Commonwealth of Australia v FJ (A Pseudonym)

The Commonwealth of Australia appealed to the Full Federal Court against a decision of a single judge concerning the validity of a notice issued under s 353-15 of Schedule 1 of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth) (the Act). The respondent, FJ (a pseudonym), sought judicial review of this notice, which purported to cancel his visa. The core of the dispute revolved around whether the notice was validly served on FJ, given that it was sent to an address that was not his usual or last known address.

The primary legal issue before the Full Federal Court was whether the notice of visa cancellation was effective to terminate FJ's visa. This required the Court to consider the proper interpretation of s 353-15 of the Act, specifically the requirements for service of a notice when the Minister is aware that the person to whom the notice is addressed is not at the address specified in the notice. The Court also had to determine whether the Minister had discharged their obligations under the Act in attempting to notify FJ of the cancellation.

The Court reasoned that s 353-15(2) of the Act imposes a positive obligation on the Minister to take reasonable steps to ensure that a notice of cancellation is received by the person. This obligation is not discharged by merely sending the notice to an address that the Minister knows the person is not at. In this instance, the Minister was aware that FJ was not at the address to which the notice was sent, and no other reasonable steps were taken to ensure service. Consequently, the Court held that the notice of cancellation was not validly served and therefore was ineffective.

The appeal was dismissed, and the decision of the single judge was affirmed.