2403899 (Refugee)

The applicant, a citizen of Tonga, sought a protection visa, claiming a fear of harm from a local criminal group. The dispute centred on whether the applicant met the criteria for complementary protection under the Migration Act 1958 (Cth). The decision was made by Wayne Pennell.

The court was required to determine if the applicant had a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group, or political opinion, or if he qualified for complementary protection due to a real risk of significant harm. The court also considered the applicant's extensive travel history to Australia for work and the timing of his protection visa application.

The court placed greater weight on country information regarding the availability of effective law enforcement in Tonga than on the applicant's uncorroborated evidence. The applicant's claims of multiple attacks and robberies were found to be vague, with details of incidents, including the first alleged incident in 2014, only provided for the first time at the hearing. The court noted that no physical harm arose from these incidents, and the applicant did not report the earliest incident to the police. The court also observed that the applicant had been granted multiple visas and had travelled to Australia on seven occasions for work purposes, earning money, before lodging his protection visa application eight months after his last arrival, shortly before his working visa was due to expire.

The decision under review was affirmed.