1710822 (Refugee)

This matter concerned an application for a protection visa by two applicants, identified as [Applicant 1] and [Applicant 2]. The dispute arose from the refusal of their protection visa application, which was under review by the Administrative Appeals Tribunal. The Tribunal was required to consider whether the applicants met the criteria for a protection visa, specifically in relation to claims of discrimination and persecution upon return to Vietnam.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the applicants faced a real risk of suffering significant harm if removed from Australia to Vietnam, thereby meeting the complementary protection criterion under section 36(2)(aa) of the Act. This involved assessing the applicant's fear of discrimination and persecution as a single mother with a child born out of wedlock in Vietnamese society, and whether such harm would be a necessary and foreseeable consequence of their return. The Tribunal also had to consider the mandatory requirements of Ministerial Direction No. 84, including the application of relevant policy guidelines and country information assessments.

The Tribunal considered the applicant's claims that she feared being ostracised, discriminated against, and subjected to verbal abuse and threats of violence by her community in Vietnam due to having a child out of wedlock. She also stated that her family had disowned her and that the police would likely be unable to provide protection, suggesting that any harm would be subtle. The Tribunal accepted the applicants' identities and that Vietnam was their receiving country. However, the decision text provided does not detail the Tribunal's ultimate findings or reasoning regarding the risk of significant harm, nor does it state the final orders made.