Have you received a Notice of Intention to Consider Refusal of your visa application on character grounds?

When you lodge a visa application, you will generally be providing information to the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) about your character – including things like your criminal history. For permanent visa applications, this information is used to assess whether you meet the character test. You can read more about the character requirements in our blog from the 30th August 2012.

If the case officer assesses your character and it appears as if you fail the character test, they are likely to give you a Notice of Intention to Consider Refusal (NOICR) of your application. The NOICR will tell you:

  1. That DIAC is considering refusing your application on character grounds;
  2. What information has been considered so far in issuing the NOICR;
  3. An invitation to respond to the Notice – include contact details; and
  4. A time limit within which you have to respond (generally 28 days).

This Notice gives you the chance to provide documentation to the Department of Immigration to support why you should still be granted the visa, even though you may not meet the character requirements. For example, you may want to show the case officer:

  1. That you are an active and contributing member of society (whether in Australia or overseas);
  2. That you have significant ties to Australia and Australian citizens (if relevant); and
  3. That you have been rehabilitated since you were involved in the acts that cause you to fail the character test.

It is important that you show as much evidence to support your case as possible.

Our Migration Team has successfully assisted a number of applicants from numerous countries in responding to NOICRs. If you have received a Notice and would like help in preparing your response, please contact our Migration Team as soon as possible.

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