[2014] AATA 159
Division GENERAL ADMINISTRATIVE DIVISION File Number(s)
2012/5577
Re
William Lee
APPLICANT
And
Minister for Foreign Affairs
RESPONDENT
DECISION
Tribunal Ms Naida Isenberg, Senior Member Date 24 March 2014 Place Sydney The decision under review is varied. I find the correct and preferable decision to be that:
(a) The applicant is not entitled to be issued with an Australian passport which records xx xxxx 1966 as his date of birth.
(b) The applicant is entitled to be issued with an Australian passport which records his date of birth as xx xxxx 1962 but which contains an endorsement to the effect that the applicant has also used the date of birth xx xxxx 1966.
......................[sgd]..................................................
Ms Naida Isenberg, Senior Member
CATCHWORDS
PASSPORTS – issue – date of birth given on passport application different to that on applicant’s birth certificate – discretion to include an endorsement – decision varied
LEGISLATION
Australian Passports Act 2005 ss 7, 8, 43, 53, 55
SECONDARY MATERIALS
Australian Passports Determination 2005
International Civil Aviation Organization, ICAO Document 9303: Machine Readable Travel Documents, Part 1 (Sixth edition, 2006)
REASONS FOR DECISION
Ms Naida Isenberg, Senior Member
24 March 2014
BACKGROUND
William Lee, the applicant, previously held three Australian passports, two in the name of Libero Prevato, and one in the name of William Lee. The latter passport expired on 22 September 2005. The applicant lodged an application for another passport dated 30 July 2012. His application was refused as the respondent was not satisfied of the applicant’s identity. That decision was affirmed on internal review and the applicant seeks review of the decision.
RELEVANT LAW
The Australian Passports Act 2005 (“the Act”) provides for the issue of Australian travel documents, including passports.
Section 8 of the Act states:
Before issuing an Australian passport to a person, the Minister must be satisfied:
(a) that the person is an Australian citizen; and
(b) of the identity of the person.
Note:See sections 42 and 43 for details about how the Minister satisfies himself or herself of an Australian passport applicant’s citizenship and identity.
Section 43 provides that, without limiting the Minister’s ability to request information under subsection 42(1), a Minister’s determination may specify the kinds of personal information that may be requested by the Minister for the purpose of Part 2 of the Act. For the purposes of subsection 43(1) of the Act, s 7.2 of the Australian Passports Determination 2005 (“the Determination”) provides:
(1)For subsection 43(1) of the Australian Passports Act, the kind of personal information that may be requested by the Minister for the purpose of Part 2 of the Australian Passports Act in relation to an application of a particular kind is the information mentioned in the application form for applicants of that kind.
(2)For subsection 43(1) of the Australian Passports Act, the Minister may request the following kinds of personal information for the purpose of satisfying himself or herself of the person’s identity under paragraph 8(b) of the Australian Passports Act:
(a)the person’s name as…
Keep reading for free
Create a free CaseChat account to read William Lee and Minister for Foreign Affairs and more:
- Read every judgment in full
- Ask AI and get answers linked to paragraphs
- See how each paragraph was cited in later cases
- Download judgments as PDF or Word
One click creates your free account or signs you in.
By continuing you agree to the Terms and Privacy Policy.
- Case
- [2014] AATA 159
- Decision Date
CaseChat Overview and Summary
The court was tasked with determining whether the applicant was entitled to an Australian passport that listed his date of birth as 22 June 1966, considering the discrepancy between this date and the date recorded in the applicant's previous passports and documents. Additionally, the court needed to ascertain if endorsing the passport with an observation regarding the alternative date of birth would be consistent with the relevant policies and statutory provisions governing passport issuance.
Upon reviewing the statutory provisions and the evidence presented, the court found that the endorsement of the passport with an observation regarding the alternative date of birth did not contravene the policy or the public interest in maintaining the integrity of passports. Given that the applicant had previously held passports with his date of birth recorded as 22 June 1962, and considering the documents provided in support of his application, the court determined that the correct and preferable decision was to issue a passport recording the date of birth as 22 June 1962, with an endorsement noting the applicant's use of the alternative date of birth, 22 June 1966.
Consequently, the court varied the decision under review to reflect that the applicant is entitled to an Australian passport with his date of birth recorded as 22 June 1962, but with an accompanying endorsement acknowledging his use of the alternative date of birth. This decision was made in accordance with the statutory authority allowing for endorsements and observations on Australian travel documents under the relevant provisions of the Act and the Minister's Determination.
Orders
Orders of the court
Full text does not contain this section.
Background
Background to the litigation
Full text does not contain this section.
Evidence
Evidence Before The Court
Full text does not contain this section.
Decision
Reasons for decision
Ratio Decidendi
Legal Principle Established
Section 55 of the Act provides that the Minister “may endorse, or make observations on, Australian travel documents in the circumstances specified in a Minister’s determination”. For the purposes of s 55 of the Act, s 9.2 of the Determination provides:In issuing an Australian travel document, the Minister may endorse, or make an observation on, that travel document to specify such particulars as the Minister thinks fit.CONSIDERATION The applicant provided written submissions, as did the respondent. The respondent also provided an affidavit by Ms Callinan, the Acting Assistant Secretary in the Passport Client Services Branch of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.Should the applicant be issued with a passport which records his date of birth as xx xxxx 1966? There was no dispute that the applicant has previously held the following Australian passports:·Australian passport issued on 20 September 1983 in the name of Libero Prevato, and expired on 20 September 1988;·Australian passport issued on 13 September 1985 in the name of Libero Prevato, and expired on 13 October 1985;·Australian passport issued on 22 September 1995 in the name of William Lee, and expired on 22 September 2005. These passports were issued showing the applicant’s date of birth as xx xxxx 1962. The applicant also previously lodged a passport application dated 6 December 2010 (“the 2010 application”) wherein he stated that his date of birth was xx xxxx 1966. The applicant provided copies of the following documents in support of the 2010 application:·copy of a birth certificate for Libero Prevato, issued by the NSW Registrar of Births, Deaths and Marriages on 1 December 2010 showing the applicant’s date of birth as xx xxxx 1962;·copy of an instrument Evidencing Change of Name from Libero Prevato to William Lee, issued by the NSW Land Titles Office on 14 September 1995 in which the applicant had declared that his date of birth was xx xxxx 1966. On 10 February 2011 and 1 April 2011, the Department wrote to the applicant advising that a new passport could not be issued at that stage as the date of birth on the 2010 application did not match the date of birth on his birth certificate. The applicant was requested to complete a new form stating his correct date of birth within 28 days but he did not respond. As a result the 2010 application did not proceed to determination. On 30 July 2012 the applicant lodged an application for an Australian passport. There he stated that his date of birth was xx xxxx 1966. As evidence of his Australian citizenship the applicant provided a copy of a birth certificate in the name William Lee issued by the NSW Registrar of Births, Deaths and Marriages on 25 June 2012. That birth certificate shows the applicant’s date of birth as being xx xxxx 1962. It also contains the following endorsements:The full name of the registered person was previously recorded as Libero PREVATO, formerly known as Lee William PREVATO, formerly known as Lee WILLIAM, formerly known as Libero William PREVATO, formerly known as William Libero PREVATO. Registrar 22 June 2012.The registered person has also used the date of birth xx xxxx 1966. Registrar 22 June 2012.