1906050 (Refugee)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered an application for a protection visa made by a non-citizen. The applicant had left Australia, and the Tribunal had communicated with the applicant regarding this fact, inviting comment. No response was received from the applicant.

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 also considered whether it was necessary to assess the substantive grounds for the protection claim given the applicant's absence from Australia.

The Tribunal reasoned that section 36(2) of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth) mandates that an applicant for a protection visa must be a non-citizen in Australia. Movement records indicated the applicant had departed Australia in November 2019. Despite the Tribunal’s communication inviting comment on this information, no response was received. Consequently, the Tribunal was satisfied that the applicant was not in Australia and therefore did not meet the criterion under section 36(2) of the Act.

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