Anyoun and Minister for Immigration and Border Protection (Migration)

This matter concerned an application by Mr. Anyoun for the revocation of a visa cancellation decision made by the Minister for Immigration and Border Protection. The dispute arose because Mr. Anyoun failed the character test due to having a substantial criminal record, specifically a sentence of imprisonment for three years imposed by the Victorian County Court on 30 April 2014. The court was required to determine whether there was another reason why the original visa cancellation decision should be revoked, as provided for under section 501CA(4)(b)(ii) of the Migration Act 1958 (Cth).

The court's reasoning focused on the assessment of factors for and against revoking the cancellation, as guided by Direction No. 65. The Tribunal noted Mr. Anyoun's extensive criminal history, including serious incidents while in custody. These included assaulting a prison officer by pouring boiling water over their head, resulting in thermal injuries and PTSD, and later punching another prison officer. Further incidents involved destruction of property and spitting at a prison officer. The Tribunal acknowledged that Mr. Anyoun failed the character test due to his substantial criminal record. However, it was required to consider if there was "another reason" to revoke the cancellation, a process that involves a single stage of assessment and evaluation of all relevant factors.