Anselm v Minister for Immigration

Anselm (the applicant) sought judicial review of a decision by the Minister for Immigration (the respondent) to refuse an extension of time to appeal a decision of the Migration Review Tribunal. The Tribunal had refused to grant an extension of time under section 477(2) of the Migration Act 1958 (Cth) to appeal a decision that had affirmed the refusal of Anselm's visa application.

The primary legal issue before the court was whether the Migration Review Tribunal was obliged to make enquiries with Anselm's educational institution to confirm his enrolment before refusing an extension of time. A secondary issue was whether Anselm's substantive claim had reasonable prospects of success, which was a relevant consideration for the Tribunal in determining whether to grant an extension of time.

Judge Jones held that the Tribunal was not obliged to make enquiries with the educational institution. The court reasoned that the onus was on the applicant to provide sufficient evidence to satisfy the Tribunal that an extension of time should be granted. In this instance, Anselm had failed to provide satisfactory evidence of his enrolment, and therefore, the Tribunal was entitled to conclude that his substantive claim had no reasonable prospects of success. This conclusion meant that the Tribunal was not required to grant an extension of time.

The application for judicial review was dismissed.