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

The proceeding concerned an application for Australian citizenship by conferral by Mr Fawaz, whose application was refused by the Minister for Immigration, Citizenship, Migrant Services and Multicultural Affairs. The central dispute was whether Mr Fawaz met the requirement of being of "good character" as stipulated by subsection 21(2)(h) of the *Citizenship Act 1948* (Cth). The matter was heard by W Frost M.

The legal issues before the court were whether the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (the Tribunal) was satisfied that Mr Fawaz was of good character, and consequently, whether he was eligible for Australian citizenship by conferral. The Minister contended that Mr Fawaz's history of criminal offending, including driving offences, assault occasioning actual bodily harm, and property damage, weighed against a finding of good character, rendering him ineligible for citizenship under subsection 24(1A) of the *Citizenship Act*.

The Tribunal, in affirming the Minister's decision, found that while Mr Fawaz had demonstrated some recent positive behaviour, including a period without police interaction, running his own business, maintaining good relationships with his children, and developing positive community links, these were outweighed by his extensive criminal history. The Tribunal noted that Mr Fawaz had a long and largely unbroken record of offending from 2011 to 2019, including a serious assault occasioning actual bodily harm involving the use of fists and a glue gun, which occurred while the victim was being restrained by another offender. Furthermore, Mr Fawaz had breached a bail condition following his conviction for this offence, demonstrating a disregard for Australian laws. The Tribunal also considered that Mr Fawaz lacked insight into his offending, which further weighed against a finding of good character. The Tribunal concluded that it was not satisfied that Mr Fawaz was of good character at that time.

The Tribunal affirmed the decision under review to refuse to grant Mr Fawaz Australian citizenship. It noted for completeness that Mr Fawaz, as a permanent resident, could re-apply for citizenship in the future.