Alharbi (Migration)

This matter concerned an appeal by the applicant, Mr. Alharbi, against the decision of the Department of Home Affairs to refuse his application for a Visitor (Class FA) visa, subclass 600 (Tourist stream). The applicant was in Australia at the time of his application but did not hold a substantive visa. The Administrative Appeals Tribunal was required to determine whether the applicant met the criteria for the visa.

The central legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the applicant satisfied the requirements of clause 600.223 of the Migration Regulations 1994. Specifically, as the applicant did not hold a substantive visa at the time of application, the Tribunal had to consider whether the applicant's last substantive visa was one of the excluded types and, crucially, whether the applicant satisfied the Schedule 3 criteria, including criterion 3001.

The Tribunal reasoned that to satisfy criterion 3001, the visa application must have been lodged within 28 days of the "relevant day." The Tribunal found that the applicant's substantive visa expired on 28 February 2018, and the application for the Visitor visa was lodged on 3 May 2018. This meant the application was lodged more than 28 days after the relevant day, and therefore, the applicant failed to satisfy criterion 3001. Consequently, the applicant did not meet the requirements of clause 600.223.

The Tribunal affirmed the decision not to grant the applicant a Visitor (Class FA) visa.