2217981 (Refugee)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered an application for a protection visa made by an applicant who had departed Australia. The Tribunal was required to determine whether the applicant met the criteria for the grant of a protection visa.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the applicant satisfied the criterion that they be a non-citizen in Australia, as stipulated by section 36(2) of the relevant Act. This criterion is a prerequisite for the grant of a protection visa.

The Tribunal reasoned that movement records indicated the applicant had left Australia in January 2024. Consequently, the applicant was not physically present in Australia, failing to meet the essential criterion under section 36(2). The Tribunal had invited the applicant to comment on this information, but no response was received. As the applicant did not satisfy this fundamental 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 protection visa.