2104176 (Refugee)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered an application for a protection visa made by a Lebanese national. The applicant sought protection in Australia, but the core of the dispute revolved around the applicant's physical presence within Australia at the time of the decision.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the applicant satisfied the criterion for a protection visa that they must be a non-citizen *in Australia*. This criterion is stipulated by section 36(2) of the relevant Act, which mandates that a visa may only be granted if the prescribed criteria are met, including the applicant's presence in Australia.

The Tribunal's reasoning focused on the applicant's location. Movement records indicated that the applicant had departed Australia on 27 October 2021. The Tribunal notified the applicant of this information and invited comment, but no response was received. Consequently, the Tribunal was satisfied that the applicant was not in Australia, and therefore did not meet the fundamental requirement of section 36(2) for the grant of a protection visa. As this criterion was not met, the Tribunal concluded it was unnecessary to consider the substantive grounds of the applicant's protection claim. The Tribunal affirmed the decision not to grant the applicant a protection visa.