When a visa is refused or cancelled, it is a shock for many, followed by stressful times. But, the good news is that the majority of the decisions can be challenged to review. The appeals and reviews are also applicable to decisions made overseas, but within strict time limits. At JBEM, we support applicants whose visa applications have been unsuccessful or have been cancelled. Primarily, we use two important avenues to appeal and have the decision reviewed – The Minister of Immigration and The Tribunals.

All the decisions related to the Immigration Department can be reviewed by the Migration and Refugee Review Tribunals (MRT), or the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT). The Tribunals can consider all the circumstantial implications, facts and the laws to reconsider the decision. The appeals and reviews are generally second attempts for a visa in question.

MAKING AN APPEAL:

The Tribunal can review the decision if the Department of Immigration and Border Protection has refused a visa. The appeals include decisions about visitors, partner, student, family, skilled migrants, and all other forms of visas, other than the protection visa. All the appeals follow a strict time limit which depends on the type of decision taken against your visa application and circumstances. It is important to note that the time limits can’t be extended under any situation and the individuals should get immediate legal advice after the decision has been received. Moreover, if the applicant loses at the Tribunal, he/she can appeal to the Federal Court.

REVIEWING A DECISION TO REFUSE PROTECTION VISA:

There are different appeal processes for the protection visa in the Tribunal, depending on the applicant and circumstances. If the applicant is in immigrant detention, the appeal has a time limit of 7 days. If the applicant is not in detention, the appeal has a time limit of 28 days.

APPEAL AGAINST REFUSING OR CANCELLING A VISA:

If this has happened on the basis of character grounds, the applicant can appeal to the Tribunal. The appeal can be made only after receiving the ‘Notice of Intention to Consider Cancellation. In this case too, there is a strict time limit of 9 days from the date of decision. There are other considerations if your visa is mandatorily cancelled. At JBEM, our experts have all the updated information about appeals and reviews against decisions made on all types of visas. We recommend our clients to consult us for a thorough discussion and result-oriented approach.

At JB Migration & Visa, we are aware of all the conditions under which an application can be cancelled, a visa revoked or cancelled. We try our level best to help our clients to have hassle-free appeals & reviews for all onshore and offshore applications. With our services, we ensure that your dreams to Australia are accomplished.

If you would like to lodge an appeal, please take note of the following:

Firstly, not all visa refusals or cancellations can apply for an appeal. We think that the appeal would achieve a positive outcome only when acceptable reasons and sufficient evidence are provided to the Tribunal.

Secondly, applying for a review is not merely documentation preparation. It generally involves two sections, lodging the documents and attending a hearing. We believe that attending the hearing is a vital part of the application process.

Thirdly, the applicant should fully comprehend the entire appeal procedures and make efforts to cooperate with us to achieve a satisfactory result.

Fourthly, the appeal process to the MRT, RRT and AAT can last between several months to a couple of years, depending on the visa type. The charges for the appeal to the Tribunals are quite reasonable while charges for appealing to the

Federal Court is much higher as the process is more complicated then the Tribunals. Overall, the appeal solutions need to be customized based on individual situations of each applicant and not be standardized. If you need us to assist you in this matter, please contact us for a further discussion.

Although appealing doesn’t guarantee a favourable outcome, many see AAT as a second chance. It is important to understand that AAT Members can’t review or alter the law. They can, however, review most of the ‘discretionary’ conclusions made by visa officers. In any case, there are four possible outcomes from this process:

• A decision to affirm
• A decision to vary the primary decision
• Substitute the primary decision
• Remit (return) the matter to the Department of Home Affairs (DOHA) for reconsideration with specific directions

We can appeal on behalf of the client or assists in applying for a review for visa application refusals or cancellations, including:

 Appeal to the Migration Review Tribunal (MRT)

The MRT is a statutory body which provides an independent and final merits review of visa and visa-related decisions made by the officers of the Department of Immigration and Border Protection (DIBP). The MRT reviews decisions made in respect of general visas (e.g. visitor, student, partner, family, business, skilled visas).

Appeal to the Refugee Review Tribunal (RRT)

The RRT provides an independent and final merits review of decisions made in respect of protection (refugee) visas. The tribunal has the right to refuse to grant protection visas to non-citizens within Australia, or to cancel protection visas held by non-citizens in Australia.

Appeal to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal(AAT)

The AAT provides independent review of a wide range of administrative decisions made by the Australian Government ministers, departments, agencies, authorities and other tribunals. It has the right to affirm, vary or set aside the decision after reviewing the case.

We can appeal on behalf of the client or assist in applying for a review for visa application refusals or cancellations, including Appeal for Ministerial Intervention.

Migration Law empowers the Minister of Immigration to revoke a negative decision and replace it with a more favourable one on compassionate grounds, and/or if it is in the general interest of the Australian community. Ministerial intervention can be invoked if appeals to all other tribunals and courts have failed. However, the minister only intervenes in a relatively small number of cases and you should not discontinue any application for judicial review on the expectation that he will intervene in your case.

We can appeal on behalf of the client or assist in applying for a review for visa application refusals or cancellations, including Appeal to the Federal Court.

An appeal to the Federal Court is the next step if an appeal to the MRT or AAT has been unsuccessful.