Ajouz (Migration)

This matter concerned an application for a Child (Residence) (Class BT) visa by a Lebanese national, who was the holder of a Bridging visa at the time of application. The applicant sought review of the decision to refuse his visa application. The Tribunal was required to determine whether the applicant met the criteria for the visa, specifically whether he was a dependent child of an Australian citizen or permanent resident, and if he was over 18, whether he had undertaken full-time study or was incapacitated for work due to loss of bodily or mental functions.

The Tribunal considered whether Section 48 of the *Migration Act 1958* applied, which it found it did, as the applicant had not held a substantive visa since his last entry and had a prior visa refusal. The primary criterion for the visa was that the applicant must have become a dependent child of an Australian citizen or permanent resident since last applying for a substantive visa. While the Tribunal accepted the applicant was dependent on the sponsor from January 2014, this was prior to his substantive Protection visa application on 9 July 2014, meaning he did not become dependent *since* that application.

Furthermore, the Tribunal examined the applicant's post-18 years of age circumstances. It found that the applicant had not undertaken full-time study since completing high school in 2009, nor had he engaged in full-time study during his English language courses in Australia, which he attended only part-time. While acknowledging the applicant's reported depression and cognitive concerns, the Tribunal found that he had given oral evidence lucidly and without difficulty, with the assistance of an interpreter, and had not demonstrated an incapacity for work due to loss of bodily or mental functions. Consequently, the Tribunal affirmed the decision not to grant the visa.