it was made by the minister personally. The independent Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) is responsible for reviewing departmental decisions including visa cancellation decisions. To seek a review by the AAT, you must lodge your application by the date specified in your decision notification letter.
Our Registered Migration Agents at Migration Centre of Australia have been in the migration industry for many years and have helped thousands of clients onshore and offshore. We are trained professionals in Australian Migration Law and we are trusted providers in the industry for our services. If you want to know more about the visa cancellations, or you wish to speak to us directly about applying for a visa in Australia or having your visa cancellation or refusal reviewed, contact us today on (02) 4626 1002 or send us an email at info@migrationcentreofaustralia.com.au and one of my registered migration agents will be ready to help you.
