1913179 (Migration)

This matter concerned an appeal by a young male applicant against the cancellation of his Subclass 155 (Five Year Resident Return) visa. The applicant had arrived in Australia in 2012 and was granted a protection visa based on his status as an unaccompanied Hazara minor in Afghanistan. Subsequently, the Department of Home Affairs formed the view that the applicant had provided incorrect information in his protection visa application, specifically regarding his previous visa history and family composition. This led to the issuance of a notice of intention to consider cancellation of his protection visa, and ultimately, the cancellation of his resident return visa. The applicant sought review of this decision in the Administrative Appeals Tribunal.

The primary legal issues before the Tribunal were whether the applicant had failed to comply with his obligations under the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth) by providing incorrect information in his protection visa application, and if so, whether the cancellation of his visa was warranted. The Tribunal was required to determine if the incorrect information provided was material to the grant of the protection visa and to consider the circumstances in which the non-compliance occurred when exercising its discretion regarding cancellation.

The Tribunal found that the applicant had indeed provided incorrect information in his protection visa application concerning his previous visa history, family composition, and whether he had close relatives in Australia. However, the Tribunal was satisfied that the decision to grant the protection visa was not based on this incorrect information. Instead, the grant was based on the applicant's well-founded fear of persecution as an unaccompanied Hazara minor in Afghanistan. The Tribunal accepted the applicant's explanation for providing the incorrect information, noting his young age, traumatic journey to Australia, and lack of English proficiency at the time, which led him to rely on advice from others regarding the visa application process. Despite the non-compliance, the Tribunal exercised its discretion not to cancel the visa, finding that the circumstances did not warrant such action.