Khattri v Minister for Immigration

The applicant, Mr Khattri, sought judicial review of a decision by the Refugee Review Tribunal (Tribunal) to refuse his application for a protection visa. The dispute concerned the lawfulness of the Tribunal's decision, with the applicant alleging jurisdictional error.

The primary legal issue before the court was whether the Tribunal's decision was vitiated by jurisdictional error due to the alleged failure to provide the applicant with a notice under section 20 of the *Education Services for Overseas Students Act 2000* (Cth). This failure, if established, was argued to have impacted the validity of the Tribunal's subsequent decision to cancel the applicant's visa under section 116 of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth).

Justice Cameron considered the requirements of section 20 of the *Education Services for Overseas Students Act 2000* and its relationship to the Tribunal's powers under the *Migration Act 1958*. The court determined that the notice requirement under section 20 was a condition precedent to the Tribunal's jurisdiction to make certain decisions concerning overseas students. The court found that the applicant had not been provided with the requisite notice, and therefore, the Tribunal had proceeded without valid jurisdiction, constituting a jurisdictional error.

The court ordered that the Tribunal's decision be set aside.