1719909 (Refugee)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered an application for a protection visa made by a non-citizen who was not within Australia. The applicant sought review of a 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 a non-citizen in Australia, as stipulated by section 36(2) of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth).

The Tribunal reasoned that section 65(1) of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth) requires a decision maker to be satisfied that prescribed criteria for a visa have been met before granting it. As the applicant was not in Australia, evidenced by movement records and confirmed by the Tribunal after the applicant failed to respond to a request for comment, they did not satisfy the criterion under section 36(2). Consequently, the Tribunal found it unnecessary to consider the applicant's substantive claims for protection.

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