1416419 (Refugee)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal reviewed a protection visa application made by a mother and her two children. The applicants sought review of a decision made by the Department of Immigration and Border Protection. The primary applicant claimed she feared mistreatment and abuse from her husband's family if she returned to Lebanon, citing concerns about Sharia law, potential lawsuits, and the safety of her children. She also expressed doubts about the ability of Lebanese authorities to protect her. The two children were included in the application as members of the same family unit and did not make independent claims for protection.

The Tribunal was required to determine whether the first applicant satisfied the criteria for a protection visa under section 36(2)(a) of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth), and whether the other applicants satisfied the criteria under section 36(2)(b)(i) of the Act by virtue of being members of the same family unit as the first applicant.

The Tribunal considered the applicant's written reasons for claiming protection, which detailed her fears of residing with her parents-in-law, potential abuse, and being confined to her home under Sharia law. She also raised concerns about her husband potentially filing a "Bayt Al Ta’a" lawsuit and the risk of her children being harmed or taken by her violent in-laws if she divorced or remarried. The Tribunal noted the existence of an intervention order issued by an Australian Magistrates' Court in June 2013, which prohibited the applicant's husband from committing family violence and contacting her, and excluded him from their shared residence. The Tribunal found that the first applicant satisfied section 36(2)(a) of the *Migration Act*.

The Tribunal remitted the matter for reconsideration with directions that the first applicant satisfies section 36(2)(a) of the *Migration Act*, and that the other applicants satisfy section 36(2)(b)(i) of the Act on the basis of their membership in the same family unit as the first applicant.