1828898 (Refugee)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered an application for a protection visa made by a non-citizen who was not in Australia. The applicant sought review of a decision not to grant the visa.

The primary 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 protection visa can only be granted if the applicant is in Australia. Movement records indicated the applicant had left Australia in December 2017. 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 satisfy the criterion under section 36(2). The Tribunal concluded that it was unnecessary to consider the substantive claims for protection.

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