Immigration and Protection Tribunal

The Immigration and Protection Tribunal is a specialist, independent tribunal established in New Zealand under the Immigration Act 2009 with jurisdiction to hear appeals and applications regarding residence class visas, deportation, and claims to be recognised as a refugee or as a protected person. The Tribunal is administered by the Ministry of Justice and is chaired by a District Court Judge, appointed by the Governor General on the recommendation of the Attorney-General.

Since 1978, procedures have been in place for determining refugee status claims which, until October 1990, were vetted by Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Immigration, acting on advice from a committee of government officials known as the Inter-departmental Committee on Refugees. In the decision of Benipal v Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Immigration the Court recognised that the existing procedures were insufficient and, as a consequence, on 17 December 1990 new procedures were approved to deal with applications for refugee status. This led to the incorporation of procedures into the Terms of Reference and established the right of appeal to the Refugee Status Appeals Authority.

In August 2014, the Immigration and Protection Tribunal granted refugee status to Tuvalu residents due to climate change, making it the first body in the world to grant refugee status because of climate change. The news raises questions about whether other nations will follow suit.

The RSAA approached issues of substantive refugee law with a wide eye, drawing on definitions from the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, case law from other States, and respected academics. In 1999, the Immigration Amendment Act paved the way for a larger degree of independence for refugee related appeal bodies, and subsequently the RSAA was given statutory recognition and the powers of a Commission of Inquiry.

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