1828209 (Refugee)

The applicant, a citizen of Vietnam, sought review of a decision by the Minister to refuse to grant a protection visa (subclass 866). The applicant claimed to face persecution in Vietnam due to allegations of embezzlement, for which the death penalty was a possible consequence. The Minister's decision was based on the assessment that the applicant did not meet the criteria for protection under section 36(2)(aa) of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth), which relates to complementary protection. The matter came before Deputy President Jan Redfern of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the applicant had established a real chance of suffering significant harm if returned to Vietnam, thereby engaging Australia's protection obligations under the complementary protection criteria. This required the Tribunal to assess the credibility of the applicant's claims regarding the embezzlement charges and the potential severity of the consequences, including the possibility of the death penalty.

Deputy President Redfern applied the "real chance" test, which requires a finding that there is a real chance, as opposed to a mere possibility, that the applicant would suffer significant harm. The Tribunal considered the evidence presented by the applicant concerning the embezzlement allegations and the Vietnamese legal system's approach to such offences. After reviewing the material, the Tribunal found that the applicant had established a real chance of suffering significant harm.

Consequently, the Tribunal remitted the application to the Minister with a direction that a protection visa (subclass 866) be granted to the applicant.