1724459 (Refugee)

The applicant, a citizen of China, sought review of a decision not to grant her a protection visa. The decision maker, Catherine Carney-Orsborn, sitting as a member of the Tribunal, was required to determine whether the applicant met the criteria for a protection visa.

The central legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the applicant satisfied the criterion that she be a non-citizen in Australia, as stipulated by section 36(2) of the relevant Act. This criterion is a prerequisite for the grant of a protection visa under section 65(1) of the Act.

The Tribunal reasoned that movement records indicated the applicant had left Australia in January 2020. The Tribunal notified the applicant of this information and invited her to comment, but she did not respond. Consequently, the Tribunal was satisfied that the applicant was not in Australia, and therefore did not meet the essential criterion under section 36(2). As this criterion was not met, the Tribunal concluded it was unnecessary to consider the substantive grounds of her protection claim. The Tribunal affirmed the decision not to grant the applicant a protection visa.