DNG18 v Minister for Home Affairs

In *DNG18 v Minister for Home Affairs*, the applicants sought judicial review of a decision by the Immigration Assessment Authority (IAA) to dismiss their applications for temporary protection visas. The IAA had been satisfied that the primary reason for the applicants' travel to Australia was to seek medical treatment for their child. However, the IAA was not satisfied that the applicants met the criteria for refugee status or complementary protection.

The central legal issue before the court was whether the IAA had erred in law in its assessment of the applicants' claims for protection. Specifically, the court was required to determine if the IAA had properly considered all relevant evidence and applied the correct legal principles in concluding that the applicants did not satisfy the requirements for a temporary protection visa under the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth).

Judge Egan found that the IAA had made a jurisdictional error. The IAA had failed to consider the applicants' claims for protection in light of the fact that they had been granted medical treatment in Australia. The IAA's approach had been to treat the medical treatment as the sole purpose of the journey, thereby precluding consideration of protection claims that might arise from circumstances occurring after arrival. The court held that the IAA was required to consider the applicants' claims for protection, even if the initial purpose of travel was for medical treatment, and that its failure to do so constituted a reviewable error.

The court ordered that the decision of the IAA be set aside and remitted to the IAA for redetermination according to law.