2016031 (Refugee)

The applicant, a citizen of China, sought review of a decision concerning their application for a protection visa. The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) was required to determine whether it had jurisdiction to hear the applicant's review application, which was lodged out of time.

The central legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the applicant's out-of-time application for review was validly made, thereby conferring jurisdiction on the Tribunal. The applicant contended that their delay in lodging the application was due to self-quarantining with COVID-19 symptoms and overlooking emails, and that these circumstances should excuse the lateness.

The Tribunal found that the application for review was not received until 29 October 2020, which was beyond the statutory time limit. The Tribunal noted that there was no substantiating evidence provided by the applicant to support their claims regarding COVID-19 symptoms or the overlooking of emails. Applying the relevant legislative requirements, the Tribunal concluded that the application for review was not made in accordance with the legislation. Consequently, the Tribunal determined that it lacked jurisdiction to consider the merits of the applicant's case.

The Tribunal made no orders as to costs and determined that it did not have jurisdiction in this matter.