1722396 (Refugee)

This matter concerned an application for a protection visa by an individual from Iran. The applicant claimed to have participated in anti-government protests in Iran and alleged past persecution, including arrest, detention, and torture. The applicant also claimed to have participated in protests while in Australia. The decision under review was made by the Refugee Tribunal, presided over by Senior Member Denis Dragovic.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the applicant faced a real risk of significant harm or serious harm upon return to Iran, thereby engaging Australia's protection obligations under the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth). This involved assessing the applicant's credibility, particularly in light of inconsistencies in his account of his past activities and detention in Iran, and considering country information regarding the treatment of voluntary returnees and individuals who have protested abroad. The Tribunal also considered the cumulative effect of the applicant's various claims, including his ethnicity as an Ahwazi Arab and past experiences of discrimination and extortion.

The Tribunal found substantial disparities in the applicant's evidence regarding his alleged arrest, detention, and torture in Iran. Specifically, the applicant's accounts of the circumstances and duration of his detention varied significantly between his statutory declaration and his oral testimony. The Tribunal also considered country information indicating that Iranian authorities generally do not scrutinise or penalise voluntary returnees for activities undertaken outside Iran, including protests, unless they were previously known to the authorities for such actions. Based on this assessment of the evidence and country information, the Tribunal concluded that the applicant did not face a real chance of serious harm or a real risk of significant harm upon return to Iran, even when considering his claims cumulatively.

Consequently, the Tribunal affirmed the decision not to grant the applicant a protection visa, finding that he did not satisfy the criteria under s.36(2)(a) or s.36(2)(aa) of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth).