Abdelfattah and Minister for Immigration, Citizenship, Migrant Services and Multicultural Affairs (Citizenship)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered an application for an extension of time to lodge an application for review by Mr. Abdelfattah against a decision of the Minister for Immigration, Citizenship, Migrant Services and Multicultural Affairs. The core of the dispute concerned the applicant's use of an incorrect form when applying for Australian Citizenship by conferral, which led to a failure to pass the citizenship test. The Minister opposed the extension of time application on the grounds that the Tribunal lacked jurisdiction.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether it possessed the jurisdiction to determine the applicant's eligibility for Australian Citizenship under the incapacity criteria, despite the applicant having failed to use the approved form for his citizenship application. This question arose because the applicant's failure to pass the citizenship test meant he could not proceed under the standard criteria, and he sought to have his eligibility assessed under alternative provisions.

The Tribunal reasoned that a strict requirement exists for applicants to use the approved form when applying for citizenship. Citing previous decisions in *Petrovski* and *Hashim*, the Tribunal held that where an applicant fails to use the approved form, it is not open to the Tribunal to consider the application under different criteria, such as those found in section 21(3) of the *Australian Citizenship Act 2007* (Cth). Consequently, the Tribunal concluded it lacked jurisdiction to hear the substantive application.

The Tribunal therefore refused the application for an extension of time for want of jurisdiction. The applicant was advised that he may re-apply for Australian citizenship at any time.