1728139 (Refugee)

This matter concerned an application for a protection visa by an applicant from China who was offshore. The decision was made by Senior Member Louise Nicholls of the Tribunal.

The central legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the applicant met the criteria for a protection visa, specifically the requirement that the applicant be a non-citizen *in Australia*.

The Tribunal reasoned that under section 36(2) of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth), a criterion for a protection visa is that the applicant must be a non-citizen in Australia. Movement records indicated the applicant had departed Australia on 27 January 2018. The Tribunal notified the applicant of this information and invited a response, which was not received. Consequently, the Tribunal was satisfied that the applicant was not in Australia and therefore did not satisfy the requirements of section 36(2). As this criterion was not met, the Tribunal found it unnecessary to consider the substantive claims for the grant of the visa.

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