A Dublin language school was granted leave by the High Court yesterday to seek an order quashing a decision of the Minister for Justice to remove it from the list of approved schools for the purpose of student visa applications.
The court was told the National Immigration Bureau had failed to confirm that the Language House School of English Ltd, Herbert Place, had been reinstated to the List of Approved Schools and was continuing to refuse visas to students seeking to study at the school. It was stated that the school had severed all ties with a Chinese national who had been acting as an administrator with the school and whom detectives said had been acting illegally.
The bureau's action continued to harm the school, Mr David Nolan SC said. He secured leave to seek a number of orders against the Minister by way of judicial review.
It was stated that while EEA (European Economic Area) nationals continued to form a significant number of the school's students, it could not operate successfully if it was excluded from offering its services to non-EEA nationals.
In an affidavit, Mr Seán Tyrer, director of the school, said he and his wife, Mitsuko, who is from Japan, had dedicated an immense amount of time and money to the foundation and operation of the school. The Department of Education's approval of a language school was largely dependent upon its recognition by a body known as The Advisory Council for English Language Schools Ltd.