1808511 (Refugee)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT), Migration and Refugee Division, considered an application for review of a delegate of the Minister for Immigration's decision to refuse to grant protection visas. The applicant sought review of this decision, which was made on 26 February 2018. The review application was lodged with the Tribunal on 27 March 2018.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether it had jurisdiction to hear the application for review, given that it was lodged outside the prescribed time limit. Specifically, the Tribunal had to determine the date on which the applicant was notified of the primary decision and, consequently, the deadline for lodging the review application. The Tribunal also considered the applicant's explanation for the delay in lodging the application.

The Tribunal reasoned that, pursuant to r.4.31(2) of the Migration Regulations 1994, an application for review must be made within 28 days of being notified of the primary decision, unless the applicant is in immigration detention. The Tribunal found that the applicant was notified of the primary decision by email on 26 February 2018, which was the date from which the 28-day time limit commenced. Therefore, the last day for lodging the review application was 26 March 2018. The Tribunal acknowledged the applicant's submission that his mobile phone was not functioning, preventing him from observing his emails. However, the Tribunal emphasised that applicants bear the ongoing responsibility to ensure all communication channels between themselves and the Department and Tribunal remain clear and functioning.

As the review application was received by the Tribunal on 27 March 2018, it was lodged out of time. Consequently, the Tribunal determined that it did not have jurisdiction to review the decision.