Georgi and Minister for Immigration and Border Protection (Citizenship)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal considered an application for review by Mr Georgi concerning the refusal of his application for Australian citizenship. The primary dispute centred on whether Mr Georgi satisfied the residence requirements stipulated by the *Australian Citizenship Act 2007* (Cth) for the conferral of citizenship.

The Tribunal was required to determine if Mr Georgi had been present in Australia for the four years immediately preceding his application, and if he had been a permanent resident in Australia for the 12 months prior to his application. Additionally, the Tribunal needed to ascertain if Mr Georgi held a permanent visa granted due to an interdependent relationship with an Australian citizen and if he remained in such a relationship. The central legal issue was whether Mr Georgi met the general residence requirements, and if not, whether any discretionary provisions within the Act could be applied to his circumstances.

The Tribunal found that Mr Georgi did not meet the general residence requirements under section 22(1) of the Act. Specifically, he had been absent from Australia for 421 days in the four years prior to his application and for 214 days in the 12 months immediately before his application. While Mr Georgi argued for an exemption based on his relationship with his partner and his mother, the Tribunal determined that the discretion under section 22(11) of the Act was not applicable to his situation as he failed to meet the foundational requirement under section 22(1)(a). Consequently, the Tribunal affirmed the decision to refuse Mr Georgi's application for Australian citizenship.