Hamshari and Minister for Immigration and Border Protection (Citizenship)

This matter concerned an application for citizenship by conferral by the Applicant, who resided and worked in the United Arab Emirates, against a decision of the Minister for Immigration and Border Protection. The Applicant, an electrical engineer, had been a permanent resident of Australia since 2004 but had spent a significant majority of the intervening years offshore. The dispute centred on whether the Applicant met the statutory residence requirements for citizenship and whether he was likely to reside in Australia or maintain a close and continuing association with Australia if his application were approved. The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) considered evidence including documents from the delegate's decision, additional material from the Applicant and his wife, and oral evidence from both parties.

The Tribunal was required to determine two primary issues: firstly, whether the Applicant satisfied the residence requirements for citizenship by conferral as stipulated in section 21(2)(c) of the *Australian Citizenship Act 2007* (Cth), considering both the general residence requirement under section 22 and any applicable special residence requirements; and secondly, whether the Applicant met the character requirement under section 21(2)(g) of the Act, which mandates that the applicant be of good character. The Applicant did not contend that he met any of the special residence requirements outlined in sections 22A, 22B, or 23 of the Act.

The Tribunal found that the Applicant did not satisfy the general residence requirement under section 22 of the Act, as he had not been present in Australia for the requisite periods immediately before his application. However, the Tribunal determined that the Applicant did satisfy the requirement under section 21(2)(g) of the Act, indicating he was of good character. Consequently, the Tribunal set aside the delegate's decision and remitted the matter for reconsideration, with directions that the Applicant satisfied both section 21(2)(c) and section 21(2)(g) of the Act.