2214386 (Refugee)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) considered an application for review of a decision to refuse a protection visa made by applicants from Laos. The core of the dispute concerned the timeliness of the application for review.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether it had jurisdiction to hear the application for review, given that it was lodged more than 28 days after the applicants were notified of the visa refusal decision. The applicants contended that their lack of knowledge of English prevented them from understanding the notification and the time limits for lodging an appeal.

The Tribunal applied the principle that the time limit for lodging an application for review is a strict requirement under the relevant legislation. The Tribunal found that there was no provision within the legislation that granted it the power to allow extra time for lodging an application beyond the prescribed 28-day period. Consequently, as the application for review was received by the Tribunal on 28 September 2022, which was outside the statutory timeframe, the Tribunal determined it lacked jurisdiction to consider the merits of the application.

The Tribunal ordered that it does not have jurisdiction in this matter.