1615291 (Refugee)

The applicant, a citizen of China, sought a protection visa. The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) dismissed the application due to the applicant's failure to appear at the hearing. No application for reinstatement of the dismissed application was made within the prescribed 14-day period.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether it was required to confirm the dismissal of the protection visa application, given the applicant's failure to seek reinstatement within the stipulated timeframe.

The Tribunal applied the relevant procedural rules, which mandated confirmation of a dismissal if an application for reinstatement was not filed within 14 days of the dismissal. As this condition was not met, the Tribunal was bound to confirm its earlier decision. Consequently, the decision under review, which was the dismissal of the protection visa application, was affirmed.