Javid (Migration)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal reviewed a decision to cancel the applicant's Subclass 117 (Orphan Relative) visa. The dispute arose from the applicant providing incorrect information and a bogus document in support of their visa application, specifically stating that their mother was deceased and their father was missing. In reality, both parents were alive and residing in a third country.

The Tribunal was required to determine whether the applicant's visa should be cancelled, considering the circumstances of the incorrect information and bogus document provided at the time of application, the applicant's young age and genuine belief at that time, and whether the applicant had subsequently informed the Department of Immigration when the correct information became known. The Tribunal also had to consider the applicant's personal circumstances, including financial contributions to their parents, employment, property ownership, community involvement, and the potential hardship if the visa were cancelled, as well as the conditions in their country of citizenship and the third country where their parents resided, including their ethnicity and religion.

The Tribunal reasoned that while the applicant had provided incorrect information and a bogus document, which constituted non-compliance with the Migration Act 1958, the discretion to cancel the visa should not be exercised. The Tribunal took into account the applicant's young age and genuine belief at the time of the application, and the fact that the applicant had not informed the Department of the correct information when it became known. However, the Tribunal also weighed the significant hardship the applicant would face if the visa were cancelled, including their lack of ties to their country of citizenship and the third country, and the potential risks associated with their ethnicity and religion in those locations. The Tribunal noted the possibility of the applicant applying for a protection visa.

The Tribunal set aside the decision under review and substituted a decision not to cancel the applicant's Subclass 117 (Orphan Relative) visa.