Patel v Minister for Immigration

The applicants, Mr and Mrs Patel, sought judicial review of a decision by the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) which dismissed their application for a Student (Temporary) (Class TU) visa. The delegate of the Minister had initially refused the visa on 29 June 2015, finding the first applicant was not a genuine temporary entrant. The applicants applied to the AAT for a review of this decision.

The primary legal issue before the court was whether the AAT had committed a jurisdictional error when it dismissed the applicants' application for failing to attend a scheduled hearing. The applicants had attended an initial hearing in August 2015. Subsequently, the AAT invited them to a further hearing on 26 July 2016, with notice sent to their migration agent and a reminder via SMS to the first applicant. The applicants failed to attend this hearing, and the AAT dismissed their application under s 362B(1A)(b) of the Migration Act 1958 (Cth).

The court reasoned that the AAT had followed the correct procedures. The applicants were invited to the hearing, and a reminder was sent. Crucially, the AAT's decision to dismiss the application was followed by a confirmation decision. The confirmation decision explicitly stated that the applicants were notified of the dismissal and advised that they could apply for reinstatement within 14 days. As the applicants failed to apply for reinstatement within this period, the AAT was obliged to confirm the dismissal decision. The court found no jurisdictional error in the AAT's process, as the applicants had not taken the necessary steps to have their application reinstated after the dismissal.

Consequently, the application for judicial review was dismissed.