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. History Refugee Status Claims in New Zealand 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