Eai16 v Minister for Immigration, Citizenship, Migrant Services and Multicultural Affairs

The appellant, Eai16, appealed against the decision of the Federal Circuit Court to dismiss his application for judicial review of a decision by the Immigration Assessment Authority (IAA) to affirm a decision by the Minister’s delegate to refuse to grant him a Safe Haven Enterprise Visa (SHEV). The appellant contended that the IAA failed to comply with s 473DE of the Migration Act 1958 (Cth) by not providing him with a statement he made in support of an invalid protection visa application, which the IAA referred to but which was not mentioned by the delegate in their decision. The appellant also argued that the IAA did not adequately consider a claim he made during an interview with the delegate that he had provided assistance to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. The primary judge rejected these contentions.

The court considered whether the primary judge was correct in finding that the IAA did not fail to comply with s 473DE by not providing the appellant with the statement in question, whether the statement was "before" the delegate when the decision was made, and if so, whether the IAA erred by failing to give the statement to the appellant. The court also examined whether the primary judge was correct in finding that the IAA was not required to consider the alleged claim arising from something said by the appellant to the delegate during the interview.

The court found that the 2013 Statement was not before the delegate when the decision was made and that, even if it had been, it would not have fallen within the terms of s 473DE. The court further held that the alleged claim made by the appellant during the interview was not a substantial, clearly articulated one that required consideration by the IAA. The court dismissed the appeal and ordered the appellant to pay the first respondent’s costs.