1801016 (Refugee)

The applicant, a citizen of China, sought a protection visa. The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) dismissed the applicant's application for review due to their failure to appear at the scheduled hearing. The applicant did not subsequently apply for reinstatement of the application within the prescribed 14-day period.

The central legal issue before the Tribunal was whether it was required to confirm the dismissal of the application, given the applicant's failure to seek reinstatement within the stipulated timeframe. This determination hinged on the Tribunal's procedural rules and its discretion in such circumstances.

The Tribunal applied the relevant procedural rules which mandate confirmation of a dismissal if an application for reinstatement is not filed within 14 days of the dismissal. As the applicant did not avail themselves of this provision, the Tribunal was bound to confirm its earlier decision. Consequently, the decision under review, which was the dismissal of the protection visa application, was taken to be affirmed. The Tribunal confirmed the decision to dismiss the application.