1805188 (Refugee)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered an application for a protection visa made by an applicant who was not in Australia. The dispute concerned whether the applicant met the eligibility criteria for the visa.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the applicant satisfied the criterion that they be a non-citizen in Australia, as stipulated by section 36(2) of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth), for the grant of a protection visa.

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. It noted that section 36(2) specifically requires an applicant for a protection visa to be in Australia. Movement records indicated the applicant had departed Australia in October 2022. Despite being notified of this information and invited to comment, the applicant did not respond. Consequently, the Tribunal was satisfied that the applicant was not in Australia and therefore did not meet the criterion under section 36(2).

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