2309045 (Refugee)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered an application for a protection visa made by a non-citizen who had departed Australia. The applicant sought review of a decision not to grant the visa.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the applicant satisfied the criterion that they be a non-citizen *in Australia* at the time of the decision, as stipulated by section 36(2) of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth). This criterion is a prerequisite for the grant of a protection visa under section 65(1) of the Act.

The Tribunal noted that movement records indicated the applicant had left Australia in September 2023. The Tribunal provided the applicant with an opportunity to comment on this information, advising that failure to respond by a specified date would result in the Tribunal proceeding without their input. As no response was received, the Tribunal was satisfied that the applicant was not in Australia. Consequently, the Tribunal concluded that the applicant did not meet the essential criterion of being in Australia and therefore could not be granted a protection visa. The Tribunal found it unnecessary to consider the substantive grounds of the applicant's protection claims.

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