Biosecurity Act 2015

A relevant person for a reviewable decision may apply to the Director of Biosecurity for review of the decision, unless the decision was made by the Director of Biosecurity or the Director of Human Biosecurity personally.

For review of a decision made personally, see section 578. A decision that the Director of Biosecurity is taken to have made because of subsection 541A(5) is not a decision made by the Director of Biosecurity personally (see subsection 541A(6)).

An application for review must:

be in writing; and

set out the reasons for the application; and

be made within:

30 days after the day the reviewable decision first came to the notice of the applicant; or

if the Director of Biosecurity allows a longer period (whether before or after the end of the 30‑day period referred to in subparagraph (i))—that longer period.

Under section 577, the Director of Biosecurity may require further information in relation to an application.

On receiving an application, the Director of Biosecurity must either:

review the reviewable decision personally; or

cause the reviewable decision to be reviewed by a person (the internal reviewer) who:

is a person to whom the Director’s power to review the decision has been delegated; and

was not involved in making the decision; and

occupies a position senior to the person who actually made the decision.

The Director of Biosecurity or the internal reviewer may:

affirm, vary or set aside the reviewable decision; and

if he or she sets aside the reviewable decision—make such other decision as he or she thinks appropriate.

The decision (the decision on review) of the Director of Biosecurity or the internal reviewer takes effect:

on the day specified in the decision on review; or

if a day is not specified—on the day the decision on review was made.

After a decision is made under this section, the person who made the decision must give the applicant a written notice containing:

the terms of the decision; and

the reasons for the decision; and

notice of the person’s right to have the decision reviewed by the Administrative Review Tribunal.

For the purposes of section 578 (review by the ART), the Director of Biosecurity is taken to have affirmed a reviewable decision if the applicant does not receive notice of the decision on review (if any) within 90 days after the application for review was made.