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Canberra: People seeking reviews of most protection visa decisions in Australia are now required to pay an upfront application fee of 1,863.50 Australian dollars (about 1,300 U.S. dollars), the country's Administrative Review Tribunal (ART) announced on Sunday.
The new requirement, which took effect on Nov. 1 following amendments to Australia's Migration Regulations 1994, applies to applications for reviews of decisions to refuse or cancel protection visas, as well as certain decisions to withdraw protection findings.
Under the new rules, applicants must pay the fee when lodging a review application, rather than after the review process.
The tribunal said non-citizens held in immigration detention and applicants whose cases can be combined with another application for which a fee has already been paid are exempt from the requirement.
Applicants who successfully challenge a protection decision, or whose applications are found to be invalid, will receive a full refund.
However, those who withdraw their applications after Nov. 1 will be eligible for refunds only in very limited circumstances.
The tribunal said people who started online applications before Nov. 1 but failed to submit them before the new rules took effect must restart the application process and pay the upfront fee.
Applications lodged before Nov. 1 will generally remain subject to the previous payment arrangements, under which unsuccessful applicants are required to pay a fee after their reviews are completed.
