1711157 (Refugee)

This matter concerned an application for review of a delegate of the Minister for Immigration's decision to refuse a protection visa. The applicant, a national of Malaysia, sought review of the decision made on 18 May 2017, having applied for the visa on 22 February 2017. The Administrative Appeals Tribunal commenced its hearing on 21 June 2019, with the hearing continuing on 2 September 2019 before the Tribunal member, Justin Meyer.

The Tribunal was required to determine whether the applicant 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 person in respect of whom Australia had protection obligations, either on refugee grounds or complementary protection grounds, and whether any asserted fear of persecution was genuine, well-founded, and for a claimed reason. The Tribunal also considered relevant policy guidelines and country information.

The Tribunal made findings of fact, including that the applicant was a Malaysian national and did not have the right to enter and reside in any safe third country. The applicant claimed that while employed in Malaysia, his employer's financial misconduct led to the company experiencing cash flow issues. To address these issues, the applicant and other employees took shares in the company. The employer then siphoned money from the company, resulting in the company being unable to pay suppliers. The applicant stated that he incurred significant debt through high-interest loans from a loan shark due to these circumstances, leading to threats and an inability to relocate within Malaysia without being found. The Tribunal noted that a fear of persecution is not well-founded if it is based on assumption or mere speculation.