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Can I Apply For An Australian Visa After Refusal?

Nilesh Nandan · May 4, 2021

Home » Immigration Guides » Can I Apply For An Australian Visa After Refusal?

On This Page...

  • What To Expect?
  • The Reason Your Visa Was Refused Or Cancelled Is Important To Your Case
  • Take Action Immediately After Denial Whether You’re In Australia Or Offshore
  • Apply For A New Visa Or File An Appeal With The Department Of Immigration Or AAT
  • What If My Appeals Are Denied? Do I Have Any More Options To Re-Apply Or Appeal?
  • It Is Possible To Apply For An Australia Visa After Refusal – Or To Win Your Appeal!

What To Expect?

If you have recently been refused an Australian visa, you may not be sure what you can do to legally migrate and settle in Australia. Can you simply fill out another visa application for a different visa? Is it possible to appeal the denial of a student visa, work visa, or any other visa in Australia?

In this guide, we’ll discuss some of the basics about what you can do after your visa has been denied by the Department of Home Affairs. Let’s get started now.

The Reason Your Visa Was Refused Or Cancelled Is Important To Your Case

The circumstances of your case are what determine whether or not you can reapply after visa refusal or visa cancellation. Your visa application can be denied for a number of reasons, but most of them fall into the following two categories:

– Non-character-related refusal or cancellation – This is the most common type of visa refusal and cancellation. For example, if you unknowingly entered false information on your application, you may be denied – or if you did not meet the criteria required for a particular type of visa, it may be refused.

In most cases, this type of refusal or cancellation will not stop you from filing future applications, though there are some notable exceptions.

– Character-related refusal or cancellation – This type of cancellation is issued if you fail the “character test,” and is a more serious issue. Meeting the character test is provided for of the Migration Act of 1958.

Essentially, it allows the government to cancel or deny a visa to anyone with an extensive criminal record, has committed criminal offences, has broken Australian migration laws, or is otherwise somehow involved in criminal acts.

It is usually more difficult to appeal a refusal or cancellation based on character-related grounds, and this denial can result in your permanent exclusion from Australia. You will usually have difficulty in getting a bridging visa while any decision is pending.

Depending on the circumstances of your case and why you were denied, you may be able to make an appeal – or in some limited access, you may be able to file a new visa application.

For example, if you lost your employer sponsorship visa, you may be able to find a new employer in Australia, obtain sponsorship, and re-apply and gain approval for your new visa. The specifics of appealing or applying for a different visa will vary, depending on your case.

Note also that if you have had a visa application refused or been subject to a visa cancellation in the past, you will be required to declare this when you are applying for future visas with the Department of Home Affairs. This could affect your eligibility for future visas – but failing to disclose past visa refusal or cancellation entirely will usually result in the denial of your visa application.

Take Action Immediately After Denial Whether You’re In Australia Or Offshore

If your visa is cancelled and you are currently living in Australia, you’ll almost always need to apply for a BVE (Bridging Visa E) right away. This visa will give you time to make the arrangements for leaving Australia – or give you time to apply for a limited group of visas. The processing time for a BVE is very short, since it’s an emergency visa – if you don’t have any visa you’ll need to be detained. There is no filing fee for making a BVE application.

A BVE may also be issued if you plan to take your cancellation case to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT), which was formerly known as the Migration Review Tribunal (MRT), or if you are seeking ministerial intervention in your case after having been to the AAT.

If you are not living in Australia, you do not need to get a BVE visa. However, you should contact a registered migration agent or immigration lawyer right away to begin exploring your options for filing an appeal – or filling out and lodging a different type of visa application.

Apply For A New Visa Or File An Appeal With The Department Of Immigration Or AAT

The proper next step depends on the reason for your visa refusal or denial. In some cases, you may simply need to fill out a fresh (possibly different) type of visa application – and you may be approved.

However, in other cases, your best option may be to work with a migration agent or immigration later lawyer in Australia to appeal your case. Most visa types lodged onshore or if lodged offshore with a sponsorship or nomination involved will allow you to file an appeal with the Department of Immigration.

Filing an appeal in the case of a visa cancellation based on character, there might be an opportunity to have the cancellation decision revoked. This typically involves sending more information about your application to the Department of Home Affairs. Then, your application will be reviewed, and the person reviewing it will make a decision on whether or not your visa was cancelled in error or if there are other reasons why the cancellation decision should be reversed.

If you have applied for a visa in Australia and that visa application is refused then will you please have an opportunity to have that position reviewed via tribunal. You have one more chance to convince a decision maker that you meet the criteria to allow a visa to be granted to you. You might send an appeal to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal. Note that the AAT cannot grant visas. Instead, it will examine your case, and decide whether or not the criteria for granting a visa are satisfied.

Then, the AAT will either find in favour of the Department of Immigration and confirm its decision – or it will find that you did meet the criteria of the visa, and the Department of Immigration will then have to further consider your application with the findings of the AAT in mind. In most cases, this means that you will be approved for the visa.

What If My Appeals Are Denied? Do I Have Any More Options To Re-Apply Or Appeal?

Usually, there are two options. First, you can appeal for ministerial intervention – if your circumstances are very unique and exceptional, you may be able to get help directly from the Minister, but this happens quite rarely.

Another option is to work with an experienced migration agent to scrutinise the decision of the AAT, and identify legal errors that may invalidate the decision. This is an area in which MyVisa® Immigration Advisory specialises. If it can be argued that the AAT decision was in error, a Federal Court Circuit judge may quash their decision – which means the tribunal will need to make another decision, but this time in accordance with law.

Our practice has had tremendous success in scrutinising decision making by members of the AAT review of finding an error in their decision-making process so that orders can be obtained from Federal Circuit Court judges which quash the AAT decision and order them to re-make a decision. This re-making of a decision is done by a fresh tribunal looking at all of the information about your case from the beginning.

It Is Possible To Apply For An Australia Visa After Refusal – Or To Win Your Appeal!

Your personal circumstances will dictate which option is best for you. In some cases, you may be able to legally immigrate by simply choosing a different type of Australian visa – but in others, you may need to appeal the decision of the Department of Home Affairs.

To find out which option is right for you, get in touch with Nilesh Nandan at MyVisa Immigration Advisory for a case review and discussion about your options. Together, we can determine the best path forward if you have been subjected to visa cancellation or refusal in Australia. Contact us online now to get started.

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Steve says

    June 18, 2022 at 8:52 pm

    If my protection Visa been refused and I made an Appeal, then withdraw the application and left Australia, am I able to apply for Student Visa in Australia?

    Reply
    • Nilesh Nandan says

      June 20, 2022 at 9:21 am

      Hi Steve

      I see my question is that you wish to apply whilst outside of Australia for a student Visa to come to Australia to study.

      If this indeed is the correct question in the answer to this is yes. You can apply for a student Visa whilst outside of Australia in the circumstances.

      Another question which you must turn your mind to is whether or not your student Visa has any prospects for success. In circumstances where you have lodged a protection Visa but you have then seen the light and withdrawn that application and there may be a basis for you to argue but not with standing the lodgement of a protection Visa, your circumstances are such that you are in fact a genuine temporary entrance and that you otherwise meet all of the other criteria required to be met in order to be granted a student Visa to return to Australia.

      Book a quick 10 minute chat with me here: https://myvisa.com.au/10-Minute

      ​Regards​

      Nilesh Nandan
      BBus(Accy) LLB(QUT) MBA(IntBus)
      Immigration Lawyer | Special Counsel
      MyVisa® Immigration Law Advisory
      myvisa.com.au/about/
      1300558472

      Hope this helps. Please help me answer more questions like these by leaving an honest review here: https://g.page/r/CfBw8UcKreaaEAg/review

      *In the interest of speed, my communications are transcribed and transmitted using voice-to-text software – please ignore any unintended typographical or interpretation errors. Please also see the standard Notes and Disclosures which apply to my communications. These are located at the footer of my work emails.

      Reply
  2. Reza Essari says

    June 18, 2022 at 7:17 pm

    Hello Sir,

    My agent mistakenly lodged my 482 visa application with an expired ACS skill assessment and this assessment was not mandatory at all for this type of visa lodgement.
    Is it possible to reassess an assessment by case officer or case officer will reject my visa?

    Best Regards,

    Reply
    • Nilesh Nandan says

      June 20, 2022 at 9:31 am

      Reza

      Unfortunately it is not possible to take back something from the Department after you have provided it to them.

      This means that you cannot take back your expired ACS skills assessment. Let me proceed on the basis that there is no false or misleading information or bogus element to that skills assessment…

      If you apply for a further ACS skills assessment, be very careful to ensure that consistent supporting materials are provided. IMMIGRATION is likely to compare the two skills assessments and if you are seeking to provide alternative reference letters (for example) then this is likely to be very problematic for you. It would be a case of providing inconsistent information and you might expose your application to a pic 4020 issue and the resulting exclusive period and refusal.

      Given your question I cannot see why they would reject your application solely for the reason that you have provided an expired skills assessment in circumstances where a skilled assessment is not a mandatory requirement. What I would expect a reasonable Case Officer to do is to request from you an updated skills assessment if indeed the case officer wishes to exercise their personal discretion to request a skills assessment.

      ​Regards​

      Nilesh Nandan
      BBus(Accy) LLB(QUT) MBA(IntBus)
      Immigration Lawyer | Special Counsel
      MyVisa® Immigration Law Advisory
      myvisa.com.au/about/
      1300558472

      Hope this helps. Please help me answer more questions like these by leaving an honest review here: https://g.page/r/CfBw8UcKreaaEAg/review

      *In the interest of speed, my communications are transcribed and transmitted using voice-to-text software – please ignore any unintended typographical or interpretation errors. Please also see the standard Notes and Disclosures which apply to my communications. These are located at the footer of my work emails.

      Assuming that the only issue with your previous ACS skills assessment certificate is that it is outdated then obtaining a fresh a C a skills assessment makes perfect sense to me.

      Given that the skills assessment is indicated by you to be something which is not mandatory then it could well be that the department Case Officer is not at all concerned that a new phone expires I see a skills assessment is provided.

      Reply
  3. Lloyd says

    May 23, 2022 at 2:00 pm

    Hi Nilesh,
    I have just received a Refusal Notification from Immigration because I sponsored my Mother-in-Law for Subclass 600. The findings was a Son-in-law cannot sponsor for tourist visa, it should have been my wife who should apply. Is it worth appealing or make a fresh application with my wife being the sponsor? Thanks in advance.

    Lloyd

    Reply
    • Nilesh Nandan says

      May 24, 2022 at 4:00 pm

      The answers to your question is to make a fresh application.

      ​Regards​

      Nilesh Nandan
      BBus(Accy) LLB(QUT) MBA(IntBus)
      Immigration Lawyer | Special Counsel
      MyVisa® Immigration Law Advisory
      myvisa.com.au/about/
      1300558472

      *In the interest of speed, my communications are transcribed and transmitted using voice-to-text software – please ignore any unintended typographical or interpretation errors. Please also see the standard Notes and Disclosures which apply to my communications. These are located at the footer of my work emails.

      Hope this helps. Please help me answer more questions like these by leaving an honest review here: https://g.page/r/CbBuDv_LIjREEAg/review

      Reply
  4. Rey says

    May 21, 2022 at 6:37 pm

    Hi,

    I recently got refused for 189 visa, would I still be able to apply for a 186 visa because it says on the criteria that I must not have any visa refusals? Thank you.

    Reply
    • Nilesh Nandan says

      May 21, 2022 at 7:36 pm

      It depends.
      Yes, if you hold a substantive visa.
      No, if you don’t.

      You can book in here: https://myvisa.com.au/10-minute-chat/

      Regards
      Nilesh Nandan
      Immigration Lawyer
      MyVisa.com.au/about

      Reply
  5. Anthony Donguya says

    May 20, 2022 at 12:57 am

    Hi Can I apply another visa like skilled independent visa after refusal?

    Reply
    • Nilesh Nandan says

      May 21, 2022 at 4:12 pm

      Yes.

      190.
      491.
      494.

      Other criteria are required to be met too.

      Regards
      Nilesh Nandan
      Immigration Lawyer
      MyVisa.com.au/about

      *In the interest of a speedy response I often use voice-to-text software. Please ignore any typographical or format errors. Call if unclear.

      Anthony, I rely on honest reviews. Could you please review this service?

      https://search.google.com/local/writereview?placeid=ChIJkeLlu9W6MioRuQhOfXO6z4c&source=g.page.m.rc

      Reply
      • Akpede funmilayo says

        May 23, 2022 at 8:37 pm

        Pls is it possible to sue an education agent for negligence and errors leading to my visa refusal ?

        Reply
        • Nilesh Nandan says

          May 24, 2022 at 3:59 pm

          The answer to your question is yes.

          Hope this helps. Please help me answer more questions like these by leaving an honest review here: https://g.page/r/CbBuDv_LIjREEAg/review

          ​Regards​

          Nilesh Nandan
          BBus(Accy) LLB(QUT) MBA(IntBus)
          Immigration Lawyer | Special Counsel
          MyVisa® Immigration Law Advisory
          myvisa.com.au/about/
          1300558472

          *In the interest of speed, my communications are transcribed and transmitted using voice-to-text software – please ignore any unintended typographical or interpretation errors. Please also see the standard Notes and Disclosures which apply to my communications. These are located at the footer of my work emails.

          Reply
    • Nilesh Nandan says

      May 21, 2022 at 7:38 pm

      It all depends what visa you hold.

      if you substantive visa hasn’t yet expired you can, otherwise you’ll typically be redirected to 190, 491 or 494 in terms of skilled migration options.

      Regards
      Nilesh Nandan
      Immigration Lawyer
      MyVisa.com.au/about

      Reply
  6. Harman says

    May 19, 2022 at 10:38 pm

    Hii,
    My 485 visa was refused recently because i was unable to provide a AFP Check on time. My previous AFP check had expired as my file took more than a year to open. Can I apply for an appeal? What are my chances of getting a positive outcome?
    Thank you

    Reply
    • Nilesh Nandan says

      May 20, 2022 at 8:44 am

      I’ll need to read the decision record carefully.

      You can book in here: https://myvisa.com.au/10-minute-chat/

      Regards
      Nilesh Nandan
      Immigration Lawyer | Special Counsel
      MyVisa®

      Reply
  7. Vikanc says

    May 17, 2022 at 5:35 pm

    Hello sir, my husband dependent visa got refused last year on gte basis. I am thinking to apply his tourist visa now. What are the chances of tourist visa grant.

    Reply
    • Nilesh Nandan says

      May 19, 2022 at 4:01 pm

      Seriously!

      I have no idea. 😀

      Every case is different and I can’t imagine the particular circumstances of original decision.

      You can book in here: https://myvisa.com.au/10-minute-chat/

      Regards
      Nilesh Nandan
      Immigration Lawyer | Special Counsel
      MyVisa®

      Reply
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Nilesh Nandan has previously been nominated to work alongside other leading experts to provide strategic advice to the Australian Government's Department of Home Affairs including potential reforms to the legislative framework governing the industry. Views expressed on this web site are his own and do not reflect the views of the Migration Advisory Group.