Section 109 cancellation for incorrect information

Section 109 lets Home Affairs cancel a visa where the holder gave incorrect information or a bogus document. It can apply even if the error was not deliberate, and it starts with a written notice.

The short answer

Section 109 of the Migration Act 1958 is the power to cancel a visa where the holder, in applying or afterwards, gave incorrect information or a bogus document. It follows a set process: a notice under section 107, a decision under section 108 on whether there was non-compliance, then a decision under section 109 on whether to cancel.

It is separate from the general power in section 116, and from the visa-application refusal ground in PIC 4020.

Deliberate or not

Section 111 says sections 107 to 109 apply whether the non-compliance was deliberate or inadvertent. An honest mistake can therefore still start the process. Whether it was deliberate is a matter that can be raised in the response, but it does not decide whether the power exists. Section 110 adds that the power applies however the Minister learned of it.

A bogus document, as defined in the Act, includes one the Minister reasonably suspects was obtained because of a false or misleading statement, whether or not made knowingly.

The notice and the response period

The section 107 notice sets out the information and gives a response period. For a holder of a non-temporary visa the Act sets that at 14 days. For a holder of a temporary visa it is the period prescribed by the regulations or, if none is prescribed, a reasonable period. This site did not find a regulation prescribing a temporary visa period. The notice also requires the holder to give an address and keep it current.

Notices can go to the last email or postal address known to Home Affairs, and the deemed-receipt rules can treat a notice as received even where the person has moved and not updated their address. See the notice of intention to consider cancellation guide for how delivery works.

What the decision-maker must consider

Regulation 2.41 lists matters to be considered before cancelling, including:

the correct information or genuine document
whether the grant was based, wholly or partly, on the incorrect information
the time that has elapsed since the non-compliance
later behaviour and any later breaches of law
any contribution the holder has made to the community

Disclosure and the duty to correct

Section 105 requires a person who becomes aware that an answer was incorrect to tell an officer in writing as soon as practicable. Under section 113, a visa cannot be cancelled under this part of the Act because of a matter that was fully disclosed in complying with those duties.

Review and what follows

A section 109 cancellation of a visa held by someone in Australia is generally reviewable by the Administrative Review Tribunal, unless the Minister made the decision personally or it was made in immigration clearance. The application is due within 28 days of notification, or 14 days in immigration detention, and the ART says it has no power to extend. The ART application fee for most migration decisions is A$3,727 (checked 16 October 2026). If a cancellation is set aside, the visa is taken never to have been cancelled. See which visa refusals can the ART review and how the 28 days is counted.

A cancellation on this ground can also affect later applications. Public interest criterion 4013 generally requires a new application to be made more than 3 years after the cancellation, unless the Minister is satisfied of compelling or compassionate circumstances. It applies only to visas that include that criterion. Home Affairs also lists false documents or information as a trigger for a re-entry ban of up to 3 years.

Next step

A section 107 notice has its own deadline, and section 107(2) says any response must not contain an incorrect statement. A registered migration agent, an Australian lawyer or a free legal service can look at the notice before a response goes in. This guide is a general outline, not legal advice or immigration assistance; the notice and any later decision letter set out the actual time limits and review rights.