1711826 (Refugee)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) considered an application for a protection visa. The applicants claimed they did not receive notification of the dismissal of their application. The core of the dispute revolved around whether the applicants had provided updated contact details to the Tribunal and whether they had a valid reason for failing to attend a scheduled hearing.

The Tribunal was required to determine whether the applicants had taken reasonable steps to inform the Tribunal of their changed email address and, consequently, whether they had been properly notified of the dismissal of their application. Furthermore, the Tribunal had to assess if there was a valid reason for the applicants' failure to attend the hearing, which would warrant setting aside the original decision.

The Tribunal found that the applicants had not lodged a change of contact details with the Tribunal. As a result, the notification of the dismissal of their application was sent to their last known email address, which they had failed to update. The Tribunal concluded that there was no valid reason for the applicants' failure to attend the hearing, as they had not taken the necessary steps to ensure they received communications from the Tribunal. Therefore, the Tribunal confirmed the decision to dismiss the application.