1904657 (Refugee)

This matter concerned the review of two protection visa applications made by a Bangladeshi national. The first application, for a Safe Haven Enterprise Visa (SHEV), was made on 12 December 2016, and the second, for a Protection Visa (PV), was made on 7 October 2020. The Tribunal was required to determine whether the applicant met the criteria for a protection visa, particularly in light of information obtained regarding his alleged involvement in a death in Bangladesh and the validity of his second visa application.

The primary legal issues before the Tribunal were whether the applicant had a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of his political opinion, imputed or personally held, and whether his second visa application was valid given the operation of section 48A of the Migration Act 1958 (Cth). The Tribunal also considered whether effective protection measures were available to the applicant in Bangladesh and whether he could take reasonable steps to avoid persecution.

The Tribunal found that the applicant had a well-founded fear of persecution in Bangladesh due to his political opinion, stemming from his father's prominent position within the BNP and his own active involvement in the party. It was satisfied that there was a real chance of serious harm, that this risk extended to all areas of Bangladesh, and that no effective protection measures were available. Regarding the second visa application, the Tribunal determined that the section 48A bar had not been lifted and therefore the application was invalid. Consequently, the Tribunal remitted the first SHEV application with a direction that the applicant satisfied the criteria under section 36(2)(a) of the Act. The decision to refuse the second PV application was set aside, and it was substituted with a decision that the application was not valid.