BFQX and Minister for Immigration, Citizenship, Migrant Services and Multicultural Affairs (Migration)

The applicant, BFQX, sought judicial review of a decision by the Minister for Immigration, Citizenship, Migrant Services and Multicultural Affairs to affirm the mandatory cancellation of his Class XA Protection visa. The dispute centred on whether there was another reason to revoke the mandatory cancellation, considering the applicant did not pass the character test. The matter was heard by Theodore Tavoularis SM in the Administrative Appeals Tribunal.

The Tribunal was required to determine whether certain claimed protective factors, including abstinence from illicit drugs, participation in rehabilitation courses, employment prospects, religious beliefs, responsibility towards his parents, educational achievements, and adherence to parole reporting, were sufficient to outweigh the serious nature of the applicant's past conduct and the risk of re-offending. The Tribunal also had to consider Ministerial Direction No. 90, which outlines the framework for assessing character concerns, including primary considerations such as the protection of the Australian community and community expectations, and other considerations such as international non-refoulement obligations.

The Tribunal found that the applicant's claimed protective factors lacked substance and had historically failed to prevent him from engaging in very serious offending upon his return to the community. The Tribunal noted that periods of abstinence in custody did not translate to sustained abstinence in the community, and rehabilitation programs and educational courses had not demonstrably reduced his recidivist risk. The Tribunal concluded that the applicant's unlawful conduct in Australia was of a "very serious, more likely extremely serious" nature, and that the risk of future harm to the Australian community if he were to re-offend was unacceptable.

The Tribunal affirmed the decision to refuse to revoke the mandatory cancellation of the applicant's visa.