1730080 (Refugee)

[2017] AATA 3008

1730080 (Refugee) [2017] AATA 3008 (19 December 2017)

DECISION RECORD

DIVISION:Migration & Refugee Division

CASE NUMBER:  1730080

COUNTRY OF REFERENCE:                  China

MEMBER:Linda Symons

DATE:19 December 2017

PLACE OF DECISION:  Sydney

DECISION:The Tribunal does not have jurisdiction in this matter.

Statement made on 19 December 2017 at 4:11pm

CATCHWORDS

Refugee – Protection visa – China – No jurisdiction – Application received out of time

LEGISLATION
Migration Act 1958, ss 65, 494C

Migration Regulations 1994, Schedule 2, r 4.31

Any references appearing in square brackets indicate that information has been omitted from this decision pursuant to section 431 of the Migration Act 1958 and replaced with generic information which does not allow the identification of an applicant, or their relative or other dependant.

STATEMENT OF DECISION AND REASONS

APPLICATION FOR REVIEW

1. This is an application for review of a decision of a delegate of the Minister for Immigration [in] November 2017 to refuse to grant protection visas under s.65 of the Migration Act 1958 (the Act). The review application was lodged with the Tribunal on [a date in] 2017. For the following reasons, the Tribunal has found that it has no jurisdiction to review the decision.

2. As the applicants were not in immigration detention on the day the applicants were notified of the decision, an application for review of the decision had to be made within 28 days, commencing on that day: r.4.31(2) of the Migration Regulations 1994.

3. The material before the Tribunal indicates that the applicants were notified of the decision by letter dated [in] November 2017 and dispatched by email. The Tribunal is satisfied that the applicants were notified of the decision in accordance with the statutory requirements.

4. [In] December 2017, the Tribunal wrote to the applicants and invited them to comment on the validity of the application for review in writing by 19 December 20176. This letter was sent to them by email on [a date in] December 2017.

5. On 17 December 2017, the Tribunal received an email from the applicants in which they stated that they became “deeply pressured and absent minded every day” after they received a letter [in] November 2017 from the Department of Immigration and Border Protection refusing their application for Protection visas. They stated that [Applicant 1] [underwent a medical procedure]. They stated that they wanted to submit their application for review as soon as possible but due to their anxiousness they missed the deadline. They stated that their delay was not intentional, was due to their anxiousness and apologised for the delay.

6. The applicants provided the Tribunal with an invoice from [certain service] and requested that they be given another chance. The invoice indicates that [Applicant 1] had a [medical procedure] [in] December 2017. Unfortunately, the Tribunal does not have the discretion to consider these matters and extend the time for the filing of the application for review.   

7. The Tribunal finds that the applicants are taken to have been notified of the decision [in] November 2017 pursuant to s.494C of the Act. Therefore, the prescribed period to apply for review ended on [a date in] 2017. As the application for review was not received by the Tribunal until [one day later in] 2017, the application for review was not made in accordance with the relevant legislation and the Tribunal has no jurisdiction in this matter.

   DECISION

8. The Tribunal does not have jurisdiction in this matter.

   Linda Symons
   Member