What Are My Options If My Australian Visa Gets Rejected (For Skilled Visa, Partner Visa or Working Visa)
If an unfortunate decision has been made on your application which leads to your Australian visa getting rejected.
It does necessarily mean that there is nothing you can do.
You may be given the option to appeal your application to the Australian Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT).
The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) is a separate Australian Government body from the Department of Home Affairs (DHA).
You would start your application process through the Department of Home Affairs.
The department will process your application and make a decision on your case and whether you meet the requirements for a visa.
Why was my Visa Rejected?
If the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) deems that you are not eligible for the Australian Visa you applied for, you will be notified by formal letter and you may be given the option to appeal the decision via the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT).
The reasons DHA could have rejected your application are that:
- The application raises one or more complex legal or factual issues which are decided against the applicant;
- Insufficient evidence is presented to the Department of Immigration;
- The case wasn’t properly explained to the Department of immigration;
- The claims of the applicant were not believed; or
- A combination of all of these factors.
This may occur with many different types of Australian Visas. Such as the Australian working Visa (457, RSMS & ENS), General Skilled Migration Visa and Partner/ Spouse Visa.
The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) will review your case and study the reasons for refusal and the argument for your case very closely.
You may be given the opportunity to supply further documents and/or provide reasoning or comments on certain decisions made to justify your wishes to obtain an Australian visa.
Read more about our experience with visa refusals here.
How Will My Appeal Be Decided?
The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) is authorized to affirm the primary decision, vary the primary decision, set aside the primary decision and substitute a new decision or return the case to the primary decision maker for reconsideration with specific directions.
The primary decision maker is the Department of Home Affairs (DHA).
You may be able to appeal to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) under the following circumstances:
- If you were in Australia when you lodged your visa application and it has been refused by the DHA;
- If you are in Australia and your current visa has been cancelled;
- If you are in Australia, your visa has been cancelled and your application to have the cancellation revoked has been refused;
- If you are sponsored by an Australian citizen, permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen who is not deemed fit to sponsor you;
- If you are an employer that has applied for a Standard Business Sponsorship and your application has been refused.
The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) is unable to review:
- The decision made by the DHA to cancel a visa if the cancellation was made while the visa holder was outside of Australia.
How Long Will It Take For my Appeal With AAT To Be Decided?
There are very strict time frames for making appeals to the Migration Review Tribunal once you have received notification from the Department of Home Affairs of a decision made that does not result in your favour.
It is imperative that you carefully read the refusal or cancellation notice from the DHA.
The notification will tell you whether your refusal or cancellation is able to be reviewed by the AAT and the time by which you need to submit your application for review.
The Average processing time for the different refusal categories are:
| Visa Refusal Case Category | Average Days To Process |
|---|---|
| Permanent business refusal | 482 |
| Partner refusal | 427 |
| Nomination/Sponsor approval refusal | 427 |
| Temporary work refusal | 406 |
| Student refusal | 385 |
| Family refusal | 332 |
| Skill linked refusal | 264 |
| Protection visa | 250 |
| Student cancellation | 211 |
| Visitor refusal | 148 |
| Other | 116 |
| Bridging refusal | 13 |
During the investigation and hearing of your case by the AAT, you may be eligible for a certain Australian bridging visa enabling you to remain in Australia until a decision has been made on whether you are to remain in Australia, leave Australia or apply for another visa or the same visa again. The fees for for an application to AAT is:
- AAT Application Fee: $1604;
- Amount refundable for decision in your favour: $802.
If you are still holding a substantive Australian visa, then you should be entitled to lodge another visa application during the AAT review subject to meeting the relevant eligibility requirements.
If your visa is rejected and the AAT affirms the decision although you are deemed eligible for another visa, you will be eligible to make a new application from offshore.
What are the options if the AAT doesn’t give you the outcome you wanted?
There are still options available at this point even though the AAT has affirmed the department’s decision.
You may be able to seek a judicial review at the Federal Circuit Court.
In this case, however it becomes a legal issue, the court can only review an appeal, if there was a breach of the law in the process.
It is not in court’s powers to reevaluate your evidence or facts regarding your visa application and they can not grant you a visa.
The Department of Immigration can, in very rare cases, overturn the decision of the AAT given in favour of the applicant.
It must be done only if it is in the public interest to do so, which is why it is a rare occurrence.
