Administrative Review Tribunal

Merits review means the ART looks at your case completely fresh, without being bound by the Department's reasons or findings. A Tribunal member independently considers all the evidence and applies the relevant law and policy to reach their own conclusion. This is different from judicial review, which only examines whether the original decision was made lawfully. In merits review, you can submit new evidence and rely on circumstances that changed after the original decision was made. The ART asks: what is the right decision on all the facts and the law?

The deadline depends on the visa type and how you were notified of the decision. Most migration decisions allow 28 days from when you are notified. Some visa refusals, including some student visas, have a shorter deadline of 21 days. If you are in immigration detention, you have only 7 working days. Your decision letter will state the exact deadline. These time limits are set by the Migration Act and regulations, and the ART has no power to extend them. If you miss the deadline, your right to review is permanently lost. Always check your letter and act immediately.

No. Unlike some other legal processes, the ART has no power to extend the deadline for lodging a migration review application. This is a strict statutory requirement. If your application is filed after the deadline, the ART cannot accept it and your right to review is extinguished regardless of the reason for the delay. This is one of the most important differences from judicial review, where courts have limited discretion to extend time in exceptional circumstances. If you are close to your deadline, file immediately even if your supporting evidence is not yet complete. You can provide additional material after lodging.

From 1 July 2025, the standard ART application fee for most migration decisions (other than protection visas) is $3,580. Protection visa reviews do not require an upfront fee, but you pay $2,203 if your review is unsuccessful. If the review is decided in your favour, you receive a 50% refund of the fee paid, bringing your net cost down to $1,790 for standard applications. If paying the full fee would cause severe financial hardship, you can apply for a 50% reduction to $1,790 upfront. A concessional rate of $100 is available in cases of extreme financial hardship. Fees increase annually on 1 July in line with CPI. The Tribunal application fee is separate from any legal representation costs.

Yes. This is one of the most important features of ART merits review. You are not limited to the documents and information that were before the Department when it made its decision. You can submit entirely new evidence, including expert reports, updated financial records, new English language test results, relationship evidence gathered after the refusal, employer letters, country information, medical reports, and statutory declarations. You can also rely on circumstances that have changed since the original decision. A well-prepared ART application is often significantly stronger than the original visa application.

For most migration visa reviews, lodging a valid ART application triggers a Bridging Visa A (BVA), allowing you to remain in Australia lawfully while the review is on foot. This assumes you held a substantive visa or were already on a bridging visa at the time of the refusal and at the time you lodge the ART application. The bridging visa typically carries conditions matching your previous visa, though work and study rights vary. You cannot travel internationally on a BVA unless you also hold a Bridging Visa B (BVB). Your specific circumstances should be reviewed by a migration lawyer to confirm bridging visa status and conditions.

Timeframes vary considerably depending on the visa type, the complexity of the case, and the ART's caseload at any given time. The ART inherited a significant backlog from the former AAT, where some matters waited multiple years. The ART is actively working to reduce this backlog. Historically, partner visa and protection visa reviews have taken the longest. Cases involving detention are given priority and listed much faster. A request for an expedited decision, where available, can also shorten the timeline significantly. We can give you a realistic estimate based on current ART scheduling when we assess your case.

You are not legally required to have a lawyer or registered migration agent to apply to the ART. However, professional representation significantly improves outcomes in most cases. ART hearings involve identifying the correct legal criteria, gathering the right evidence to address each refusal ground, preparing submissions, and presenting effectively at a hearing. The Department is an experienced institution that routinely runs these matters. Unrepresented applicants often do not know what evidence is needed, misunderstand the legal test being applied, or fail to address the actual issues in their case. Given the cost of the application fee and what is at stake, professional assistance is almost always worth it.

Hearings can be conducted in person at an ART registry, by video conference, or by telephone. The Tribunal member reads the evidence in advance and will ask questions directed at the specific issues in your case. You and any witnesses give evidence and are questioned. Your lawyer or migration agent makes submissions on your behalf. Interpreters are available at no extra cost if you need one. Hearings are not as formal as court proceedings but are focused and substantive. They typically run between one and three hours, though complex matters may take longer. The Tribunal may announce its decision at the end of the hearing or issue a written decision later.

Based on ART data from July 2024 to March 2025, skilled visa reviews had a success rate of approximately 58%, temporary work visas 56%, and partner visas around 55%. Protection visa reviews had a much lower success rate of approximately 10%, reflecting the complexity and high legal threshold for these matters. These figures represent the overall cohort, including unrepresented applicants and cases with weak merits. Well-prepared, professionally managed cases consistently achieve higher outcomes than the averages suggest. Success depends heavily on the strength of your evidence, the specific grounds of refusal, and how well the review is prepared and presented.

In most cases where the ART sets aside the refusal and substitutes a favourable decision, the Department of Home Affairs is notified and your visa grant follows. You also receive a 50% refund of the application fee. In some matters, particularly where the ART remits the decision back to the Department, there may be additional processing required before your visa is formally granted. The Department must then act consistently with the ART's decision. In either case, a successful ART outcome is a very strong positive result and in the vast majority of cases leads to your visa being issued.

Yes. If family members were included in your visa application and were also refused, they may be included in the same ART review. You must notify the ART within 14 days of lodging your application that family members are to be included in the review. It is important to notify the Tribunal promptly of any changes in circumstances that may be relevant, including births, deaths, marriages, or changes in spousal status. If the family composition changes during the review period, you should notify the ART as soon as possible so the Tribunal is aware and can consider the updated circumstances.

The ART allows applicants to request an expedited decision without a full hearing in certain circumstances. The main situation is where your visa was refused because you did not meet one or more specific criteria, and you can now provide objective documentary evidence that you do meet those criteria. For example, if your student visa was refused because your English test score was below the required level, but you have since achieved a qualifying score, you can apply for an expedited decision by submitting the new test results with an explanation. The ART decides whether to grant the expedited process. Cases involving detention are also prioritised for earlier hearing. Standard cases proceed in the order they are received, subject to the ART's scheduling.

If the ART affirms the original decision, you have several potential options depending on your circumstances. First, judicial review in the Federal Circuit and Family Court may be available if you believe the ART made a legal error (a jurisdictional error) in the way it conducted the review. This must be filed within 35 days of the ART's decision. Second, ministerial intervention may be available if your circumstances are unique and compelling. Third, depending on your visa type and situation, a fresh visa application may be possible. We advise on all available options after an unfavourable ART decision and help you decide the most appropriate next step.

Whether you can apply to the ART from offshore depends on the visa type. For most onshore visas, including the partner subclass 820, student subclass 500, and similar onshore applications, you generally need to have been in Australia both when the visa application was made and when the ART application is lodged. Offshore applicants refused an offshore visa such as the subclass 309 partner visa do have ART review rights in most cases. The specifics depend on the visa subclass and the applicable provisions of the Migration Act. Your refusal letter will specify review rights. Always seek specific legal advice on your situation before assuming review rights do or do not apply.

The ART replaced the AAT on 14 October 2024 with a focus on greater independence, efficiency, and transparency. Key differences include a merit-based and publicly advertised appointment process for Tribunal members, replacing a system that had been criticised for political appointments. The IAA was abolished and its functions integrated into the ART's Migration and Refugee Division. New Practice Directions introduced updated procedural frameworks, particularly for migration, protection, and character decisions. The ART also introduced the Guidance and Appeals Panel, providing a second-level internal review mechanism. In practical terms, the same types of decisions are reviewable and the merits review process is substantively similar, but the ART operates with updated rules and is actively working to address the substantial backlog inherited from the AAT.

No. In order to make a request to the Minister, you must have received a decision of the ART

Yes. The ART conducts a fresh, independent assessment of character matters. Like the former AAT, the ART is required to follow ministerial directions when considering character decisions, including Direction 110, which sets out the mandatory factors that must be weighed: the nature and seriousness of the conduct, the risk of reoffending, protection of the Australian community, the strength of the person's ties to Australia, and the impact on family members, particularly children who are Australian citizens or residents. The ART's weighing of these factors can lead to a different conclusion than the Department's. Strong evidence of rehabilitation, family ties, and community contribution can be influential at the Tribunal level.