2211602 (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 the forum for this review.

The primary legal issue before the AAT was whether it possessed jurisdiction to review the decision, given that the application for review was lodged outside the prescribed time limits. This raised the question of whether the applicant's initial application for review was validly made.

The AAT Member, James Silva, reasoned that the applicant's first application for review, lodged on 14 September 2021, was invalid. Consequently, the Tribunal lacked the power to review the decision under the relevant legislation. The Member distinguished this situation from cases where a decision is no longer reviewable due to the Tribunal having already exercised its statutory duty, citing *SZBWJ v MIAC* [2008] FMCA 164.

The Tribunal concluded that it did not have jurisdiction in the matter.