If your protection visa is refused you can normally apply to the ART within 28 days of notification (7 days if you are in immigration detention). No fee is payable when you lodge; the $2,293 fee applies only if the review is unsuccessful. The Immigration Assessment Authority “fast track” process ended on 14 October 2024 — all protection reviews now go to the ART. Protection reviews are the slowest category: half take just over 2 years.
Who can apply and when
- The applicant whose subclass 866 (or 785/790) application was refused or whose protection visa was cancelled.
- Time limit: 28 days after you are taken to have been notified; 7 days if you are in immigration detention when notified. The ART cannot extend these periods.
- Applicants who were part of the former IAA fast-track caseload and had not received a decision by 14 October 2024 were transferred to the ART automatically.
Fee
Protection reviews are lodged without payment. If the Tribunal affirms the refusal, a fee of $2,293 becomes payable (indexed each 1 July). If the decision is set aside or remitted, no fee is payable.
What the Tribunal considers
The ART re-decides whether you meet the refugee criterion (a well-founded fear of persecution for a Convention reason) or the complementary protection criterion (a real risk of significant harm), based on the situation in your home country at the time of its decision. The hearing is usually private and an interpreter is arranged on request. Credibility is decisive in most cases: inconsistencies between your original statement, the Departmental interview and the Tribunal hearing need to be explained, not avoided.
Protection visa refused? Do not wait for the 28th day — the review must be received in time and the evidence needs to be prepared properly.
Speak to a migration ART expert · Call 1300 770 585 (first 15-minute call is free).
Processing times
For protection reviews finalised between 1 March and 31 August 2026, 50% were finalised within 2 years 1 month and 95% within 4 years 11 months. During this period most applicants hold a bridging visa; check its work and study conditions.
If the ART affirms the refusal
- Judicial review in the Federal Circuit and Family Court within 35 days, only for legal error.
- Ministerial intervention under section 417 — a personal, non-compellable power; the Minister has no duty to consider a request. The High Court held in 2025 (FEL17) that a favourable s417 decision does not remove the earlier refusal for the purposes of the section 48A bar on further protection applications.
- Section 48A generally prevents a second protection visa application in Australia unless the Minister lifts the bar under section 48B.
Overview of every option: after an ART decision and visa refusal appeal guide.
Frequently asked questions
How long do I have to appeal a protection visa refusal?
28 days after notification, or 7 days if you are in immigration detention when notified. The ART cannot extend the period.
Does it cost money to apply to the ART for a protection review?
Nothing at lodgement. A fee of $2,293 is payable only if the review is unsuccessful.
What happened to fast track and the IAA?
The Immigration Assessment Authority was abolished when the ART commenced on 14 October 2024. Undecided IAA cases moved to the ART; finalised IAA decisions remain final.
Can I apply for protection again after a refusal?
Generally not while in Australia, because of section 48A, unless the Minister personally decides under section 48B to allow a further application.
Sources
- ART — Fees (protection decisions: fee payable only if unsuccessful)
- ART — Processing times (protection reviews)
- ART — Immigration Assessment Authority transition
- Migration Act 1958 — s36, s48A, s48B, s417
HECT Migration & Appeal Experts is a registered migration agency; our agents are regulated by the Office of the Migration Agents Registration Authority (OMARA). We are not a law firm and do not provide legal advice.
