1507348 (Refugee)

This matter concerned an application for protection visas by an applicant and her child. The delegate of the Minister had refused the applications, finding the applicant lacked credibility and did not have a well-founded fear of persecution or a real risk of significant harm if returned to Guinea. The second applicant's visa was refused as a member of the family unit. The applicant provided the delegate's decision to the Tribunal for review.

The Tribunal was required to determine whether the applicants met the criteria for a protection visa under section 36 of the Migration Act 1958 (Cth) and Schedule 2 of the Migration Regulations 1994 (Cth). This involved assessing whether the applicant was a refugee under Article 1A(2) of the Refugees Convention, or whether Australia had complementary protection obligations due to a real risk of significant harm upon removal, as per section 36(2)(aa) of the Act. The Tribunal was also directed to consider relevant Ministerial Directions and guidelines.

The Tribunal found that it was not satisfied that either applicant was a person in respect of whom Australia had protection obligations. Consequently, the Tribunal concluded that the applicants did not satisfy the criteria under section 36(2)(a) or (aa) for a protection visa. As these primary criteria were not met, the Tribunal also found that the applicants could not satisfy the family unit criteria under section 36(2)(b) or (c).

The Tribunal affirmed the delegate's decision not to grant the protection visas to the applicants.