JYVT and Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs (Migration)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (the Tribunal) considered the case of JYVT, a non-citizen facing the non-revocation of a mandatory cancellation of his Global Special Humanitarian visa and the subsequent refusal of a Protection visa. The dispute centred on whether there was another reason to revoke the mandatory cancellation and to exercise the discretion to grant the Protection visa, despite the applicant not passing the character test due to his criminal history. The Tribunal's decision was reviewed by the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia.

The legal issues before the court included determining whether the Tribunal erred in its assessment of the applicant's criminal history, which displayed an increasing trend of seriousness, and whether Australia's non-refoulement obligations were adequately considered. The court also had to consider the implications of the applicant's indefinite detention as a consequence of the Tribunal's decision and the application of Ministerial Direction No. 99 in the decision-making process.

The court reasoned that the applicant's criminal history, which spanned from juvenile offending in 2013 to adult offending until May 2017, involved 46 offences across 10 sentencing episodes. This history included extremely serious offending such as premeditated armed robbery involving a firearm, as well as arson and burglary. The court found that this conduct squarely fell within the ambit of conduct viewed very seriously by the Australian Government and community, particularly violent crimes and the use of prohibited weapons in the context of premeditated offending. The court affirmed the Tribunal's decisions, finding no error in its consideration of the applicant's circumstances and the relevant legal principles.