Age and Character Issues Overcome for International Security Expert Under Subclass 856

Visa TypeSubclass 856

CategorySkilled Migration

Case Summary

A Subclass 856 visa applicant faced two concurrent obstacles: an age waiver requirement (being over 45) and a character issue arising from a prior assault conviction. We obtained waivers for both through detailed submissions on the applicant's specialised international security expertise and the self-defence context of the offence.

Background

Our client was nominated for a Subclass 856 Employer Nomination Scheme visa by his employer. Two separate issues needed to be addressed. First, the applicant was over 45 years of age, meaning an age waiver was required. Second, the applicant had a prior conviction for assault, which created a character concern under migration law. Both issues required detailed submissions.

Challenges

Applicant was over 45, requiring an exceptional circumstances argument for the age waiver
A prior assault conviction created a character issue under the migration character test
Both obstacles needed to be navigated simultaneously within the same application
The character submission required contextualising the assault conviction persuasively

How We Helped

For the age waiver, we submitted that the applicant's nominated position was a highly specialised occupation in the area of international security, requiring a strong background in that field built over many years of field experience. We demonstrated that the applicant's unique skills and knowledge could not easily be replaced and that his departure would create substantial hardship for the employer. For the character issue, we submitted that the assault offence was an isolated act committed in self-defence and emphasised the applicant's otherwise entirely clean police record.

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Key Success Factors

Compelling evidence of the applicant's unique and irreplaceable international security expertise
Clear employer documentation of the operational hardship if the visa were not granted
Contextualisation of the assault offence as an isolated act of self-defence
Clean overall record used to demonstrate the exceptional and non-representative nature of the single offence

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Outcome

The Department accepted the age waiver submissions and acknowledged the character issue submissions. The Subclass 856 visa was granted.

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