2012369 (Refugee)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered an application for a protection visa made by an applicant from Vietnam. The dispute centred on whether the applicant met the eligibility criteria for the visa, specifically the requirement of being present in Australia.

The Tribunal was required to determine whether the applicant satisfied the criterion that they be a non-citizen in Australia, as stipulated by section 36(2) of the relevant Act, for the grant of a protection visa. This involved assessing the applicant's physical presence within Australia at the time of the decision.

The Tribunal's reasoning was based on movement records indicating the applicant had departed Australia in September 2023. Consequently, the Tribunal determined that the applicant was not in Australia and therefore did not meet the fundamental criterion under section 36(2). The Tribunal had invited the applicant to comment on this information, but no response was received. As the applicant failed to satisfy this essential requirement, the Tribunal concluded it was unnecessary to consider the substantive grounds of the protection claim. The Tribunal affirmed the decision not to grant the applicant a protection visa.