1502364 (Refugee)

The applicant, an Egyptian Coptic Christian, sought review of the decision not to grant him a protection visa. The applicant claimed to have suffered persecution in Egypt due to his religious beliefs, including threats, physical assault, discrimination in employment, and the forceful eviction from his home by the Muslim Brotherhood and police. He also alleged that his landlord conspired with the police and members of the Muslim Brotherhood to evict him from his apartment. The Administrative Appeals Tribunal was required to consider the applicant's claims in light of Ministerial Direction No. 56, which mandates consideration of relevant policy guidelines and country information assessments.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the applicant met the criteria for a protection visa under section 36(2) of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth). This involved assessing whether the applicant had a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of his race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group, or political opinion, and whether he would be owed protection under the Refugee Convention or complementary protection. The Tribunal also had to determine if the applicant satisfied the criterion in section 36(2) by being a member of the same family unit as a person who already held a protection visa, which was not suggested to be the case.

The Tribunal affirmed the decision not to grant the applicant a protection visa. While the applicant provided a detailed statutory declaration outlining his experiences in Egypt, the Tribunal's decision indicates that he did not satisfy the requirements of section 36(2) of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth). Specifically, the Tribunal noted that there was no suggestion that the applicant qualified for a visa as a family member of an existing protection visa holder. Consequently, the Tribunal affirmed the original decision to refuse the protection visa.