2204350 (Refugee)

The applicant, a citizen of China, sought review of a decision by the Minister to refuse to grant a protection visa. The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) was asked to consider the applicant's review application.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether it had jurisdiction to hear the review application, given that it was lodged outside the prescribed time limit.

The Tribunal determined that the application for review was not received until 25 March 2022. As this date was beyond the statutory timeframe for lodging such an application, the Tribunal concluded that it lacked the necessary jurisdiction to consider the merits of the case. The Tribunal applied the principle that strict adherence to legislative timeframes is essential for the exercise of its review powers.

Consequently, the Tribunal made no order on the merits of the protection visa application, as it had no jurisdiction to do so.