DBU16 v Minister for Immigration

The applicant, DBU16, sought judicial review of a decision made by a delegate of the Minister for Immigration. The dispute concerned the Immigration Assessment Authority's (IAA) review of the delegate's decision to refuse to grant a protection visa. The matter came before Judge Jarrett of the Federal Circuit Court of Australia.

The primary legal issue before the Court was whether the IAA had correctly applied the provisions of Part 7AA of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth) in its review of the delegate's decision. Specifically, the Court was required to determine if the IAA had erred in its consideration of new information provided by the applicant after the delegate's decision, and whether this new information should have been taken into account under section 473DD of the Act.

Judge Jarrett reasoned that section 473DB of the *Migration Act* mandates that the IAA must review a "fast track reviewable decision" solely on the basis of the material provided to the Authority, without accepting or requesting new information or conducting interviews. The IAA's decision noted that the applicant had provided further submissions, including new documentary evidence that pre-dated the delegate's decision. However, the IAA found that the applicant had not provided a satisfactory explanation as to why this new information was not presented to the delegate, nor why it should be considered credible personal information that, if known, might have affected the delegate's assessment. Consequently, the IAA concluded it was not satisfied in relation to the matters set out in section 473DD(b) and therefore did not consider the new information. The Court found no error in this approach.

The application for judicial review was dismissed.