Choi and Minister for Immigration and Border Protection (Citizenship)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered the eligibility of Mr. Choi for Australian citizenship, specifically whether he was a person of good character as required by the *Australian Citizenship Act 2007* (Cth). The Minister for Immigration and Border Protection had refused Mr. Choi's application on character grounds.

The Tribunal was required to determine whether Mr. Choi met the good character requirement, notwithstanding a significant period of unlawful presence in Australia, a failure to pay taxes, and traffic offences. The Tribunal also had to consider the weight to be given to character references provided by the applicant in assessing his overall character.

Senior Member Poljak acknowledged the character references submitted by Mr. Choi, noting they weighed in favour of his application. However, the Tribunal was not satisfied, on the evidence as a whole, that Mr. Choi was a person of good character. The decision under review, which affirmed the refusal of citizenship, was therefore affirmed. The Tribunal indicated that future eligibility might be possible if Mr. Choi demonstrated continued good behaviour, managed his financial affairs appropriately, including paying taxes, and allowed sufficient time to pass to lessen doubts arising from his past period of unlawfulness.