1620873 (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. The applicant did not subsequently apply for reinstatement of the application within the prescribed 14-day period.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether it was required to confirm the decision to dismiss the application, given the applicant's failure to seek reinstatement.

The Tribunal applied the relevant procedural rules which stipulate that if an application is dismissed for non-appearance and no application for reinstatement is made within the specified timeframe, the decision to dismiss is to be affirmed. The Tribunal reasoned that the applicant's failure to take the necessary step of applying for reinstatement meant that the dismissal decision stood.

Consequently, the Tribunal confirmed the decision to dismiss the applicant's protection visa application.