Saroca (Migration)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered an application for a Visitor (Class FA) visa, Subclass 600 (Visitor) in the tourist stream. The applicant sought review of a decision not to grant her this visa. The core of the dispute revolved around whether the applicant met the criteria for Schedule 3, specifically Criterion 3001, which requires an application to be lodged within 28 days of the "relevant day."

The legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the applicant satisfied Criterion 3001 of Schedule 3, and consequently, clause 600.223 of the Migration Regulations. This required determining the "relevant day" as defined in subclause 3001(2) and assessing if the visa application was lodged within 28 days of that date. The applicant's previous substantive visa had expired on 5 February 2021, and her application for the visa under review was lodged on 13 July 2021.

The Tribunal reasoned that the applicant did not meet Criterion 3001 because her application was lodged more than 28 days after her last substantive visa expired. The definition of the "relevant day" in subclause 3001(2)(c) refers to the last day the applicant held a substantive visa if they ceased to hold one on or after 1 September 1994. As the applicant's previous visa expired on 5 February 2021, and the application was lodged on 13 July 2021, the 28-day timeframe was not met. The Tribunal noted that while the applicant's daughter provided ambiguous advice regarding dates and requirements, and there was a misunderstanding of the end of stay period and expiry date for multiple travel, these circumstances did not alter the objective fact that the application was lodged outside the prescribed period.

Consequently, as the applicant failed to satisfy Criterion 3001, the Tribunal was required to affirm the decision under review. The Tribunal affirmed the decision not to grant the applicant a Visitor (Class FA) Subclass 600 visa.