ART Review Deadlines: The 14, 28 and 9 Day Rules

Start with the review-rights notice in your decision letter

A refusal or cancellation does not automatically mean the ART can review it. Review jurisdiction depends on the type of decision and the statutory provisions that made it reviewable. The Department's decision letter should tell you whether review is available and give the applicable time limit. Treat that notice as an urgent document: identify the decision date, the notification method and the stated review deadline before you spend time preparing arguments or gathering new evidence.

The general rule under section 347: 28 days

For a reviewable migration decision or reviewable protection decision covered by Migration Act section 347, the standard filing period is 28 days after the day the applicant is notified of the decision. The important word is 'notified'. It is not a generic 28 days from when the delegate signed the decision and it is not an onshore-versus-offshore test.

If you are in immigration detention when notified: 14 days

Section 347 uses a shorter period where the applicant is in immigration detention on the day they are notified: 14 days after notification. That status at the point of notification is what triggers the shorter window. This is why old material telling every onshore applicant they have 21 days is especially dangerous — a detained applicant who waits until day 21 can already be outside the statutory filing period.

Certain character matters: a separate 9-day rule

Character cases have their own timing trap. Migration Act section 500(6B) imposes a 9-day period for specified review applications involving decisions under section 501 or a decision under section 501CA(4) not to revoke, where the statutory conditions in section 500(6B) are met. Do not turn this into 'all character cases are 9 days': the character cancellation and revocation system contains several different stages, including separate 7-day and 28-day representation periods before an ART review question may even arise.

The deadline can start before you actually read the document

Migration law has deemed-notification rules. For example, where the statutory postal rules apply, a document sent to an Australian address can be treated as received 7 working days after the date of the document, and a document sent to an address outside Australia can be treated as received after 21 days. Electronic notification has its own rules. Do not calculate an ART deadline simply from the day you happened to open an email or envelope. Use the notification method in your decision letter and, if the calculation is unclear, get it checked immediately.

The ART cannot simply give you extra time

For these migration-review applications, section 347(5) switches off the ART Act's ordinary extension-of-time power. The ART itself also warns that migration-review time limits are strict and that it has no power to extend them. This is different from judicial review in the federal courts, where a separate 35-day filing rule can in some circumstances be extended by a court order. Do not confuse the two systems.

Current ART fees in 2026

Fees depend on the kind of review. From 1 July 2026, the ART fee for most migration decisions made under Part 5 of the Migration Act is $3,727. The ART's current fee table says character-related visa refusals or cancellations use the standard application fee instead, currently $1,195. Financial-hardship reductions may be available for the Part 5 migration-review fee. These amounts index, so recheck the ART fee page if you are reading this after 30 June 2027.

What to do if the deadline is close

If you appear to have ART review rights and the deadline is close, the filing deadline comes before polishing the perfect submission. Establish the correct deadline, confirm the ART has jurisdiction, and make sure the application and any fee that must be paid by the deadline are dealt with in time. The evidence and submissions process continues after lodgement; a missed jurisdictional deadline usually does not.

When a registered migration agent is worth using

This is one of the clearest high-value use cases for professional help. A registered migration agent can read the refusal or cancellation notice, identify the review provision and deadline, explain whether ART review or a fresh application is the realistic route, and help structure evidence against the delegate's actual reasons. If the issue is judicial review rather than merits review, legal advice may be needed because that is a court process, not an ART merits review.

Do I have 21 days to appeal a visa refusal in Australia?

Do not rely on 21 days as a current general rule. Under the current Migration Act, the general section 347 period is 28 days after notification, or 14 days if the applicant is in immigration detention on the day they are notified. Some character-review applications have a separate 9-day period.

Does the ART deadline run from the decision date or when I receive the letter?

The statutory periods are framed around notification. Deemed-notification rules can mean the legal receipt date is not the day you actually opened the letter or email, so check the notification method and the review-rights notice carefully.

Can the ART extend my migration appeal deadline?

For the migration-review applications covered by section 347, the ordinary ART extension power is expressly disapplied. The ART also states that it has no power to extend the migration-review filing time limit.

How much does an ART migration review cost in 2026?

From 1 July 2026, the fee for most Part 5 migration reviews is $3,727. Character-related visa refusals and cancellations use the ART's standard application fee instead, currently $1,195. Fees index, so check the current ART fee page before paying.

Is every character visa decision subject to a 9-day deadline?

No. Section 500(6B) applies to specified character-review applications. Earlier revocation-representation stages have different statutory periods, including 7 days under the section 501C track and 28 days under the section 501CA track.