Thapa (Migration)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) considered an application for review by Mr Thapa concerning a Temporary Activity (Class GG) visa. The core of the dispute revolved around the payment of the prescribed application fee and whether a valid request for a fee reduction had been made.

The Tribunal was required to determine whether it had jurisdiction to hear Mr Thapa's application for review. This depended on whether the application for review itself was valid, which in turn was contingent upon the applicant having complied with the requirements regarding the payment of the prescribed fee or having made a valid request for a fee reduction at the time of lodging the application.

The Tribunal reasoned that as the prescribed fee had not been paid at the time of lodgement, and no valid request for a fee reduction had been made, the application for review was not a valid application. Consequently, the Tribunal concluded that it lacked jurisdiction to proceed with the matter. The Tribunal therefore made no orders in relation to the merits of the visa application itself.