Tukala v Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs

In Tukala v Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs, the applicant, Mr Tukala, sought an extension of time to appeal the decision of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) which affirmed the Minister’s delegate's refusal to grant a visa to his son. The primary judge of the Federal Circuit Court found that Mr Tukala had no jurisdiction to appeal the decision of the AAT because he was neither the sponsor nor nominator of his son's visa application. The AAT had determined that it did not have jurisdiction to review the delegate's decision as the application for review was not made by the person who had sponsored or nominated the visa holding parent of the visa applicant, as required by the Migration Act 1958 (Cth). The court was required to decide whether the application for an extension of time to appeal was valid and if there was any merit in the proposed appeal.

The court held that the application for an extension of time to appeal was filed six days after the expiry of the time for filing a notice of appeal. The delay was short, and an acceptable explanation was provided. The court found that there was no merit in the proposed appeal as the AAT correctly concluded that it did not have jurisdiction to review the delegate's decision. The court further found that Mr Tukala was not the sponsor or nominator of his son's visa application, as required by the Migration Act, and that the AAT had correctly determined that it did not have jurisdiction to review the delegate's decision. The court dismissed the application for an extension of time to appeal and reserved the question of costs.

The court ordered that the application for an extension of time to appeal be dismissed, and costs be reserved. The court also ordered that any application for an order under s 486F of the Migration Act, supporting affidavit and submissions be filed and served by 4pm on 23 February 2023. Any affidavit in response, together with submissions, be filed and served by 4pm on 9 March 2023. Any submissions in reply be filed and served by 4pm on 23 March 2023. The court further ordered that no submissions may exceed five pages, and the question of costs be determined on the papers. Entry of orders is dealt with in Rule 39.32 of the Federal Court Rules 2011.