Labor and AAT feel pressure from Dutton trafficking scam legacy

As the Albanian government tightens its visa policy abroad, we are seeing an inevitable increase in appeals to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT), particularly against student and asylum refusals.

Appeals against refusals of immigration applications (other than asylum)

Appeals against migration refusals in the 11 months to May 2024 totaled 15,374, compared to 9,258 for the whole of 2022-23. In May 2024 alone, there were 3,115 appeals, compared to 1,868 in April 2024 and 1,564 in March 2024. Before March 2024, appeals against migration decisions averaged around 1,000 per month.

The backlog of migration appeals before the AAT at the end of May 2024 had increased from 14,438 at the start of 2023-24 to 18,680.

The main factor behind this increase is the number of appeals against student admission refusals, which increased from 1,868 in 2022-23 to 7,703 in the 11 months to May 2024. Student admission refusals now account for approximately 50% of the AAT’s migration caseload, up from 20% in 2022-23. The AAT’s backlog of student admission refusals increased from 2,100 (15%) at the end of 2022-23 to 7,730 (41%) at the end of May 2024.

The set-aside rate for student refusals in 2022-23 was 43%, compared to 45% in the 11 months to May 2024.

There has also been rapid growth in appeals against student cancellations, which increased from 189 in 2022-23 to 591 in the 11 months ending May 2024. This is likely the result of the removal of student fees. unrestricted work and additional funding for immigration compliance. work.

Migration decisions at the AAT have remained stable at around 1,000 per month. At this rate – and if the rate of applications remains around 3,000 per month – the backlog will continue to grow sharply. This would undermine the government’s policy of reducing net migration.

Asylum files at the AAT

The situation for asylum cases at the AAT in May 2024 is a little more positive. As asylum appeals increased to an extraordinary 1,504 in May 2024, the number of asylum decisions made by the AAT reached a monthly record of 2,446. This follows a monthly record 1,568 asylum decisions in April 2024 and 1,251 in March 2024.

This is the effect of the $160 million asylum program announced by the government in 2023.

For the first time since the start of the massive labor trafficking scam abusing the asylum system under Opposition Leader Peter Dutton in 2015-2016, the backlog of asylum cases went from a peak of 41,859 at the end of March 2024 to 40,683 at the end of May 2024. There is still a long way to go for the AAT to get its asylum workload under control, this is a start.

The total number of asylum applications lodged with the AAT in the 11 months to May 2024 was 10,739, compared to 9,792 in 2022-23. The risk for the AAT is that if the government continues to tighten its visa policy in the territory, asylum applications at primary level and at the AAT will remain high.

The AAT will need to maintain the high rate of processing cases in May 2024 and the government will need to decide how best to approach the situation of rejected asylum seekers who do not leave. The cost of locating, detaining and deporting failed asylum seekers who have lived in the community for many years would be astronomical.

This is the legacy of Dutton, who ignored the trafficking scam from its inception.

Dr. Abul Rizvi is an Independent Australia columnist and former Deputy Secretary of the Department of Immigration. You can follow Abul on Twitter @RizviAbul.

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