Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT)
The AAT was established by the Administrative Appeals Tribunal Act 1975 and commenced operations on 1 July 1976. The Migration Review Tribunal, Refugee Review Tribunal and Social Security Appeals Tribunal were amalgamated with the AAT on 1 July 2015.
Migration and Refugee Overview
The AAT can review some, but not all, decisions about visas made under the Migration Act 1958 by the Department of Home Affairs, the Minister for Home Affairs or the Minister for Immigration. Migration The Migration part of AAT contains information about the review of all visa and visa-related decisions except for: decisions about protection visas, and protection finding decisions made under section 197D of the Migration Act. character-related visa decisions, and decisions to cancel business visas made under section 134 of the Migration Act.
Migration reviews are done in the Migration & Refugee Division of the AAT under Part 5 of the Migration Act. Refugee The Refugee part of AAT contains information about the review of: decisions to refuse or cancel a protection visa (except for character-related decisions about protection visas), and decisions under section 197D of the Migration Act that a protection finding would no longer be made about a person. Refugee reviews are done in the Migration & Refugee Division of the AAT under Part 7 of the Migration Act.
Character-related and other visa decisions
The Character-related and other visa decisions part of AAT contains information about the review of the following decisions made under the Migration Act:
- to refuse or cancel any type of visa, including a protection visa, on character grounds under section 501
- to not revoke the mandatory cancellation of a visa on character grounds under section 501CA
- to refuse a protection visa on character grounds relying on section 5H(2), 36(1C), or 36(2C)
- to cancel a business visa under section 134.
Functions and powers
Jurisdiction
AAT can only review a decision if a law states that the decision can be reviewed by the AAT. AAT can review decisions made under more than 400 Commonwealth Acts and legislative instruments. AAT predominantly reviews decisions pertaining to various categories, including Australian citizenship, passports, migration and refugee visas, freedom of information, child support, Commonwealth workers’ compensation, family assistance, paid parental leave, social security, student assistance, taxation, and veterans’ entitlements.
AAT review decisions “on the merits”. This means that AAT take a fresh look at the relevant facts, law and policy and arrive at AAT own decision. AAT must make the legally correct decision or, where there can be more than one correct decision, the preferable decision. The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) possesses the authority to affirm, vary, set aside, or substitute decisions, and can also remit decisions for reconsideration by the decision-maker. Their objective is to establish a review process characterized by accessibility, fairness, justice, cost-effectiveness, informality, and expediency, tailored to the significance and intricacy of each case. This approach aims to bolster public trust and confidence in the Tribunal’s decision-making. The specific procedures of the review process are contingent upon the nature of the decision under AAT scrutiny.
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