Protection Visa Interview Waiting Time

Protection Visa Interview Waiting Time – Why So Long?

The protection visa interview waiting time is in line with your protection visa processing time, which depends on many factors. I will go into more details in just a moment. There is something you can do to potentially speed up this process.

The Department of Home Affairs website states that the current average processing time for a protection visa (subclass 866) is around 36 months. This is an extremely long wait compared to other Australian visa types like skilled work visas, which can be processed in a matter of weeks or months.

The main reason for your protection visa interview waiting time dragging for many years is that protection visa applications are in most cases drafted very poorly by applicants who opt to do it themselves or with the help of migration agents who do not specialise in Protection Visas. But don’t worry, if you have already lodged your protection visa application, there is something you can do to fix all mistakes and improve your application in order to potentially get it granted in a record time.

The most concerning problem is that claims are not adequately substantiated. There is a lack of evidence and no country submission. Request for more information by the Department are often needed to clarify inconsistencies or get more details.

With so many hurdles, officers are unable to rush through these weak applications. To make things worse, most protection visas are destined for refusal…

Protection Visa Interview Waiting Time – Why your Protection Visa is Likely to be Refused if You don’t Take These Quick Steps…

According to statistics from the Department of Home Affairs, over 80% of protection visa applications done without the assistance of professionals who focus on protection visas are refused. There are several reasons these applications tend to get refused after years of wait:

•  Applicants do not properly explain their claims of persecution or threats to their safety. The statements come across as lacking detail or credibility to the department.
•  Important evidence to support the claims is not gathered or submitted as part of the application. Things like medical reports, police records, or witness statements are missing.
•  Applications have factual or legal errors that undermine the applicant’s credibility and chances for approval. Simple mistakes can lead to refusal.
•  Applicants do not follow proper procedures or meet evidentiary thresholds when submitting their applications. Even small procedural issues can cause problems.
•  Interview preparation is inadequate. Applicants are unable to fully explain their circumstances or recount details. Memory issues raise credibility concerns.
• A thorough country submission is not included in the application.
• Applicants perform poorly in the protection visa interview

Without an experienced lawyer reviewing the application, finding errors, gathering supporting evidence, and preparing the applicant thoroughly for the protection visa interview, the Department of Home Affairs has no choice but refuse your application. Hence the high refusal rates and longer protection visa 866 processing times. But if you are really serious about your protection visa and you really want to stay in Australia, there is something you can do to salvage your protection visa application…

Strengthen Your Application Now if You Want to Accelerate Your Protection Visa Interview Waiting Time and Get an Approval

Even if you have already applied for a protection visa on your own or with an unexperienced migration lawyer or agent, it is highly recommended that you get an experienced lawyer who specialises in protection visas to look at your application and strengthen your claims. Unlikely most agents and lawyers, Gold Migration offers this service. They can even take over the application from your current lawyer if you are not happy with their services.

Gold Migration Lawyers can review your case and find ways to add new claims and improve your application. They will look for additional evidence and witnesses that can support your story. They will also do a thorough research and compile a complete country submission. Likewise, they will help ensure your statements are consistent, detailed, and persuasive.

Gold Migration lawyers know exactly what the Department of Home Affairs looks for in credible protection visa applications. They can guide you to structure your claims in the right way to meet the legal criteria.

And here is the thing…

Gold Migration Lawyers is the only migration company in Australia that will also prepare you thoroughly for the protection visa interview, so you can confidently explain your case and avoid mistakes, contributing to get your protection visa 866 processing time faster and your application successful.

What happens before the interview starts…

First, if required, an interpreter will be introduced to you by the Immigration Officer.

If you can’t understand the interpreter, you can ask him (her) to speak more slowly. And if necessary, ask them to repeat what they said. If it’s still hard to understand, you should notify the DHA Officer. In this case, the interview will be postponed to another day with a new interpreter.

The officer may begin the interview by explaining to you the visa application process and what a refugee is.

He may also ask you if you promise to tell the truth. If you are religious, this could happen with the use of a religious book.

Then the protection visa interview questions will start.

What kind of protection visa interview questions may the officer ask you?

One of the questions that you will be asked is:

How likely is it that you will suffer harm if you return to your country of origin?

Then the officer will ask you some questions to test if what you have said in your written application is really true.

He or she will try to find any differences between what you have written in your application and what you are saying during the protection visa interview.

Do not make things up during your protection 866 visa interview.

If there is any difference between your story now and the story you wrote in your application, explain why there are differences.

If you don’t remember something, just say you don’t remember.

The officer should tell you if he finds out any discrepancies between your protection visa interview answers and your written application, giving you a chance to explain that.

There might be questions regarding travel records. Which countries have you travelled to and from?

There might also be questions regarding information you have shared on social media (Facebook, Instagram, YouTube).

However, most questions are very specific and related to your case. I will explain this in just a moment.

Before that, I want to touch on the reasons you may fail your protection visa interview…

A great proportion of protection visa applications are refused soon after the interview…

What’s the advantage of speeding up your protection visa interview waiting time if you haven’t prepared for it.

Here are some of the most causes for failure during the protection visa interview.

The officer spotted differences between the applicant’s written declarations and his answers during the protection visa interview and he was not able to justify that.

It doesn’t matter if you are nervous or have a memory blackout. Anything you wrote and anything you said may be used against you.

The protection visa interview will be recorded. Therefore, you cannot undo what you have said.

Just like a school exam, you need to be well prepared for your protection visa interview. Otherwise you will fail. Forget about the protection visa interview waiting time for a moment. Let’s focus on making sure you are 100% prepared for your interview.  

So, how do you prepare for your protection visa interview questions?

Gold Migration Lawyers is the only migration company in Australia that has a robust system to potentially reduce the protection visa interview waiting time whilst training people for the protection visa interview questions…

Gold Migration lawyers will tailor mock-up protection visa interviews to meet each individual case.

Based on the applicant’s reason for protection visa, we create a series of protection visa questions that could be asked by the immigration officer during the interview process.

And we simulate the entire interview process in our office.

Then after the simulated interview, we provide feedback to our clients. And we arrange a time for another simulated interview.

And we repeat the process until we feel the client is well prepared to answer all protection visa interview questions satisfactory. This is a great approach in order to take pressure off clients during the protection visa interview waiting time.

We also prepare our clients psychologically, so they know how to react in front of the officer and answer every question in the smartest possible way.

Not only that, we also attend the real interview with our clients. And during the interview break, we are there to assist them with any problem that may arise.

After the interview we have a good idea if our clients have performed well or not. And most of our clients who attend our mock-up interviews and follow our advice will do extremely well.

If we find necessary, we will also make new submissions right after the interview.

If you want us to prepare you for your protection visa interview, give us a call or click here to send us a message as soon as possible. Our calendar is usually very busy.

Apart from training our clients for the protection visa interview, we also strengthen our clients written applications, during the protection visa interview waiting time, with as much evidence and new country research information as possible, before they attend the protection visa interview.

To give you an idea, on 03 March 2022, when we attended a protection visa interview with one of our clients, the case officer said this, at the start of the interview:

“I’ve never said this to anyone, but this is the most detailed Protection Visa Application I have ever seen.” 

SBS published on 9 September 2019 that “more than 90 per cent of protection visa cases are refused” in Australia. And a poor performance in the protection visa interview is the main culprit.

If your protection visa interview waiting time has extended for too long, chances are that your protection visa application could be refused.

So what happens if your protection visa application gets refused.

If your protection visa application gets refused the first time, your chances of staying in Australia will be very slim.

You will have to appeal.

You may have to go to court. 

Avoid that at all costs. 

Prepare for your protection visa interview as best as you can.

We are the No. 1 protection visa lawyers in Australia, and potentially the only ones truly helping applicants to prepare for their protection visa interview…

Last year, we were rated as “Best Protection Visa Lawyers in Melbourne” by “Top 10 Lawyers”. 

We have even successfully represented individuals at the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) when their protection visa applications got refused and they had little hope to stay in Australia. 

But as I said before, you want to avoid getting your protection visa refused at any cost. And the best way is to prepare to perform at your best in your protection visa interview. 

If you want us to help you with your protection visa and potentially speed up your protection visa interview waiting time, whilst preparing you for the interview, fill in the form below…

Attention: We’ve been experiencing a high number of protection visa interview preparation enquiries. But we promise we will get back to you as soon as possible.