1720991 (Refugee)

The applicant, an ethnic Chinese Christian Malaysian, sought review of a decision by the Refugee Review Tribunal (RRT) which affirmed the refusal of his application for a protection visa. The applicant had failed to attend the hearing before the RRT.

The primary legal issue before the Federal Circuit Court was whether the RRT had erred in affirming the delegate's decision to refuse the protection visa, notwithstanding the applicant's failure to attend the hearing. This involved considering whether the RRT had adequately assessed the applicant's claims in the absence of his participation and whether the RRT had properly applied the relevant provisions of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth) and the *Migration Regulations 1994* (Cth).

The Court found that the RRT had not erred in its decision. It was open to the RRT to proceed with the assessment of the applicant's claims based on the information before it, even though the applicant failed to attend the hearing. The RRT was entitled to conclude that the applicant had not established a well-founded fear of persecution or that he would not be entitled to protection under Australia's international non-refoulement obligations. The Court affirmed the RRT's decision.