1718469 (Refugee)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered an application for a protection visa by a citizen of China. The applicant had departed Australia, and the Tribunal reviewed the decision not to grant the visa.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the applicant met the criterion for a protection visa that they must be in Australia at the time of the decision.

The Tribunal reasoned that section 36(2) of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth) mandates that an applicant for a protection visa must be in Australia. Movement records indicated the applicant had left Australia in November 2021. The Tribunal notified the applicant of this information and invited comment, but no response was received. Consequently, the Tribunal was satisfied the applicant was not in Australia and therefore did not meet the statutory requirement. As this criterion was not met, the Tribunal concluded it was unnecessary to consider the substantive grounds of the protection claim.

The Tribunal affirmed the decision not to grant the applicant a protection visa.