Yesterday the High Court of Australia published judgment in YBFZ v Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs [2024] HCA 40.
The case concerned the constitutional validity of bridging visa conditions requiring a visa holder to (a) wear an electronic monitoring device affixed around the ankle; and (b) abide by an evening curfew in circumstances where a breach of either condition is a criminal offence. These conditions were introduced by the Commonwealth Government following the NZYQ decision which brought the indefinite detention regime to an end.
In determining that the visa conditions were constitutionally invalid the Court observed at [87] that “the impugned conditions are a form of extra judicial collective punishment based on membership of the class [of bridging visa holder].”
Kate Bones of Banco Chambers appeared for YBFZ. She was led by Craig Lenehan SC and Thomas Wood. They were instructed by Refugee Legal.
