FSR18 v Minister for Home Affairs

This matter came before Judge Driver of the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia concerning a review of a decision by the Immigration Assessment Authority (IAA). The applicant, who claimed a fear of harm in Pakistan, had their protection visa application refused by the IAA. While the IAA accepted the applicant's fear of harm, it found that relocation to Islamabad would be reasonable, thereby negating the need for a protection visa.

The central legal issue before the court was whether the IAA erred in its assessment of the reasonableness of the applicant's internal relocation to Islamabad. Specifically, the court was required to determine if the IAA had adequately considered the "particular circumstances of the applicant" and the impact of relocation upon them, and whether the assessment was sufficiently fact-intensive and avoided generalities.

Judge Driver found that the IAA had committed jurisdictional error. The court reasoned that assessing the reasonableness of internal relocation requires a detailed, fact-intensive analysis of the individual's circumstances, including their personal strengths, weaknesses, skills, and support networks, rather than a broad-brush approach. The IAA's reasoning, which was described as "relatively brief," relied on general country information and did not sufficiently engage with the specific challenges the applicant raised regarding employment, subsistence, and the practicalities of establishing a life in Islamabad without familial or tribal connections. The court noted that while the IAA considered some aspects of the applicant's situation, it failed to adequately address the practical and realistic ability of the applicant to restart their life in a new place without undue hardship, leading to the assessment becoming "formulaic, and removed from any real factual basis."

The court ordered that the decision of the Immigration Assessment Authority be set aside.