Legal Help

The ASRC Human Rights Law Program offers free legal advice and assistance to people seeking asylum, including people in detention, who cannot afford a private lawyer and have no access to government-funded legal advice.

We can provide legal support at all stages of the refugee determination process, including expert migration advice, limited assistance and full representation, from visa applications through to tribunal and court review. We also actively engage in policy and law reform, community and professional legal education and training, and outreach to detention centres.

Find out more about how the Human Rights Law Program operates here.

Contacting HRLP

New and existing legal clients can contact us by phone on 03 9274 9889 on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday between 10:00am-12:30pm. We are closed on Wednesday.

Individuals in detention
If you are currently in detention, you can email us at legal@asrc.org.au. Please note that we will not respond to email requests from individuals who are not in detention. Please include all relevant information including your ID and any documents about your visa status, such as visa grants, refusals or cancellations.

IMPORTANT UPDATE 24/07/2024:  The Administrative Review Tribunal (ART) will commence on 14 October 2024. See this factsheet for information about how this may impact your legal case.

Understanding Your Visa Status

It can be very difficult to understand what your visa status is, and what stage of the process you are at. This can be overwhelming and upsetting, and make it hard to get help. This document pack will help you understand your situation by checking documents you have received, and make it easier for you get advice and assistance.

Infosheets

The following infosheets cover commonly asked questions and topics about the legal process for people seeking asylum in Australia.

The infosheets contain general information and do not replace legal and migration law advice. You should not rely on the infosheets to make decisions about your immigration matter.

See translation of this infokit in your language:

See also this Guide about which family members you can include in your application here

You can also view answers to Frequently Asked Questions for those who have already lodged their application, here.

For proposing someone for an offshore humanitarian visa click here. See translation of the Australian Proposers infosheet in your language:

    • If you are in Afghanistan and seeking visa information or other help, please see our infosheet here. See Dari translation of this infosheet here.
    • Click here to view an information session in Dari/English about visa options for Afghan Australians with family impacted by the crisis in Afghanistan.
    • If you are seeking legal assistance to sponsor family in Afghanistan to come to Australia, please click here.