2012-Feb 24: Interim visas – appeal rights and system issues

Visa Pak 53: Information about appeal rights for clients and system issues relating to interim visas

Visa Paks

24 Feb 2012

Interim visas – appeal rights and system issues

Recently some issues concerning interim visas have been raised. These particularly relate to the appeal rights to which people are entitled after having held an interim visa and AMS problems affecting the interim visa system.

Appeal rights for former interim visa holders
Former holders of interim visas have 42 days to lodge an appeal against deportation on humanitarian grounds from the day after a decision to decline their temporary visa application is made. This is because interim visas expire on the day a decision is made on their substantive temporary visa application and a person therefore becomes unlawful on the following day.

In order to determine the date an interim visa expires, staff need to look at the “decided” date on associated temporary visa application, not at the validity date of the interim visa of the “Visa” client tab or the interim visa application. The validity dates noted for the interim visa on the Visa tab will not show the correct date of expiry (these validity dates always show six months).

An unsuccessful temporary visa applicant should be advised of their appeal rights and that their interim visa has expired in the decline letter sent to them. Text explaining these is included in the relevant template letters.

Section 154 of the Immigration Act 2009 sets out the criteria people must meet in order to make an appeal. Appeals must be lodged with the Immigration and Protection Tribunal. The right to judicial review (as set out in section 186 of the Immigration Act 2009) also continues to apply to former holders of interim visas.

Note: people currently requesting visas under section 61 of the 2009 Act remain ineligible for interim visas and should not be granted them.