Khupchawn and Minister for Immigration, Citizenship, Migrant Services and Multicultural Affairs (Citizenship)

This matter concerned an application for Australian citizenship by conferral made by the Applicant, who claimed to be a citizen of Myanmar. The Minister for Immigration, Citizenship, Migrant Services and Multicultural Affairs affirmed a delegate's decision to refuse the application, as the Minister was not satisfied of the Applicant's identity for the purposes of section 24(3) of the *Australian Citizenship Act 2007* (Cth). The Administrative Appeals Tribunal was required to review this decision.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether it was satisfied of the Applicant's identity, as required by section 24(3) of the Act. This involved assessing the evidence provided by the Applicant to support his claimed identity, particularly in relation to his life prior to being recognised as a refugee by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Malaysia. The Tribunal considered the Applicant's biometrics, documentary evidence, and the consistency and plausibility of his life story, as outlined in the Australian Citizenship Procedural Instructions (ACPI 16).

The Tribunal found that the Applicant had provided inconsistent information and limited evidence to support his claimed identity prior to his UNHCR registration. Despite having pursued higher education and lived in Malaysia for several years before his refugee status was recognised, the Applicant could not produce photographs or official documentation from these periods. Furthermore, inconsistencies were noted regarding his baptism date and the plausibility of a theology college accepting a student who had not yet been baptised. The Tribunal concluded that the Applicant had not availed himself of all reasonable opportunities to provide persuasive corroborative evidence of his identity.

Consequently, the Tribunal was not satisfied as to the Applicant's identity for the purposes of section 24(3) of the *Australian Citizenship Act 2007*. The reviewable decision of the delegate to refuse the grant of citizenship by conferral was therefore affirmed.